Ann Bauer

BIOGRAPHY

Ann Bauer was born in Grassy Butte, North Dakota, USA, on 17 September 1914, to parents Mike and Alexandria Gruzensky. She had four siblings: William, Alvina Roberts, Paul, and John Antone. She was born in a sod house. Her mother’s family had immigrated to the United States from Russia around 1909. Ann, the eldest of five children, grew up on a farm.

After finishing high school, she journeyed 600 miles to attend college, where she pursued a degree in nursing. In the fall of 1935, she traveled from Grassy Butte to Lincoln, Nebraska, with only $100 in her pocket and a suitcase in hand—just enough to cover her first year of tuition at Union College. She studied pre-nursing there for two years before transferring to Boulder, Colorado, to complete her RN. An after-school job in the college laundry room helped cover her second year’s tuition, allowing her to transfer to Boulder debt-free. That job also led her to meet her future husband, Al Bauer. The two were married on 2 September 1940, the day after she graduated as an RN from the University of Colorado.

Bauer and her husband built their careers and raised four children while living in North Dakota, British Columbia (Canada), Wisconsin, and Michigan. She learned to drive when her oldest child turned 16, joining them in driver’s education and taking the licensing exams together. In the 1950s, she became one of the first Tupperware dealers, attracted to the flexibility of direct sales over shift work in nursing. Over the next 42 years, she drove a station wagon to train new dealers, ultimately becoming one of the top 25 sales leaders in the U.S. for many years.

In 1966, she moved to Berrien Springs and became an active member of the community. As newlyweds, she and her husband Al shared a goal of visiting as many national parks as possible, as the National Park System was still in its early days. Family vacations with their four children often included “side trips” to national parks after work-related conventions or time spent camping. In retirement, they enjoyed nearly 20 years of travel, exploring destinations across Michigan, the U.S., and internationally. They traveled to every continent except Antarctica, taking trips in their travel trailer, then a small RV, and meeting friends along the way.

Her younger brother, William Gruzensky (18 July 1916 – 6 August 2021), lived to be 105 years, 19 days old.

Bauer lived independently in her own home in Berrien Springs until a fall in 2019, after which she moved to a local assisted living residence. Until then, she was still driving around town most days, running errands and shopping for groceries. However, even at the age of 110, she remains remarkably independent.

Ann Bauer died on 9 February 2025 in Berrien Springs, Michigan, United States, at the age of 110.

RECOGNITION

Her age was verified by Eli Logan, and validated by LongeviQuest on 17 November 2024.

ATTRIBUTION

* Obituary for John Antone Gruzensky – Okanogan Valley Gazette-Tribune, November 2010

* “An education and a husband” – Union Adventist University, 19 August 2016

* William Gruzensky Obituary – Corvallis Gazette-Times, 18 August 2021

* “U.S. Church Member Celebrates 109th Birthday” – Adventist Review, 28 October 2023

GALLERY

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