Bruce Ruffin MBA ’86 died on June 11, 2011 at O’Connor Hospital in San Jose at the age  of 54. For the past two years, Ruffin fought lung cancer showing those around him how precious each day is. He will be remembered fondly for his patience, quick wit, sense of humor, intelligence and friendly charm. Ruffin is survived by his devoted wife of 23 years Cheryl Koshiro, his adored children Travis Ruffin and Lauren Ruffin, his parents Paul Sr. and Leona Ruffin (Suffern, N.Y.), sisters Valerie Mathews (Nyack, N.Y.) and Lorna Conley (New Port Richey, Fla.), brother Paul Ruffin Jr. (Orange, N.J.), eleven nieces and nephews, and numerous aunts, uncles and cousins. Ruffin was born on December 13, 1956 to Paul and Leona Mae Ruffin in Suffern, N.Y. Raised in a military family, Ruffin attended various elementary schools, including ones in the San Francisco Bay area and the Philippines before his family settled in Spring Valley, N.Y. in 1968. He was a 1974 graduate of Spring Valley High School lettering in football and baseball. He then attended State University of New York, College at Oneonta where he received a Bachelors of Art in 1978. Driving himself out west, he settled in San Jose where he completed a Masters of Business Administration at Santa Clara University in 1986. He was employed at Fujitsu Technology Solutions, Inc./AMDAHL in product management for 18 years. After leaving high tech, he enjoyed working as a tax consultant with H&R Block and insurance sales with Banker’s Life and Casualty and All Care Insurance. Ruffin most enjoyed being involved with his children and always made it a point to support his children’s various interests. This included coaching his son’s baseball teams and supporting his daughter’s interests in musical theater. Throughout his life, Ruffin was involved with baseball. As a youngster, Ruffin played Little League and as an adult played for several leagues. He coached baseball over ten years with various organizations such as the Evergreen Little League, Police Athletic League and Evergreen Valley high school in San Jose, California. "Coach Bruce" will always be remembered for his positive attitude and dedication to supporting not only his own children but to those he had the pleasure of coaching. An avid reader, Ruffin especially liked science fiction, history and science. He was a self described political junkie and his favorite TV channel was MSNBC. He was a loyal New York Yankees and San Jose Sharks fan.