Bart Anthony Bartel, 66, of Gig Harbor, WA was taken way too soon in his home, in the presence of his wife Cindy, the morning of April 19, 2025, and was greeted by his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Bart was born on November 25, 1958 and raised in Malibu, California, where he grew up loving surfing, bike riding, and playing music. Always playing music! He was a gifted musician, and played in many bands over the years and most recently for the worship team at Calvary Fellowship Gig Harbor. Bart played the bass, guitar and keys.

He graduated from UCLA with a BS in Physics, and pursued a long career as a Sr. Software Engineer working for companies such as Microsoft, Western Digital, Helitrak and Intel. He retired on December 31st, 2023 only to feel a part time job calling him after 1 year of retirement.  Through a series of “coincidences” he got hired at Ace Hardware in Gig Harbor. You would’ve thought the man won the lottery. He had so much fun in the 5 months he worked there, he felt an immediate connection with all the employees, going to work was pure joy. 

Bart had several groups of friends that he called family. Bart loved our church family and specifically our home group, meeting every week over many years together.  He loved his recovery community very much as they were his lifeline.

Bart loved spending his mornings drinking coffee and reading God’s word. He loved his grand daughters and has been known to play Barbies a time or two. How could he refuse? They all had him wrapped around their little fingers. He loved spending his evenings relaxing with his Sudoku and binge watching whatever show Cindy was currently interested in. 

Bart was predeceased by his first wife Wanda, and is survived by his wife Cindy, his sons Grant (Damla) and Chad (Alex). His stepdaughters Mackenzie (Taylor) and Clarissa (Kevin), his granddaughters in age order Eleanor Reign, Clara Lynn, Anastasia Clarissa, and Emily Wanda. All of whom he adored.