Leonard Francis Bruening, 90 years old, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, August 27, 2025 in Fort Worth, Texas.

Born October 4, 1934, in Cleveland Ohio, Leonard was the son of Leonard Francis Bruening Sr. and Ella Doris Bruening (Allen). One of nine siblings, Leonard is survived by his brother Thomas.

Len earned his PhD in Mathematics from Purdue University. He then taught thousands of students over the next 45 years and was an Associate Chairman (Professor) at Cleveland State University. Len, an early adopter of computers, used them to develop the Math Testing Center at CSU, an innovative resource to administer and proctor testing for all the math students at the university. This enabled professors to focus on teaching and helping their students instead of grading tests.

Len continued his love of teaching and giving back by being a Docent at both The Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, and when he moved to Portland Oregon, the Oregon Zoo. He often gave presentations and talks on his favorite animal – bats!

Len's other passion was model railroading, and he spent hundreds of happy hours building layouts and models and would have his train buddies over for an "operating session" complete with coffee and Sylvette's famous chocolate chip cookies.

Len is survived by his wife of 65 years, Sylvette; his son, Francis (Joy Bruening); his daughter, Sylvie (Vincent Renda); his two grandsons, Xavier and Joshua; and brother, Thomas.

A gentler soul is rarely seen, and he will be missed greatly.