Bruce Bryant Brooks

Inducted in 2014

Mar 3

Tolleson - Maricopa County

Inducted in 2014

Bruce Bryant Brooks' grandfather, Marion Bruce Brooks, settled in Arizona in 1887. He began on a farm at 75th Ave and Rosevelt in Phoenix, a location that would become a significant part of the Brooks family legacy. The land was cheap, and the groundwater in the southwest valley was shallow, making it an excellent place to settle.

Bruce is the third of five generations of the Brooks family to call the Valley home. The agriculture dynasty started with Bruce's grandfather.

Marion Bruce Brooks came to Arizona from Kentucky in 1887. The elder Brooks settled on the farm at 75th Ave. and Roosevelt in Phoenix in 1912. Bruce was born on April 24, 1933, in the farmhouse his grandfather had built. He attended Fowler Elementary School and then Tolleson Union High School, where he became student body president, class president, and captain of both the football and basketball teams. Adding to his already packed schedule, he became president of the Tolleson FFA chapter, and in 1952, he was elected a state FFA president. In 1953, he was awarded the National American Farmers Award by the FFA, an award received by less than 2% of FFA members. President Dwight D Eisenhower presented the award to him at the FFA national convention in Kansas City, where the president was the guest speaker.

In later years, he received the FFA Outstanding Agriculture Alum award from the University of Arizona. At Tolleson HS, he met a spirited young lady named Joyce Henderson; they dated throughout high school. The Brooks and Henderson families had known each other as part of the extended family community of the Tolleson area.

After high school, Bruce attended Arizona State University, where he received more than an education. He and Joyce became engaged and married in 1952. At first, the young couple lived in a small house on the Brooks family farm called the Weaning House. Each of the three Brooks boys had made their first homes when they married.

"When we married, they had a small dairy that Bruce was partners with his father. I also had feed grain and alfalfa. Bruce would bail at night and go to school in the daytime. Then, when we became better involved and got a little more money, we started leasing more ground separately from his father. His father's heath wasn't very good at the time," Joyce recalls. Bruce's dedication to the farm was unwavering despite his father's health issues and academic pursuits. He and his father managed the Brooks Cattle Company and a feedlot unrelated to their dairy, showcasing his strong work ethic and commitment to his family's legacy.

After living in a small house for three years, Bruce and Joyce purchased a place in Tolleson and started Bruce Brooks' Farm. Initially, they owned 20 acres, but their hard work and dedication saw their operation grow to six cattle and $50 in wedding gifts. Over the years, the 20 acres grew into more than 9,000 irrigated acres, a testament to their perseverance and commitment. By the 1990s, he was feeding 25,000 head of cattle, farming cotton, green, and alfalfa. The feedlot operation continued until 2001, marking their farm's significant growth and impact.

Bruce would run cattle on the Dobson Ranch at Greer during summer. Dobson pastured his sheep on the land during the summer, allowing Bruce to put his cattle on part of the land so that Dobson could fill that part of his lease with the Forest Service. It was a win-win situation for both men. The only way Joyce could get him away from the farm in the valley was to check on the cattle in Greer.

Bruce was an active member of the Arizona Cotton Growers Association for many years, sitting on the board of directors from 1982 until he died in 1997. His leadership was significant, as he used his great experience and production in cotton to assume considerable responsibility in eradicating the boll weevil and white fly, both tremendous threats to the long-term profitability of the Arizona cotton industry. His influence was felt throughout the industry, and his efforts were instrumental in the industry's continued success.

Bruce and Joyce had three children: Brenna, Michael, and Dena.