On his final trip to the hospital, struggling to breathe as pneumonia filled his lungs, Bruce Schieck had one request: take him to the family farm he had started more than six decades earlier. “He said ‘I’ve got to get to the barn to see how the guys are doing,’” recalled son David Schieck. “Every day he came to the farm, no matter where he was.
” Daisy Meadow dairy farm near Drayton is an impressive operation, milking 90 cows with two robots. Bruce had handed over the farm to his son, Gary Schieck, in 2006, but it would remain his anchor, the place where he felt most comfortable, most happy. Gary was also happy, given his dad’s constant presence meant he could get his work done while Bruce engaged with the numerous farm visitors.
Bruce also helped with chores and he was still plowing fields, preparing for spring seeding. Cancer treatments hadn’t stopped him from his daily visits, but a bout of pneumonia was too much for his body to fight. Bruce died Sept.
16, at 83, leaving a legacy as the quiet guy in the corner who knew how to get things done. Bruce was born Oct. 24, 1940, one of Orrin and Electa Schieck’s five kids.
Along with his siblings, they attended a one-room schoolhouse conveniently located at the corner of the family farm. “He enjoyed school,” said David, adding his father enjoyed farming more and started working full time with Orrin in 1955. Bruce was 15.
Life got exciting when a farm next to his parents came up for sale. It had a barn, som.