Bruce R. Bent, 77, of Scituate, Massachusetts, passed away peacefully at home after a long illness on May 21, 2020. Born in Manchester, Connecticut to the late Roy Bent, Jr. and Agnes (Nevin) Bent on November 15, 1942, Bruce grew up in Hingham and Braintree, Massachusetts, graduating from Braintree High School in 1961.
He received an Associate of Engineering from the Wentworth Institute of Technology, class of 1970, and a Bachelor of Science from Northeastern University, class of 1973, all while attending evening classes.
Bruce was the loving husband and best friend to Judith (Bell) Bent for 53 years and father of three children: son Douglas Bent and wife Jennifer of Andover; son Stephen Bent and wife Kim of North Brookfield, Massachusetts; and daughter Elizabeth Colon and husband Travis of Portsmouth, Virginia. He was grandfather to Maggie Bent of Boston, Massachusetts and Matthew and Katie Bent of Andover; step-grandfather to Steven Ahearn of Hardwick, Massachusetts, Colleen Ahearn of Worcester, Massachusetts, and great-step-grandfather to Kayden Ahearn.
He is survived by sister Melissa (Bent) Matisoff and husband Larry of Milton, Massachusetts and sister Bettejane (Bent) Hanford and husband Marius of Moran, Wyoming; brother-in-law Andrew Bell and wife Janice of Freehold, New Jersey, brother-in-law David Bell and wife Susan of Lakeville, Massachusetts, and many nieces and nephews.
Bruce worked as a cryogenic engineer for many different companies, working on space programs such as the SkyLab Project and received patents for his work with superconductors and other cryogenic materials.
Throughout his life, and upon retirement, Bruce enjoyed wood carving, fishing, camping, and model ship building. He belonged to the USS Constitution Model Shipwright Guild, winning prizes for his ship models, enjoyed researching the Bent family genealogy, collecting stamps with the Granite City Stamp Club, crossword and jigsaw puzzles, and growing vegetables in his large garden.
Having lived in Scituate for 49 years, he loved the ocean, volunteering at the Maritime and Irish Mossing Museum and talking about ship building on the North River. He enjoyed restoring old boats with other members of the Historical Society, recently restoring a Norwegian Pram and Cat boat.
Bruce volunteered with his wife on the Appalachian Service Project for several years, chaperoning and leading 50 to 60 Scituate High Schoolers to Appalachia to help restore peoples’ homes. As an Assistant Scoutmaster of Troop 93 of the Scituate Boy Scouts, he was very proud of his two sons achieving the rank of Eagle Scout. He was equally proud to see his only daughter, and light of his life, receive her Master’s in Human Services Counseling from Regent University in 2017.
He was a vestry member at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church and belonged to the Scituate Historical Society for many years. A voracious reader, Bruce was always filling his mind with useful, and useless, information. He enjoyed traveling, walking the beaches in Scituate, in Florida, and in the Bahamas collecting shells and spending time with loved ones, and his beloved Labrador Retrievers (five over the years).
He had a witty sense of humor and was quick to share a good laugh with others, and he will be greatly missed.
In lieu of flowers, contributions in Bruce’s memory can be made to Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, c/o Dr. Geoffrey Oxnard at Dana-Farber.org; or the Scituate Fire Department.
Services will be private. A celebration of life will take place at a later date. For an online guest book, visit RichardsonGaffeyFuneralHome.com.