Ellwood Christopher “Chris” Bromley, 52, of Holly Springs, passed away March 10, 2023, after a lengthy battle with pancreatic cancer.
He was preceded in death by his maternal grandmother, Lorraine Gorman; his father, Bud Bromley; and mother-in-law, Sue Metzler.
Chris was born May 20, 1970 in Mt. Holly, New Jersey to Ellwood Jr “Bud” and Linda Bromley but he spent a lot of his early childhood years growing up in Mason, Ohio. He talked fondly of spending his time playing Hot Wheels with his friends all over the front yard and driving the vehicles from Adventure People sets around the neighborhood and along the nearby creek.
In his preteen years he and his mother moved to New Jersey. He made many lifelong friends there and got one of his earliest jobs that he was quite proud of, working at Six Flags Great Adventure. He enjoyed reminiscing about times spent at the skating rink and his years at Jackson Memorial High School. Before his senior year he moved to California and graduated from San Marcos High.
In California is where he really started pursuing his love for computers and the IT field. He ran a BBS where he made a lot of his friends. Those friends would get together for Midnight Madness runs, karaoke at Carlos Murphy’s, playing pinball at a local pizza place, and have bonfires at The Views. He got a job at a computer repair shop and from there stayed in the IT field working at places like Ardea Biosciences and Kemia.
His love of technology and games is what led to meeting his wife of 11 years, Rachel. In a game played by over 11.5 million people, somehow those two ended up in the same group and instantly found connection. Their love was palpable, genuine, and infinite. While Chris had no children of his own when they met, he wholeheartedly welcomed Rachel’s 3 children and loved them without hesitation. His heart grew even bigger when his own daughter and then son were born. Of everything Chris ever was, a father was a role he was made for and excelled at without even trying.
His final move was to the east coast where he and his family settled in Holly Springs. He found a job that he loved and coworkers who were like family to him. He bought his first house and made it a home with his entire family and 2 dogs, Bella and Brinkley.
Chris would often be described as caring, compassionate, smart, funny, and an all-around amazing human being. If you were considered a friend, he would love you without regard and would have your back no matter the circumstance. He enjoyed all types of games, board, video, and arcade. He also loved thinking of games he’d like to make himself. He enjoyed his weekly Sunday frisbee golf outings with his friends in California and enjoyed the times he got to play it in North Carolina.
He is survived by his wife, Rachel; 3 stepchildren, Jasmine, Anthony, and Nicholas; 2 biological children, Kelsey and William; mother, Linda; uncle and aunt, Mark and Rosie Gorman; numerous additional aunts, uncles, cousins, and in-laws; and many friends who are like family.
Memorial contributions can be made to https://www.gofundme.com/f/supporting-the-bromleys?utm_campaign=m_pd+share-sheet&utm_content=undefined&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&utm_term=undefined
A celebration of life event will be held May 20th. Additional details will be shared at a future date.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.apexfuneral.net for the Bromley, III family.
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