Portrait of Bruno Kozel
Born May 3, 1921 in Benton Harbor, MI
Rank: Fireman 1st Class. Service: US Navy. Division/Ship: SS James T. Fields, USS Holland. Theater: North Atlantic / Pacific. Dates of Service: 1944 - 1946

A Midwestern boy who grew up on the shores of Lake Michigan, Bruno Kozel joined the Navy in 1944 and spent his days on the North Atlantic as one of the Armed Guard - Navy men on merchant ships - riding shotgun on convoy duty. He was assigned to the SS James T. Field and the USS Holland. After his stint in the Atlantic, he was assigned to duty in the Pacific and found his way to Hiroshima. His two brothers were similarly called to the sea with one serving in the Nave and one in the Coast Guard. Following his discharge in 1946, Kozel returned to the Midwest and built his own machinist company. He and his wife Barbara married in Boston in 1962 and raised three children. They moved to Gloucester in 2007 in part to be closer to their daughter Lisa LeVasseur and grandson Fisher.