Bruce Heflin

Bruce A. Heflin CHAPEL HILL - Retired U.S. Marine Corps Col. Bruce Aubrey Heflin of Chapel Hill died Thursday, Sept. 17, 2009, after a long illness. Born in Clarksburg, W.Va., in 1922, Col. Heflin graduated from Washington Irving High School in Clarksburg and from West Virginia University. He entered the Marine Corps in 1942 and retired in 1974, participating in World War II and the Vietnam conflict. His decorations include the Legion of Merit with Combat V, the Meritorious Service Medal and the Joint Service Commendation Medal. He was a life member of the Marine Corps Association, the Retired Officers Association, the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the West Virginia University Alumni Association. He was a lifelong athlete and served on the All-Marine Senior Tennis Team for three years and scored eight holes-in-one in golf. Col. Heflin was preceded in death by his second wife, Helen C. Heflin. Family survivors include a sister, Marie Henkel of Florida; two children, Susan H. Clark of Alexandria, Va., Bruce A. Heflin II and his wife Susan of Chapel Hill; four stepchildren, Robert S. Dunn Jr. of Woodenville, Wash., Kenneth A. Dunn of Durham, N.C., Alan L. Dunn of Long Beach, Calif., and Beverly J. Dunn of Thurmont, Md. There are also seven grandchildren. The family will receive friends from 1 to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 22, at Rosewood-Kellum Funeral Home with a funeral at 2 p.m. Burial will follow in Rosewood Memorial Park. Please share your love and condolences with the family at www.mem.com. The family suggests that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Arthritis Foundation.