Brugge, Eugene Homer 4/22/1920 - 8/21/2010 OAKLAND, CA. A native of Oakland, California, Dr. Brugge cherished the city, fondly recalling its golden days when the streetcars ran and freeways were decades away. He was a member of the Methodist Church and Plymouth Congregational Church, but could be found tuning the pipe organs in churches throughout the area. Dr. Brugge grew up among extended family members in the three family homes they built near Richmond Boulevard Creek. He graduated from Oakland Technical High School, attended U.C. Berkeley and graduated from St. Louis University Medical School in the combined medical and surgical field of ophthalmology. He did his internship at Highland Hospital in Oakland, and completed his training at Stanford University Hospital. He served in the Army Medical Corps during World War II and was stationed in Tokyo, Japan, during the Occupation. There he developed his appreciation of Chinese and Japanese art, particularly fine rugs and small sculptures. Returning to Oakland after the War, he opened his own practice in the Wakefield Building in downtown Oakland and served for many years as Chief Eye Surgeon at Highland Hospital. A gifted surgeon and diagnostician, he fashioned transplant techniques that are still used today. Fascinated by all things technical, Dr. Brugge still recalled his youthful excitement at watching the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge. He was enchanted by trains, telephones, clocks, pipe organs, ships, telescopes and cameras. He loved hiking through the state parks with his friend, Don Gunn, and filming their treks. He owned numerous telescopes, several of which he had made himself, and often invited neighborhood children to views of the skies. He was happiest in his small upstairs workshop fixing things for neighbors or inventing some gadget for his own use. He was still repairing his own roof in his mid-sixties. Cultured and refined, he was seldom seen in less than a white shirt, vest, tie and jacket, even when running errands. He loved music and had season tickets to both the opera and the symphony. As a bachelor, Dr. Brugge was an enthusiastic dinner guest at the waffle dinners served by his friends the Trampleasures and the holiday meals at the home of Gretchen White and Peter Vacek. Always proud of his Swedish heritage, a favorite snack was pickled herring with blueberry jam on raisin bread. In 2005, Dr. Brugge moved out the family home to Lake Park Retirement Residence, where he made many new friends. Although frail, he thoroughly enjoyed his 90th birthday party that his cousin, Regina Brandes, put on for him in April. Dr. Brugge leaves behind a multitude of grateful patients, neighbors, and friends. He was preceded in death by his beloved brother, Frederick and his parents, George and Esther Brugge. "Genie," as he was known to his family, will be greatly missed by his cousin Regina Brandes in Utah, to whom he served as big brother, uncle, and surrogate father, as well as by Robert Brugge in Washington and Donald Brugge in New York. Special thanks to the William and Mary Trampleasure family and to Gretchen White and Peter Vacek whose friendship far exceeded expectation. Their trips to Dr. Brugge's bedside, family dinners, film productions, planning and decision making were valiant. The excellent care of the nursing and administrative staff at the Lake Park Retirement Residence made an impact on us all. Also, to the ITAS Hospice Core we render our appreciation, especially to Janette Perasso. A graveside memorial will be held at 4:30 pm, Wednesday, September 1 at Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, which, coincidentally, is where "Genie" taught his cousin, Regina, how to drive. Published in San Francisco Chronicle from August 25 to August 29, 2010