Charter faculty remembered by friends, family

Jessica Casarez
The Signal

Sam Bruno, a charter faculty member of UH-Clear Lake, passed away on Aug. 23 after battling leukemia for three years.

For many who knew him, Bruno left behind so much more than a nameplate and boxes to be packed.  He impacted many people close to him and left an irreplaceable place in their hearts and lives.

Bruno was a professor of marketing and served as director of the Center for Advanced Management Programs.  CAMP was established in 1977 as the outreach arm of the School of Business. This organization sponsors, develops and implements numerous workshops and seminars leading to a Certificate in Purchasing/Supply Chain Management, Federal Acquisition and Contracting, and a Master’s Certificate in Project Management.

Teresa Chance, senior secretary for CAMP, carries nothing but fond memories of Bruno who she says filled the role of a surrogate parent to her.  She worked with Bruno for 16 years.

“He adopted his staff,” Chance said.  “He was not only a boss.  He was a guiding light and the voice of reason. When you worked with him, you were family.”

Bruno also served as an executive director of the Federation of Business Disciplines until 2009, when he decided to step down and pass on his duties so he could fight the cancer that eventually took his life. FBD is a nonprofit, volunteer driven organization founded in 1973.  A couple of its primary goals are to promote high-quality teaching, research and services and to encourage excellence through peer-evaluation of scholarly work.

“He loved watching this thing grow from a small group of academics into an international organization,” Chance said.  “It was not the big picture that was important to him; it was the little things that this organization accomplished.”

Aside from professional organizations, Bruno occupied himself with many other things.  His highest priority was his family, including his wife and three children.

Ted Cummings, dean of the School of Business, worked closely with Bruno since 1998 and got to know him well.

“Family always came first to him,” said Cummings.  “He had other responsibilities, but he never lost sight of that.”

Many smaller departments and organizations, like CAMP, suffered during the downward economy.  Cummings credits the survival of CAMP to many of Bruno’s efforts and hard work.

“We survived because of Sam,” Cummings said.  “He redid all the brochures and did a lot of work from MD Anderson. He worked until the very end.”

From serving in the United States Naval Reserves to serving as a charter member of UH-Clear Lake, Bruno contributed to many causes and events that were important to him.
“No detail was too big or too small. There was absolutely nothing that he would not help you with,” Chance said.

Cummings echoed Chance’s assessment of Bruno’s willingness to go above and beyond what was required of him.

“No matter what, he would be there hands-on, running the seminars,” Cummings said.  “Watching him be at one of those desks registering people for seminars is something I always loved.”

Bruno is survived by his wife of 45 years, Joan, their three children Chad, Felicia and Scott, two daughters-in-law, a son-in-law and seven grandchildren.

“Sam loved his family with such joy and pride that his love would shine through on his face every time we were together,” noted Bruno’s son-in-law, Chris Roberts, during his eulogy.

While people say there is a right way to do things and a wrong way to do things, Bruno created his own method throughout his lifetime.  Roberts noted in his eulogy that Bruno approached life differently, which was “the Sam Bruno way.”