No.23501 • 5 Feb 1939 - 14 Jun 1978 • Died in Ft. Sam Houston,
TX Interred in Arlington National Cemetery,
Arlington, VA
Ephraim
Whitworth
Crews,
Jr.,
came
from
a small
town
in southern Virginia. His family,
in
addition to
his father
and
mother
Cora,
included two older
children,
Edward
and Mary Ellen,
from his mother's
previous
marriage.
Eph
was one
of 17
graduates
from Bluestone
High School's Class
of
1956.
He was
class secretary
during his sophomore and junior
years and
vice president
his senior
year.
One
of his
best
friends
in
high
school,
Emory
Waldrep,
recalled
Eph as
a
fun-loving individual
admired
by
all.
He
loved
sports
and
was extremely
athletic.
His yearbook notes
his participation in football and baseball,
and being co-captain of
his
basketball
team. His
interests also
included
hunting and fishing.
As
Emory
remembered,
Eph
had
that
rare
trait
of being
able to
communicate with anyone
on any
level -
a trait that would
serve
him
well
in
his
future career.
Following graduation, Eph
left
Boydton
to
attend
Old Dominion
University. During
that
time,
he resided in Portsmouth
with his stepsister
Mary
Ellen and her husband
Ovid Keene,
who was instrumental
in creating Eph's
interest
in West
Point.
Thus
Eph joined
the 711 new cadets
who
arrived
at
the Academy on
2
Jul
1957
to
become
the
Class of 1961.
After
having the
opportunity
to
meet the
infamous Man
in the
Red
Sash, CDT Adam Benjamin
'58,
and drop and pick up his
bag
several
times,
Eph
was
hustled through the
hectic
routine of double timing around
the
barracks
area to
draw
uniforms
and
equipment.
It
wasn't
a
day,
but a
daze
-
an
experience
one can
never forget
but can't
actually
remember
either.
For Beast Barracks,
he
was assigned to 5th New
Cadet
Company
and
gradually
began
to meet
some
of his
classmates
with
whom he
would live for the
remaining four
years
in
Company
K-1. His company
assignment
also gave
him the
opportunity
to
become
reacquainted
with the
Man
in the
Red Sash,
now CDT 1SG Adam
Benjamin.
Perhaps
his continuing meetings with 1SG
Benjamin were
an
omen.
When
1961's
First
Class
Year
rolled
around,
Eph
became
K-1's
First
Sergeant,
following
in Benjamin's
footsteps.
Applying
the
personality
and
athletic
traits
Emory
Waldrep
recalled
about
him,
Eph
got
along
well
with
his
classmates,
the
upper
class,
the
academic
departments,
and
even
the
Tactical
Department.
He
did
well
in
all
areas.
As
many
of
us
recall,
7
Jun
1961
and
graduation
from West Point rolled
around
surprisingly
fast,
and
Eph
became
2LT Ephraim W Crews, Jr.,
Infantry.
A K-1
classmate who attended
Airborne
training
with
Eph
recalled that
he was
the
top man
in
their
jump
class.
While a
Cadet,
Eph met Ann Hervey
from Richmond, VA,
having been introduced
by
her cousin,
a high
school
classmate of his.
They
began
a
lasting
romance
with Ann
visiting West Point on
occasion. Eph
and
Ann
were
married
in Richmond
at
Grace
Covenant Chapel
on
3 Feb 1962.
Following graduation,
Eph
went through the Infantry
Officer
Basic
Course and
Airborne
before
his
first
assignment
at Ft.
Bragg,
NC.
While
there,
their
first
child, a
daughter Patricia
J. Crews,
was
born.
She would be followed
by a
brother,
David
W Crews, who was
born
during a
tour
in the
Panama Canal
Zone.
Eph
carried
a great love for West Point
with him when
he graduated.
His children recall how well
he had learned his
Plebe knowledge
as
dinner time
entertainment
was
quizzing
their
father
on
all
the
"trivia"
about West Point,
e.g.,
the number of lights in Cullum Hall,
gallons
of
water in Lusk
Reservoir and
other
Bugle
Notes
items.
His
daughter Patricia
recalled
that he
still
had his
copy of his
Bugle
Notes, and
he
recalled
the
answers
to
all
the
questions
that
they
could
throw at him.
David's
bedspread
was
Eph's
gray
cadet blanket.
Inspired by
his
grandfather, Patricia's youngest
son
says
he's going to
go
to West Point,
following in
Eph's
footsteps.
After Ft.
Bragg, Eph,
Ann and
daughter moved to
Honduras
and
then
headed
for
the Canal Zone and
the
U.S.
Army
South Headquarters at
Ft.
Clayton.
In 1967, Eph began
his first
of two tours
in
Viet Nam. He also
served
a
tour
in
the
Pentagon.
For his service
during those
tours,
he was awarded two
Bronze Stars and
an
Army Commendation Medal.
He was
selected to
attend the Command
and
General
Staff
College,
Ft. Leavenworth,
KS
in
1975 and
earned
a Master's
Degree
in Computer
Science from
Kansas
State University
while
there.
In 1976,
Eph decided
on
a
career
change and
switched
his
branch to
the Adjutant General Corps.
In his
new
career
role,
he,
Ann and the family
moved to Ft.
Hood,
TX,
in
December
1976,
where
he was assigned
as
the
Adjutant
of the U.S.
Army Training &
Doctrine Command's Combined
Arms
Test Activity.
As
they
had
in previous years,
Eph
and
family
enjoyed life
together at Ft.
Hood.
There
was
no indication in their lives
of the tragedy
that lay ahead
just another
year
down
the
road.
In November
1977,
on the Saturday
before Thanksgiving,
Eph
and
Ann
were in
a serious automobile accident in
which
their
car
caught fire. Ann
was
killed,
and Eph
was
seriously
burned
while
trying
to save
her. Eph
was evacuated to
Ft. Sam Houston for treatment,
but he
died
on 14
Jun 1978,
thus
ending the
life of
a
loving father, a
respected
soldier,
and
classmate far
before
its
time.
He
was
buried
in
Arlington National
Cemetery.
On behalf of Eph and Ann's
two
children,
Patricia
and David,
who are now
both married
with their own
children;
Eph's West
Point classmates
from K-1;
his high school classmate
Emory
Waldrep;
his cousin Dale Crews;
and other relatives
whose contributions
made this
article possible,
we dedicate
this
memorial to LTC Ephraim W. and Ann Crews,
Class
of 1961.
TAPS SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2008