Bruce McDonald, 75, of Rice Lake passed away peacefully at Marshfield Medical Center Rice Lake after a courageous battle with cancer surrounded by family on Saturday, December 9, 2023.

Bruce was born in Racine, WI on March 25, 1948 to Harvey Sr. and Wilma (Stritesky) McDonald. He graduated from William Horlick High School in Racine, WI. He met and married Kathleen “Kathie” (Clark) on April 19, 1968. He was drafted into the United States Army in 1968 and served in Vietnam for 11 months. He was honorably discharged in 1971. He was a machinist at Twin Disc Factory in Racine. He was also a member of the Caledonia Fire Department. In 1984 the family moved to Rice Lake, WI. He worked a variety of jobs including EMT, paramedic and environmental services for Lakeview Medical Center. Bruce served as a 4-H leader for Lamberton 4-H in Racine and Columbia Livewires in Rice Lake. Other interests included gardening, genealogy and writing stories about his life experiences. Bruce also enjoyed hunting and fishing. Bruce was an active member of Second Presbyterian Church in Racine serving as an elder and various other committees. When the family moved to Rice Lake they joined United Presbyterian Church where he served as an elder and loved singing in the choir. On September 10, 2022 Bruce and his daughter Carmin went on the Stars and Stripes Honor Flight Mission 64 out of Milwaukee, WI honoring Veterans. Bruce’s granddaughters were the apple of his eye. He enjoyed going hunting and fishing with Stacey and Tori. Stacey and him could spend hours talking about the different birds they saw. Tori and him would have many conversations about being a paramedic and EMT. Any pictures of the girls he received he proudly showed off. Every year Stacey, Tori and Grandpa would attend the Barron County Harness races cheering on their favorite racer.

He is survived by his wife Kathie; 3 daughters Carmin, Michelle and Cheryl (Dan) Petrus; 2 granddaughters Stacey and Tori Petrus; 3 siblings, Harvey Jr (Bonnie), Gary (Karen), and Brian; sister-in-laws Vivian Clark, Carol (Mike) Knight; brother-in-laws Jerry Brinkmann, Loren (Marge) Clark and many nieces and nephews.

He is preceded in death by his parents Harvey Sr and Wilma McDonald; father-in-law and mother-in-law Emil and Lydia Clark; brother-in-law Kenneth Clark and sister-in-laws Shirley Brinkmann and Anna McDonald.

Funeral Services will be held at 11AM Monday, December 18, 2023 at the United Presbyterian Church in Rice Lake, Rev. Dewey Johnson officiating, with interment in the Northern Wisconsin Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Spooner, WI. Visitation will be held on Sunday, December 17 from 1-4 pm at Appleyard’s Home for Funerals in Rice Lake, WI and for one hour prior to the funeral service at the church on Monday. In lieu of flowers, memorials would be appreciated to the United Presbyterian Church or the Rice Lake American Legion Post.

Last Update: Dec 12, 2023 2:29 pm CST