Funeral services for John Allen Bruner, of Homer, LA, will be held at 10:00 AM, Friday, February 7, 2025 at Owens Memorial Chapel in Ruston, LA with Rev. Jeff Smart officiating. Burial will follow at St Rest Cemetery in Dubach under the direction of Owens Memorial Chapel Funeral Home.
John Allen Bruner was born October 17, 1950, in Ft. Hood, Texas. He left this earth February 3, 2025 surrounded by family and friends, at the age of 74.
John was a treasured dad to Kimberly and Frankie Smith, Rachael Bruner, and Jim Bruner, and his adopted son Ricky Reid and his wife Amber, and their children Brantley and Bentlee. He was a cherished grandpa to Chelsey and Jacob Cole, Caleb and Brittany Smith, Courtney and Omar Hernandez, Christian Dumas, Aleizia Dumas, Brantley Reid and Bentlee Reid along with 9 great-grandchildren. He was a devoted brother to Kenneth Bruner, Janet and Robert Davison, Bill and Mona Bruner, Judy and David Carubba, and a dear uncle and friend.
John was a true American patriot. He joined the United States Army on November 4, 1974. He served just over 3 years before he was honorably discharged and came home to be with his family. He spent just over 10 years stateside working for Petroleum Helicopter and Air Logistics while also enjoying spending time with family and hunting.
In 1991 he began his career with Dyncorp as a contractor for the United States Government. He served 24 years in South Korea, Germany, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. He resided in Thailand for a while where he had a scuba diving and fishing business.
He traded in his combat boots for cowboy boots in 2014 when he retired as a helicopter mechanic in Pakistan.
After retirement, he enjoyed being on his tractor plowing the fields and deer hunting. He ws a true outdoorsman who would say his former profession was “killing people” just to get a reaction. The sarcasm and humor were strong with this one! He was always sure to have a project going for the family to complete for him and would be found “supervising” to make sure it was done correctly. He was a great story teller. His stories were always captivating and will be remembered for lifetimes to come. The man we thought could never die stood strong to the end of his life. He will be remembered as a hero for his service, for his generosity, for his sense of humor, and for his being the best dad and grandpa around.
John in preceded in death by his parents James Eugen Bruner and Doris Lester Bruner, his sister Janet Rae Davison, and his daughter Rachael Ann Bruner.
Pall bearers will be Frankie Smith, Caleb Smith, Jacob Cole, Ricky Reid, Glenn Speake, and Omar Hernandez
The family would like to say a special thank you to Lisa Williams and Hospice for taking such good care of John in his final moments of life.
A visitation is scheduled from 5:00-7:00 PM Thursday, February 6, 2025, at Owens Memorial Chapel.
