Drew M. Dugger

1927 - 2015

Drew M. Dugger was born the 12th of 13 children of Thomas Martin Dugger and Dessie Mae Singleterry Dugger, of Lariat, Texas.
He married his wife of 67 years, Wilma Jean Browning, of Regina, N.M., July 10, 1947, at the Sandoval County Courthouse in Bernalillo, witnessed by their mothers.
Dad was preceded in death by his brothers, Jim, Tom, Woodrow, Buck, Troy and Roy; and sisters, Ollie Coley Leming, Annie Meeks, Norma McGowen, Velva Dugger and Dorothy Coley.
He is survived by his wife; sons, Leldon (Tina) and Roy; daughter, Glenda; two grandsons, Eddie and Colby (Kayla); two great-grandchildren, Jareith and Astrea; and LeRoy Dugger, who has been a watchful and devoted nephew; his sole surviving sibling, Ida Roberts of Moore, Okla.; many nieces and nephews scattered in New Mexico, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, Oklahoma and Oregon.
Drew showed his love by his acts of kindness, discipline, values and humor for family and friends.
Drew was taught the value of working hard and self-taught playing hard. His earliest memory of his first job was at the age of 5 filling water troughs for the plough horses when his dad and older siblings came in from the cotton and broom corn fields for lunch and supper. It was a one-handle pump which they had to put a cheater pipe on for him and he "had to swing like a monkey" to get it started. At the age of 7, he rode the Go-Devil barefoot,t having to punch out the tumbleweeds with a stick. No one wore shoes in the summer, saving their shoes for school, church and winter. When the horses smelled the snakes, they would go around the weeds, and Dad said he would start crying because he would get in trouble for plowing up the crops.
His father, "Buster," co-signed for a neighbor who eventually defaulted on a seed loan. Because his Dad was an honest Christian, the kids missed starting school until April 1 to pay off the loan. It was time to leave Texas when the last crop was lost to another dust storm. Dad said they were so poor the coyotes would drop off part of their kill on the porch; then the poor coyotes later joined them in their prayer circle at night.
From Texas, the family moved to Lindrith, N.M. in 1938. His dad and older brothers worked at a sawmill, coming home on the weekends, leaving him to farm. After the second crop of pinto beans froze out in September 1941, the family moved to Strathmore, Calif.
When World War II called his three brothers, Drew, then 17, begged his mother to sign him in to the Merchant Marine, where he traveled around the world. While in Los Angeles waiting for the bus to return home and wait for orders, the police rolled up and hauled him in because he matched the description of a Virgil Veronski. He finally convinced them he wasn't Virgil and was told he was free to go. He told the officers, "Look, you picked me up and brought me down here, and the bus station is a long way from here, and I don't have money for a cab." The captain intervened and ordered them to take him back to the bus station.
His merchant ship docked in New York City a day or two before VE day. He and four shipmates bought a used car and because of rationing had to beg, borrow and steal (oops) gas ration and tires. After dropping one guy off in Salt Lake City, one in Reno and the last passenger in Sacramento, they sold the car. Dad hitchhiked the rest of the way home.
He was home on leave with Merchant Marine when he volunteered to be drafted into the U.S. Army so he could leave with a friend who had just been drafted. While in Seoul, Korea, Dad played baseball on the division team.
He owned or operated service stations in Cuba (Phillips 66) and Bloomfield (El Paso and Shell). He went to work for Utah International and retired in 1987 from BHP.
Dad was an avid sports fan devoted to his Los Angeles Dodgers, Dallas Cowboys and University of New Mexico Lobos, not to mention the Bloomfield Sidewinders. He and Mom were the ones bundled under a tarp with several blankets, sitting on lawn chairs behind the backstop. He supported the Bobcats for years. At the one and only football state championship in Jal, Coach Salvo requested that Drew Dugger run the down marker box. He was thrilled almost as much as the Bobcats bringing home the state championship trophy. He coached Little League baseball for his sons through the years and formed and coached Bloomfield's first Connie Mack team in the mid 1960s, the Bloomfield Merchants.
Dad's hobbies included his love for music. He played the guitar and harmonica. Growing up with a dad and brothers who played the fiddle and bass fiddle while his sisters sang harmony, Drew bought his favorite Martin guitar for $40. He played at the Hitching Post and on the radio in Albuquerque with Dick Bills and Glen Campbell. He played for many dances in Albuquerque and Lindrith.
After retiring, Dad and Mom spent many nights at jamborees and friends' homes playing and singing. Special music friends were Johnny Johnson, Paul McDonald and Welford Tiley.
Other family hobbies were hunting in the Regina-Lindrith area and fishing Groundhog, Powell and Navajo lakes. Dad also like to tinker and had an inventive mind.
He passed away peacefully at home. The family will hold a memorial service at a later date. Due to his severe allergies, he said, don't send flowers, so please donate to your favorite charity.
Words can't express our love and how much you will be missed.
Drew's care is entrusted to Brewer, Lee and Larkin Funeral Home, 103 E. Ute St. in Farmington, 505-325-8688. Those who wish to express their condolences may do so at www.serenityandcompany.com.