Gene Bard

life story

A celebration of Gene’s life will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Friday, December 1st, at Unity Unitarian Church located at 733 Portland Avenue in St. Paul.

Gene Charles Bard, 87, passed away on Oct. 18, 2023 in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Gene was born on Dec. 29, 1935, in Hillsboro, Oregon, to parents Tom and Elva (Shibley) Bard. He was raised in Forest Grove, Oregon, along with his older brother, Glenn, and younger brother, Jack. Gene graduated from Forest Grove High School in 1954, and then attended Pacific University, from which he graduated in 1958 with a Bachelor of Science. He earned his Master of Social Work degree in 1961 from the University of Washington. Gene also served in the Air Force Reserves from Nov. 1961 to June 1964, when he was honorably discharged.

Gene’s steadfast commitment to helping others was evident throughout his career. He held numerous social worker positions, beginning at Family and Children’s Service in Minneapolis (1963 – 1969), Wilder Foundation in St. Paul (1962-1963), and Children’s Service in St. Paul (1962).

On August 14, 1965, Gene married Peggy (McQueen). Together, they shared interests and values during their 46-year marriage that brought them a happy, satisfying and exciting life together. They welcomed two beloved children, Jeff and Megan, and raised their family in Duluth, Minnesota. During this time, Gene continued his career of helping others by serving as the executive director of Family Service of Duluth (1969-1987) and working for St. Louis County (1987-1996).

Later, Gene and Peggy welcomed daughter-in-law Kris and son-in-law Jim into the family, and were blessed with four grandchildren: Spencer, Ben, Annika and Carson. Gene loved spending time with his family and watching his four grandkids grow up. He would often do projects with the grandkids in his workshop, and as a young-at-heart grandpa he took an interest in what they liked, such as playing video games with them.

Following Peggy’s death on August 6, 2011, Gene was fortunate to have met Michelle Blaeser. This wonderful relationship was very dear to Gene, and he cherished time spent together traveling, attending performing arts events, and bicycling. He additionally loved becoming part of the lives of Michelle’s children, Emma and Max.

Gene valued kindness, genuineness and humor in his relationships. He extended these qualities to everyone and encouraged them in others. His travels to various places throughout the world and his work with those in need gave him compassion for the needs of others and an appreciation for the breadth of humankind. He was a generous supporter of organizations that help the less fortunate.

As a first-generation college student, Gene was passionate about helping others with their educations. After a trip to Zimbabwe, he sponsored the education of a boy there. He also sponsored the education of a Highland High School graduate at St. Paul College. He and Peggy were counselors and hosts to AFS students, and served as community hosts for international students at Macalester College.

Gene was also an active volunteer in promoting international goodwill by working with students from other countries through AFS and through various international host family programs, colleges and universities. Many of these students continued to stay in touch with Gene and expressed their admiration of him.

Gene was a naturally curious and innovative person. He enjoyed motorcycle rides with friends, ham radio, racing his Toyota MR2, playing bridge, bicycling, sailing, and the occasional bourbon Manhattan. He liked to figure out how things worked, and was always reading, investigating things and philosophizing. He had a passion for woodworking, which resulted in a multitude of carvings, wooden hearts, furniture, a clavichord, an acoustic guitar and a marimba. While living in Duluth, Gene built a 23-foot sailboat named Sonnet, and built an ice rink on top of his garage! He was a lifelong learner, and learned to sail, to race cars, and even how to ice skate while in Duluth so that he could coach hockey. Later in life, he was active in The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the University of Minnesota and served as their treasurer for several years.

His children joke that Gene could sometimes be overly thrifty – he was a stickler about turning out lights, and once held a vote about which rooms in the house to heat (and successfully convinced the kids to vote for his bedroom, where the television was). However, Gene was always willing to spend money on electronics and gadgets, and was an early adopter of all technology. As these things became available, he was one of the first to have a family computer, VCR, internet, cell phone, iPad – and had everything running with Alexa. Gene was also a “supertaster” who diligently avoided pretty much any vegetable he’d ever had to pick as a child while working on his family farm and later on commercial farms. He avoided casseroles and hot dishes (not a plus of moving to Minnesota), and was a fan of chocolate silk pie and Manhattans.

Most of all, Gene was a kind, warm-hearted, loving person. He was a beloved father, grandfather, significant other, family member and friend, and he will be greatly missed.

Gene is survived by his son, Jeff (Kris) Dalen-Bard; his daughter Megan (Jim) Bard-Pankow; grandchildren Spencer and Annika Bard, and Ben and Carson Pankow; and significant other Michelle Blaeser, as well as many cherished extended family members, friends and neighbors. He was preceded in death by his wife, Margaret “Peggy” (McQueen) Bard, Parents Tom and Elva (Shibley) Bard, and brothers Glenn and Jack Bard.

memorial service

Celebration of Gene’s Life

December 1, 2023

Unity Church-Unitarian 733 Portland Ave, St Paul, MN 55104, USA