William Averill Brueske of Arcata, California, passed away on June 12, 2021 at 85.
Born in Chicago, IL, November 2, 1935, to Virginie and George Brueske, at five his family moved to Minnetonka Mills, Minnesota. Bill grew up in an idyllic rural environment, and love of nature remained with him for life. In 1941 Bill began school in Wayzata. He compressed his junior and senior high school years into one and graduated a year early in 1952 as Salutatorian.
After graduation he worked summers as a map draftsman for a Minneapolis geological consulting firm. Entering University of Minnesota, he graduated in 1957 with a B.A. Zoology. He entered graduate school at U of M majoring in Zoology, with a minor in Microbiology and was a Teaching Assistant in the Department of Zoology for four years. His special training was in Parasitology and Protozoology, leading to a Ph.D. in 1967. In 1966, Bill became Assistant Professor of Zoology at HSU Arcata, CA, where he taught courses in General Zoology, Protozoology, etc.
He retired as full Professor in 2004, but continued to pursue protozoology in a home laboratory. Since his early teens, Bill had a strong interest in photography, in which he attained near-professional competence. He also enjoyed reading, music, oil painting and was a skilled craftsman. William
Brueske is survived by his wife Carol whom he married in 1966, his son Averill, his sister Judith Brueske-Plimmer.
No memorial service. He most wished to be remembered by the many students of zoology and biology whom he taught for over four decades of his life.
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