Bruce Campbell is our VFW Auxiliary Veteran Spotlight for the month of January. He was raised in Puxico and graduated from Puxico High School in 1966. He then went to Bailey Technical School in St. Louis for gas and diesel mechanics. He volunteered to serve in the Navy in January 1968 and served until November 1971. He spent two tours in Vietnam and eleven months in Alaska during his time of service.
After boot camp in Illinois, Bruce was stationed in Davisville, Rhode Island and while there, received more schooling as a construction mechanic for the Sea Bees. Then he had military training for Vietnam. His next duty station was Dong Ha, Vietnam, which was a combat base. While there his troop supported the Marines by building roads, huts, and really whatever they needed built. He came back to the states for a short period of time for more schooling and military training. He had the opportunity to volunteer for a Sea Bees team, a civic action program to help the people of Vietnam. They built roads, bridges, orphanages, and school buildings. There were eleven of them, two men for each trade and an officer.
His next duty station was in Alaska at a communication station that monitored communications between the United States and other countries, especially Russia, which could be seen from the island he was at on a clear day. Bruce was required to have a Top Secret clearance to even be on the base. The Sea Bees maintained the roads which took snowplows, road graders, front-in loaders, trucks, and buses that transported the communication techs to and from their barracks to their work stations.
He received the following medals during his time serving in the Navy: National Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, Combat Action Ribbon, Republic of Vietnam Armed Forces Meritorious Unit Citation with Gallantry Cross, Sharp Shooter and he left the service as a second class petty officer as a construction mechanic.
Upon returning to Puxico, Bruce went to work at Puxico Implement, the local John Deere dealership. Two years later, he went to work at Busby Implement in Poplar Bluff, the John Deere dealership there. He was married to Barb Griffin on June 8, 1974 and they have been married for 50 years. Bruce and Barb have two children, Ben Campbell and wife Jenny, and daughter, Brittany, who is married to Matt Fox.
After 28 years of being employed by Busby Implement, Bruce opened his own business southeast of Puxico known as Bruce Campbell’s John Deere Farm Equipment Repair. Eighteen years later, he was forced to retire due to health reasons. Bruce maintains his own farm and also has row crops and cattle.
Bruce is a lifetime member of VFW Post 7822. He is also a member and Deacon of Duck Creek Baptist Church in rural Puxico. He is also a proud member of the Mingo Tractor Club.
