Bruce Douglas Shanklin

Born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1930, Bruce Douglas Shanklin grew up as the only child in the engineering family of E.B. and Wilma Shanklin. At age 94, died June 22, 2024 at his home in Clermont, Florida.

Bruce long told of his childhood Christmases in Sandoval, Illinois where he and his cousins had to milk cows, feed pigs, and do other farm chores before coming inside and watching sliding glass doors unfold to a true bounty of gifts – a tradition of gift-giving he and Delores generously emulated with their own family.

Growing up in a spiritual community enriched by Venita Park Methodist Church in St. Louis, Bruce also found a spirit of adventure with cherished friends canoeing the Mississippi River and riding his prized horses – General and Peaceful.

That spirit took him on the turn of a lifetime in May of 1952 when he and some friends sought an evening of entertainment on a riverboat docked on the mighty Mississippi, just north of St.

Louis. He accepted an invitation to dance with a young brunette sitting a few tables away. “What have I got to lose,” he famously replied.

Days after those first dances with the young beauty, they were engaged. About six weeks later they married at the Methodist Church of University City and celebrated with a large reception at El Avion. True to his spirit, the wedding party detoured for a rollercoaster ride in full regalia.

He attended Washington University in St. Louis and the couple went on to raise three children. By day, he worked in engineering management, shouldering weighty responsibilities at companies including Wagner Electric in St. Louis, A.B. Chance in Centralia, Missouri, and Gould Incorporated in Corinth, Mississippi. For many of those years, he also served his country as part of the Naval Reserves in Turkey, Cuba, and elsewhere.

When he wasn’t working or serving his country, Bruce had his eyes to the sun. He introduced his children to pitching sandbar camps on multi-day canoe trips, boating in stormy seas, and riding their runaway horse, Matilda. During what he often called his best years – living on the Intracoastal Waterway in New

Smyrna Beach – he taught his grandkids to fish, boat, and play in the surf. He and Delores traveled the world with tours of China, Australia, the Middle East, Italy, Ireland, and the British Isles. Setting an ambitious example, he skydived for his 80th birthday and sea-planed at 90. Even in his last year, he made new friends, sang karaoke, and held court with Delores at their community’s Valentine’s Day event.

Bruce’s storied life came with its challenges – Delores’s breast cancer, plant shutdowns, and college tuition for his children. Even just a year before his death, he visited his wife daily for three months while she recouped from a debilitating illness. A devout Christian, he worshiped at First Presbyterian Church of Corinth, Mississippi, Coronado Methodist Church in New Smyrna Beach, and Waterman Chapel in Mount Dora.

He bore all encounters with a vintage wit that served him even to his last days. When an emergency room nurse asked him how he felt after a fall that fractured vertebrae, he paused and replied deadpan: “Well, usually with my fingers.” During his final month, he and Delores celebrated their 72nd wedding anniversary. He

also got to see children and grandchildren who traveled from around the United States to be near him.

Survivors include: his wife, Delores Shanklin, Clermont, Florida; children, David and Becky Shanklin of Corinth, Mississippi; Mary Shanklin and Chris Testerman of Winter Garden, Florida; Dan and Tracy Shanklin of Tupelo, MIssissippi; eight grand- and step grandchildren; and four great grandchildren.