Decorated WWII pilot and long time Hanford Doctor.
Full Audio Podcast
Biography
Dr. Russell “Rusty” Brookshier was born in Burkburnett, a town of 3,000 people in northern Texas. During his college years, he learned to fly through the Civilian Pilot Training Program. With World War II ongoing, Rusty joined the Army’s Aviation Cadet Corp. and was chosen to receive his flight training with the British Royal Air Force which was training pilots in the United States. Rusty became a pilot and flew 78 combat missions in the China Burma India theater.
After the War, Rusty completed college at the University of Texas, Austin and obtained his medical degree from the University of Texas, Galveston. He completed his residency at Fresno County General Hospital. He learned of an opening for a doctor in Hanford, began his general practice in Hanford in 1957. Rusty and his wife, Pencie, raised four children and were active in community activities. The rest, as they say, is history.