William "Bret" Bretford Bass

July 24, 1959-January 24, 2025

Bret Bass was a kind and gentle spirit who brought joy and comfort to many during his life. The oldest child of William “Bill” Arthur Bass, Jr. and Dorothy “Dot” Whitehurst Bass, he was born on Friday, July 24, 1959, at Rex Hospital in Raleigh. Besides being a wonderful person, Bret was also brilliant intellectually, impressing his teachers with his math and science abilities even as far back as elementary school. Reading encyclopedias while other kids were playing outside, his parents finally made him get up off the sofa and go out into nature. Bret fell in love with being outside and soon joined the Boy Scout troop sponsored by his church and enjoyed many years of campouts at well-known Camp Durant in Moore County, NC. As a child his other favorite hobby was cheering for UNC Tar Heels, whether football, basketball or baseball. A 1977 graduate of Sanderson High School in Raleigh, Bret set off for St. Andrews University that fall to study sciences while DJ’ing on the side at the Crackers nightclub in Rockingham, NC on the weekends. After graduating with honors from St. Andrews with Bachelor of Science degrees in both biology and chemistry, Bret then headed to East Carolina University Medical School. Although ultimately being a physician was not his path, he maintained either a career or a keen interest in the medical field for the rest of his life.

Besides being a devoted father who saw his three boys (William Christopher “Chris” born 1984, Alexander “Alex” Patrick Bass born 1990 and Mason Garrett Bass born 1995) through wonderful and challenging times, Bret was an attentive and protective big brother to his little sister, Dorothy “Dottie” Bass Burch, always being a source of calm reassurance (and excellent rock and roll music) throughout their lives. He also very much enjoyed being a loving uncle to Dottie’s children, Graham Whitehurst Burch and Charlotte Grace Burch.

Bret was a loyal friend to many during his lifetime and sacrificed much to help friends who needed a hand during a time of need, feeding and housing many for short or long periods of time in order to help them get back on their feet. Bret always enjoyed teaching anyone willing to learn and he inspired a generation of Boy Scouts after coming back to scouting as an adult when he served as a dedicated scoutmaster for Wake Forest, NC’s Troop 5 for many years. He was regularly the camp chef and his troop meals were legendary. Bret truly enjoyed taking care of people and making them laugh with his quick, dry wit. He also had quite the discerning sweet tooth which made him a master baker, with some of his favorites being strawberry cheesecake, Aunt Pearl’s pound cake, divinity and those little maple sugar candies shaped like a maple leaf and sold at Hickory Farms stores across the country.

His amazing neighbors in Jones Dairy Farm, his dear colleagues at Triad Equipment, his beloved family and his many adoring friends all have no doubt that Bret is at peace, comfortably posted up in heaven, stretched out in a hammock with a blazing campfire nearby cooking up a mess of food that he will use to feed a lot of hungry souls, just like he always did.

At 2:00pm on Wednesday, February 5, 2025, a memorial service celebrating Bret’s life will be held at Hudson Memorial Presbyterian Church, his childhood church home where Bret was the first baby ever to be baptized in the sanctuary. Visitation with the family will be after the service in the church chapel.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Boy Scouts of America or to the UNC Rams Club.