In the previous post, I gave my dad’s history as a descendant of No Man’s Land homesteaders and the bio of his early years. This picks up after his discharge from the Army.
Mike at the Chamber Dinner where he was named Parade Marshal for 2012
Marriage, Family, and a Lifetime of Adventure:
Mike returned to Guymon where he met Patricia (Pat) Brown, a hometown girl. They married on May 28, 1949, and went on their honeymoon to Clayton, New Mexico. Their first daughter, Carla (Stewart) was born in 1950. When Carla was three months old, Mike and Pat bought a farm near Cabool, Missouri. After living there only three months, Mike received orders that he’d been called up from the reserves and was sent to Korea. There he was a combat engineer, a front line duty where his battalion built bridges and roads and laid minefields. He attained the rank of Master Sergeant while in Korea and had the privilege of shaking hands with President Dwight D. Eisenhower.
When he returned to the Panhandle, Mike went to work for Phillips Petroleum and moved with his family to the Sherhan Plant south of Guymon. Two more daughters were born while they lived at the plant—Donna (Brune) in 1953 and Marsha (Mayer) in 1955. Mike had many different jobs at the plant. He fired boilers, was an engine operator, drove the truck for the gang, and worked in the cryogenic unit when the Helium plant went in. For the ten years prior to his retirement in July, 1985, he ran a backhoe. Because he worked shift work many of the years, Mike was able to follow other pursuits during the day.
He had a barn, corrals, and a pasture in Texas county that he used in return for farming part of the land. Since it was only four miles from the plant, he could keep a few horses, donkeys, chickens, or whatever animals suited him at the time. During this time he broke around fifty mules that were used for riding in the Grand Canyon. He also took twenty-two mountain trips of his own, riding his horse or mule over remote areas of eastern New Mexico and Colorado. He enjoyed the solitude of the mountains and would often be gone a week to ten days. On five of those trips, he took someone else along—one of his brothers-in-law and both of his sons-in-law, and a couple of friends.
Mike grew up in the Trinity Lutheran Church in the Optima area and while in the Army, joined the Baptist church. He and Pat and the girls attended the Sherhan Baptist Church during the plant years, where Mike taught Sunday School. Later, after they’d returned to Texas County, Mike and Pat attended First Baptist in Guymon and then became charter members of Grace Southern Baptist Church. Mike helped with renovating the old Ideal Grocery into the new church and has remained active in many areas. He now serves as greeter, usher, and assistant treasurer. Faith and service to God and country have been hallmarks of Mike’s life and are favorite topics of conversation.
Pat stayed in the home when their girls were young, but sold Avon for many years. In 1966, she began working at the courthouse in Guymon. She then took a job at the City National Bank where she worked for twenty-four years, working her way up from a teller position to being a Vice-President when she retired in 1992. During her retirement years, she had an antique business in the home and enjoyed going to antique auctions and shows in the area.
The Brunes lived at the Phillips plant until their oldest daughter, Carla, graduated from Gruver High School in 1968, at which time the family moved their camp house onto 35 acres north of Guymon. Mike still lives there today. Donna and Marsha both graduated from Guymon High School.
Mike and one of many mules he's owned over the years
Mike has lead a full and interesting life. He says, “Some people don’t believe all the things I’ve done, but I’ve always had a lot of interests and liked doing new things. It’s never been boring, that’s for sure.” Some of the many things he’s done besides breaking donkeys are raising fighting chickens and many other kinds of animals. He’s made leather saddles, and even now, he always has his eye out for a good horse trade. He and Pat enjoyed traveling and made several memorable trips. For their 40th wedding anniversary they went to Hawaii and then took a Caribbean cruise for their 45th anniversary.
Pat always dreamed of going to Europe, and even though it was several months before their 50th anniversary, they decided to go in the summer of 1998. It turned out to be a blessing they made the trip early. Pat had been diagnosed with cancer in 1992 and received treatment in Houston. She remained in remission for six years, but right before the European trip, the cancer returned. If they’d waited until the year of their anniversary, they might never have been able to go. Mike is fond of saying, “The last time I danced with Pat was in Paris.” Even though her health was declining, Mike and Pat celebrated their Golden anniversary with a large party at Grace Southern Baptist Church in May, 1999. In the spring of 2000, Mike, Pat, Donna, and Marsha were taking a trip through the South when Pat became extremely ill. She passed away in July, 2000.
While caring for Pat at home, Mike restored a WWII Jeep truck. He’d always been fond of buggies and even had an Amish buggy he bought from a family in Kansas. One day he picked up his grandson, Robert, from Kindergarten in the buggy. It was the talk of the day and earned him “most popular Grandpa” bragging rights. This interest led to a new hobby—restoring old buggies. He’s restored fifteen of them to date.
This restored buggy is "sold"
In 2002, Mike and middle daughter, Donna, took a memorable, month-long trip to Australia. They traveled the continent by air and by car seeing all but one state and spent a week in the Northern Territory exploring the Outback. They also spent a week in Indonesia and visited Malaysia.
Mike has seven grandsons: Andrew, Brett, Scott, and James Stewart and Jonathan, Travis, and Robert Mayer. He also has eight great-grandchildren with two more on the way. He’s had a full and worthwhile life.
It’s hard to describe Mike Brune in just a few words. Brother. Son. Soldier. Horse trader. Buggy man. Story teller. Husband. Father. Grandfather. World traveler. Man of God. Pioneer of the Oklahoma Panhandle. And on May 5, 2012 – the Grand Marshal of the Pioneer Day Parade in Guymon, OK.
I’m so proud. And blessed.
Related Articles:
Boots – A story I wrote about my dad for SaddleBaron Magazine of the West
Full update with pictures coming after Pioneer Day.