lest we forget

HALL, BRUCE

Rank / Branch:

SPECIALIST FOURTH CLASS, U.S ARMY

Date Of Birth:

1948-05-16

Country Of Loss:

SOUTH VIETNAM

Status:

HOSTILE, SMALL ARMS

Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground:

GROUND

Other:

NOT MARRIED

Unit:

173RD AIRBORNE BRIGADE

Date Of Loss:

1967-12-27

Loss Coordinates:

PHU YEN

Catagory:

Category: BODY RETURNED

Awards & Decorations:

SEE BIO

VETERAN HAGI0GRAPHY

HALL, BRUCE, SPECIALIST FOURTH CLASS, U.S. ARMY, MIDLAND, MIDLAND COUNTY, TEXAS

AWARDS AND DECORATIONS

COMBAT INFANTRYMANS BADGE, PARACHUTE WINGS, BRONZE STAR WITH V DEVICE, PURPLE HEART, NATIONAL DEFENSE SERVICE MEDAL, VIETNAM SERVICE MEDAL, VIETNAM CROSS OF GALLANTRT WITH PALM, VIETNAM CAMPAIGN MEDAL

BIOGRAPHY

Bruce Hall was born in Hobbs, New Mexico. He was the second child of three born to Edith South and Henry Clay Hall. The family moved to Midland when Bruce was an infant. He attended Austin Junior High School and Midland High School. He dropped out of high school in his junior year in high school and joined the U.S. Army in October 1965 at age 17.
Bruce completed basic training at Fort Ord, California, AIT at Fort Polk, Louisiana and he completed parachute training and received his parachute wings at Fort Benning. He was assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina following parachute training. While stateside, he was injured in a jeep accident and broke his arm. He had volunteered to go to Vietnam prior to the accident. He finally healed and after a 30 day leave home, he departed for Vietnam on October 3, 1967. He joined Company A, 3rd Battalion, 503rd Parachute Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade (Separate) as an infantryman. Immediately upon joining his unit, he became involved in some heavy fighting to include the Battle of Dak To in November of 1967. Two days following Christmas, December 27, 1967, he was killed by small arms fire in a helicopter assault of a Viet Cong strong hold in Tuy Hoa, South Vietnam. He was one of 12 men killed with his company in the operation. Bruce was awarded a posthumous Bronze Star with "V" for manning the radio under adverse conditions when his unit was in danger of being overran. These duties contributed to his death.
The family had received a letter from him shortly after being notified of his death by the U.S. Army representatives. In the letter, Bruce jokingly had mentioned the war. He thanked his family for the recent X-mas presents and told his father that he wanted to send $500 as a gift for his father's use in building a new redwood fence. He mentioned a cigarette and match that he had received from his 12-year-old brother in a separate envelope. He had stated it had accidently been dropped in a cup of Kool aid, but he was drying it out on a rock, and he would smoke it later.
The family had received a letter from him shortly after being notified of his death by the U.S. Army representatives. In the letter, Bruce jokingly had mentioned the war. He thanked his family for the recent X-mas presents and told his father that he wanted to send $500 as a gift for his father's use in building a new redwood fence. He mentioned a cigarette and match that he had received from his 12-year-old brother in a separate envelope. He had stated it had accidently been dropped in a cup of Kool aid, but he was drying it out on a rock and he would smoke it later.