Bruce was born on September 11, 1956 to Edwin Elmer Cook and Ida Beach. He married Kim Shampine in 1984. Bruce died on September 9, 2017 in Cheboygan. No children were listed on the obituary.

He was for many years a good friend and helper to his aunt Jennie Cook Johnson. Not long before she died she changed the terms of her Will, which Bruce later contested in court.