1956
Gus
2015
Gus Wayne Brenner
February 20, 1956 — July 18, 2015
Gus Wayne Brenner, 59, of Dallas, TX, formerly of New Brighton, passed away Saturday July 18, 2015 at Baylor Cancer Hospital in Texas.
Born February 20, 1956 in New Brighton a son of Virginia (Curcio) Brenner of New Brighton and the late Melvin Leroy Brenner. He was longtime truck driver for Burkhead Trucking in Dallas and former member of the New Brighton Christian Assembly.
Surviving in addition to his mother are his wife Gena Brenner, daughter Maria, CA, five adopted sons Josh, Landy, Charles, Jeremy and Ben, step daughter Ashley, all of Dallas, brother Frank (Chris) Brenner, New Jersey, sister Georgia (Tom) Hudzik, Dallas, aunts Nettie Papa and Kate Hoey, New Brighton, numerous cousins, nieces and nephews.
In addition to his father he was preceded in death by two uncles Frank “Chick” Curcio and August “Gus” Curcio both in 2014.
There will be no viewing. Friends will be received Monday from 11:00am until time of memorial service at 12 Noon in the J&J Spratt Funeral Home, 1612 Third Avenue, New Brighton with the pastor Sam DeMarco officiating.
Inurnment will follow in Grove Cemetery.
“Do you want to know what Gus Brenner did? Who he was? The man that I had the honor to call father? He and My mother Bev Himes Behrends plucked 5 “over’ aged” boys from the State system and gave them a place to call home.” I say “over-aged” because the chances of a 9 year-old getting adopted are slim-to-none. Nevertheless a 10, 11, and two 8 year olds as well. We weren’t ordinary children either. The State labeled us as “high risk” for failure. Regardless, he and my mom sacrificed what could’ve been an easy life of traveling, and a whole mess less of gray hairs and sleepless nights to take a chance on us. For that Dad, I’ll be forever grateful. “Not just because you were just a good man, but because you were a real life HERO.” You saved us from aging out in the state group homes. You save us from not knowing what it was like to have a real family, or a real Dad. When every single family looking for children at the state office said “No way” and laughed…you pointed at the picture of us on that bulletin board and said, “Those are our boys.” I have many colleagues that tease me for all the extra work I put in at my school. Some are even awestruck. I have even heard, “Where does this work ethic come from?” Well, it was from this man. My hero.
No one is perfect in this life. There may be a few people out there that could say a negative thing or two about my father. However, I am a big believer in “it’s what you leave behind you when you go” that has the biggest impact when you pass on. If you look at the statistics of children who are left to age out in the system, the results are grim. With my parents saving me, and my Dad teaching me the value of hard work, I was able to become a teacher.
“Do you want to know what Gus Brenner did? Who he was? The man that I had the honor to call father? He & my mother Bev Himes Behrends plucked 5 over-aged boys from the State system and gave them a place to call home. As a teacher I have had the pleasure of passing these values that I have learned down to well over 1000 students. Without him, none of that would’ve been possible. So you see, my dad didn’t just have an impact on my life & my brothers, but potentially thousands of students. I will always love this man, My Teacher, My Father, My Hero.” –Charlie Brenner
Born February 20, 1956 in New Brighton a son of Virginia (Curcio) Brenner of New Brighton and the late Melvin Leroy Brenner. He was longtime truck driver for Burkhead Trucking in Dallas and former member of the New Brighton Christian Assembly.
Surviving in addition to his mother are his wife Gena Brenner, daughter Maria, CA, five adopted sons Josh, Landy, Charles, Jeremy and Ben, step daughter Ashley, all of Dallas, brother Frank (Chris) Brenner, New Jersey, sister Georgia (Tom) Hudzik, Dallas, aunts Nettie Papa and Kate Hoey, New Brighton, numerous cousins, nieces and nephews.
In addition to his father he was preceded in death by two uncles Frank “Chick” Curcio and August “Gus” Curcio both in 2014.
There will be no viewing. Friends will be received Monday from 11:00am until time of memorial service at 12 Noon in the J&J Spratt Funeral Home, 1612 Third Avenue, New Brighton with the pastor Sam DeMarco officiating.
Inurnment will follow in Grove Cemetery.
“Do you want to know what Gus Brenner did? Who he was? The man that I had the honor to call father? He and My mother Bev Himes Behrends plucked 5 “over’ aged” boys from the State system and gave them a place to call home.” I say “over-aged” because the chances of a 9 year-old getting adopted are slim-to-none. Nevertheless a 10, 11, and two 8 year olds as well. We weren’t ordinary children either. The State labeled us as “high risk” for failure. Regardless, he and my mom sacrificed what could’ve been an easy life of traveling, and a whole mess less of gray hairs and sleepless nights to take a chance on us. For that Dad, I’ll be forever grateful. “Not just because you were just a good man, but because you were a real life HERO.” You saved us from aging out in the state group homes. You save us from not knowing what it was like to have a real family, or a real Dad. When every single family looking for children at the state office said “No way” and laughed…you pointed at the picture of us on that bulletin board and said, “Those are our boys.” I have many colleagues that tease me for all the extra work I put in at my school. Some are even awestruck. I have even heard, “Where does this work ethic come from?” Well, it was from this man. My hero.
No one is perfect in this life. There may be a few people out there that could say a negative thing or two about my father. However, I am a big believer in “it’s what you leave behind you when you go” that has the biggest impact when you pass on. If you look at the statistics of children who are left to age out in the system, the results are grim. With my parents saving me, and my Dad teaching me the value of hard work, I was able to become a teacher.
“Do you want to know what Gus Brenner did? Who he was? The man that I had the honor to call father? He & my mother Bev Himes Behrends plucked 5 over-aged boys from the State system and gave them a place to call home. As a teacher I have had the pleasure of passing these values that I have learned down to well over 1000 students. Without him, none of that would’ve been possible. So you see, my dad didn’t just have an impact on my life & my brothers, but potentially thousands of students. I will always love this man, My Teacher, My Father, My Hero.” –Charlie Brenner
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