Bruce Wayne Dionne

Bruce Wayne Dionne, 74, of Auburn, died Friday, August 20, 2021, following a long and courageous battle with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis. Originally given a life expectancy of 3-5 years, Bruce went on to live life to the fullest for a total of nine years. To say Bruce was a fighter is an obvious understatement.

Bruce was born in Manchester, NH October 14, 1946, to Emile and Persis (Fisher) Dionne. He enlisted in the Navy Reserves as a high school Junior and left for boot camp in San Diego, CA. He served active duty in the Navy on the USS Hunley from beginning 1965 until 1967. Bruce then transferred to the US Navy Reserve where he served from 1967 until 1981. In 1981 Bruce then transferred his enlistment to the US Air Force Reserve where he proudly served in the 157th Air Fueling and Air Frame Repair unit until retirement in December of 1990, completing a total of 22 years of service. Bruce held his Associate Degree in Heating and Refrigeration. He worked at GTE Sylvania from 1979 until 1982. While working at Sylvania Bruce was attending New Hampshire College where he graduated with his Bachelor Degree in Technical Business. In 1982 he began working for Elliot Hospital in the maintenance department as a HVAC Technician until his retirement in 2010.
Bruce deeply enjoyed traveling with his wife, and the pair also spent time metal detecting as members of the Granite State Metal Detecting Club. Bruce enjoyed all things outdoors including hiking and hunting. He had particularly fond memories of the annual hunting trip to Colebrook, NH with his son, grandchildren, and brother at this nephew’s camp. Later in life Bruce became a geocaching enthusiast under the username #1Batman. He accumulated a total of 16,208 caches and even completed a very recent first-to-find cache despite his illness.
Bruce is survived by his wife of nearly 55 years, Jo-Ann (Burke) Dionne; his son, Jeffrey Dionne and wife, Tina; his son, Kenneth Dionne; grandchildren, William, Tyler, Nolan, and Bailey Dionne, and Torre and Tanner Walls; great-granddaughter Emma Sue Walls, and a second great-granddaughter who will grace the family in September. He also leaves behind his brother, Donald Dionne and wife, Lydia; sister-in-law, Kathryn Hartwell; as well as numerous extended family members and countless treasured friends.
Family and friends are invited to gather Tuesday, August 31st 9:00am-10:00am at the Cremation Society of New Hampshire, 172 King Street in Boscawen. A Memorial Service will be held in the funeral home chapel at 10:00 and will be followed immediately by burial with military honors at the New Hampshire State Veterans Cemetery, 110 Daniel Webster Highway in Boscawen. In lieu of flowers, and in honor of September being National Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Month, memorial contributions may be made to the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation https://www.pulmonaryfibrosis.org/ or to St. Jude’s Hospital for Children at www.stjude.org.