Bruce was born on 6 December 1964 to parents Kenneth E. Partin (d. 1984) and Adda Quintana Partin Cline in Van Nuys, California. As a young boy, Bruce was known to his community as a loving and fiercely loyal boy who appreciated a good joke and never missed an opportunity for a punchline—even when, often to Adda’s chagrin, social norms required him to pay for the joke later—these are qualities that never left Bruce as a grown man.
Bruce grew up in Oxnard, California and moved to Welsh, Louisiana with his parents during the 10th grade where he finished high school and then enlisted for service in the United States Marine Corps. After being honorably discharged from military service, Bruce attended SOWELA Technical Community College where he graduated with degrees in culinary arts and welding.
Bruce met and married Monique Tate of Ville Platte, whom he regarded the most beautiful & brilliant woman he’d ever known, in 1988. Their first daughter, Christen, was born shortly thereafter in 1990. Bruce was called to ministry, and he attended Gulf State Bible College and became an ordained Christian minister in 1999. Despite never having much in the way of material wealth, Bruce was known to many as ridiculously generous. Bruce made it a point to love and welcome into his home those whom society had called unlovable, and to share the power of the redemptive love of Jesus. Bruce brought many people to Jesus in his lifetime, both at home and abroad.
Bruce and his young family moved to the small border-town of Nuevo Progreso in the state of Tamaulipas, Mexico on a mission to assist in pastoring a young church plant. During the six years he served in Mexico, Bruce became well known in Nuevo Progreso and the surrounding communities as an immensely charitable man who helped to administer orphanages, drill wells for impoverished villages, boldly shared the Gospel in the street, fed the hungry, reached out to minister and care for indigenous peoples. Bruce made sure that everyone he touched felt the love and hope that Jesus put in his heart.
Before returning to the United States, the Partin family doubled in size as Bruce & Monique adopted their next three children—two girls and one boy—Teresa, Yasmin, and Marcos. In the years to come, they forever grafted two more girls into their hearts as daughters, Melinda and Leslie.
In remembering Bruce, we remember a man who followed the example of the apostles in Act 3:6, and who lived the words of his Savior in Matthew 25:34-40. Bruce was called peacefully Home and entered into Heaven on 21 April 2023. Bruce is preceded in death by his father, Kenneth, and is survived by his mother and stepfather Adda & John Cline; his brother Kenneth Jr. (Noriko), three stepsisters: Tammy Gillett (Tommy), Julie Ellison (Guy), and Cristi Benoit (Wayne); one son and five daughters: Christen Ryder (Braden), Teresa Partin, Marcos Partin (Chelsea), Yasmin Partin, Melinda Rossitto (Tyler), and Leslie Gonzales; and 12 grandchildren.
A Memorial service will be held at First United Methodist Church of Welsh at 1:00 p.m. on Monday April 24, 2023.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.hixsonwelsh.com for the Partin family.
