Carroll Bruun, 84, of Winner, SD passed away peacefully with family by his side on Saturday, Oct. 15, 2022, at the Winner Regional Healthcare Center.
A Celebration of Life will be held on Friday, Nov. 4, 2022, at 11 a.m. at the Winner United Methodist Church in Winner, SD. A visitation with family present will take place one hour prior to the service. Burial will be held at a later date.
Carroll Helmer Bruun was born on Feb. 11, 1938, to Helmer and Mae (Nelson) Bruun. Helmer came to America from Tarm, Denmark and met Mae, who was from Reliance, SD. Carroll was born in Colome, SD and was baptized Sept. 21, 1941, at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Dallas, SD. He grew up on the family farm southwest of Dallas with two sisters Ginny and Marlene. Carroll started school at the early age of five at the Lincoln Country School; two cousins Mavis and Wes Nelson, as well as his two sisters, attended that same school. He graduated from Gregory High School in 1955. During his high school years, he lived with the Hoffie family in Gregory while working at Louie’s Grocery. Highlights of this time were playing American Legion Baseball and winning back-to-back State Championships in 1954 and 1955. Carroll was an outstanding pitcher and center fielder.
Carroll met Janet Schramm in 1951 on a bus ride going to 4-H camp. Janet was seated behind the bus driver, and when she would look into his mirror, she could see this cute, blonde, blue-eyed boy sitting a few rows behind her winking at her. So yes, they got acquainted and were dance partners at camp! That was the beginning of their dancing career. The next two years, they would see each other when the Bruuns would come to Winner to watch Pheasant baseball. The summer before Carroll’s junior year (1953), they started dating and were later engaged on May 21, 1956. In the fall of 1956, Carroll went to Huntington Park, CA to work for General Motors on a car assembly line. In January, Janet headed to Los Angeles, CA to work at a bank. In May of 1957, Carroll wanted to move back to farm with his dad, so he and Janet headed back to South Dakota. One year to the day after getting engaged, they broke off their engagement. Over the next seven years, their paths crossed about once a year.
For the next few years, Carroll farmed and worked at a feed mill. In 1962, Carroll started farming full-time and entered the dairy business in 1963. In July of 1963, Janet was home from her teaching job in Rapid City. She went to Frank Day’s in Dallas; she walked in the door, and Carroll grabbed her hand and said, “Here’s someone I can dance with!” Second engagement was in September of 1963 with a wedding to follow on Feb. 22, 1964. Carroll continued to farm, and Janet started her teaching career in Winner. In the early years of their marriage, special twins, Donnie and Ronnie Matthews (neighbor boys to Howard and Irene Schramm), started making frequent trips to the farm on weekends. They eventually stayed and became part of the family. Johnyne Carol was born on Dec. 16, 1968; Jacey Jane on Dec. 6, 1973; and Jad Howard on Feb. 13, 1975. During their early years of marriage, Carroll enjoyed traveling to Denmark to visit his Bruun relatives. He enjoyed their return trips to visit as well.
Carroll retired from the farm in 2005. Carroll and Jad completely rebuilt the old farmhouse; Carroll and Janet lived in that house for many years during their retirement before moving back to town full-time. Carroll enjoyed going to coffee at Jonos in Gregory and McDonalds in Winner. He and Janet loved following their six grandkids in all of their activities; they also enjoyed taking as many trips as they could, especially to Branson, MO. Spending time in Brookings while attending SDSU basketball games and staying in Parker, which became their second home, were highlights of their lives. Fondest memories were having all six grandkids together at the farm and most recently visits from new great-granddaughter, Murphy.
Carroll is survived by his wife Janet of Winner; daughter Johnyne (Brad) Horstman of Winner; daughter Jacey (Dale) Peters of Parker; and son Jad (Suny) Bruun of Dallas. Grandchildren: Zachary (Tayler) Horstman of Mitchell; Jayden Bruun of Spearfish; Kylie (Jayd) VanDerWerff of Gregory; Kelby Peters of Sioux Falls; Joren Bruun of Dallas; and Karley Peters of Parker. Great-granddaughter Murphy Jean Horstman. Sister Marlene (Tom) Hansen of Canyon Lake, TX; brother-in-law Chuck Schramm of Sioux Falls; and many nieces, nephews, and cousins.
Carroll was preceded in death by his parents Helmer and Mae Bruun; in-laws Howard and Irene (G’ma Chic) Schramm; sister Ginny Canon; brothers-in-law Doyle Robertson and Jay Canon; nephew Brad Robertson and niece Debbie Robertson.
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