REV. SAMUEL L. BRUER  Pastor of Trinity from 1908-1911

ASLEEP IN JESUS.   The soul of Rev. Samuel L. Bruer, age 92, was taken to his heavenly home on Tuesday, July 20, 1976. The funeral text was 1 Cor. 15:57, “Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Christian burial services were held at The Lutheran Church of the Epiphany, Detroit, MI on Friday.

 Pastor Bruer graduated from Concordia Theological Seminary in Springfield, Illinois in 1908.  He served as an ordained clergyman for 68 years.  He served Trinity Lutheran Church in Traverse City, MI from 1908 to 1911; St. John Lutheran Church in Burlington, MI from 1913 to 1914; Trinity Lutheran Church, in Hartfield, South Dakota from 1918 to 1921.

He resigned from active ministry in 1921 and continued his education at Michigan State University and the University of Michigan where he got his master’s degree.  Rev. Bruer taught German at Wayne State University from 1926 to 1953. During his career as an educator, he assisted at various churches in the Detroit area.  Between the years 1956 and 1965, Pastor Bruer assisted those at Epiphany by working among the shut-ins and instructing adult confirmation classes.

His wife, Lydia, preceded him in death on January 23, 1976. Pastor Bruer leaves to mourn his passing two daughters Mrs. Hortense Prange and Mrs. Allen Hill; two sons, Dr. Edgar S. Bruer and Dr. Edwin L. Bruer; 11 grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren, and three great-great-grandchildren.

The Epiphany Bulletin reads “We shall miss our good, loyal pastor and friend, but we rejoice with his family in the victory of the resurrection.