Gregory Lynn Watson

West Point Association of Graduates

  Gregory L. Watson 1979

  Cullum No. 37073 • Apr 1, 1982 • Died in Fort Irwin, CA

  Interred Memorial Gardens, Hot Springs, AR

Gregory Lynn Watson was born in McMinnville, TN, amid his grandparents and extended family in Warren County.  The only son of Aaron L. and Rubena Turner Watson, he was the middle child of three, the others being sisters Leann and Candy.  When they were both little, one of his cousins remembers playing with plastic soldiers and hearing Greg say how much he loved playing Army.  His family moved to Hot Springs, AR, when he was young, and he grew up to be an active member of the Methodist Church and an avid athlete.  He was the captain of his high school football team, an all-conference safety for two years, and a three-year letterman in both football and basketball.  He set his school record for the 440-yard run, which stood for several years after he graduated.  He also was an honor graduate, president of the Student Council, attended Boys State, and received the Outstanding Student Award for two years.  Greg was considered a leader by his classmates and a driven achiever by the faculty of the Lake Hamilton Public Schools.  Graduating from Lake Hamilton High School in 1975, he was faced with a dilemma.  He was accepted to attend the U.S. Coast Guard Academy at the same time Senator Dale Bumpers and Congressman Paul Hammerschmidt of Arkansas both nominated him for West Point.  Fortunately, he made the right decision and the Academy found another favorite son.

He was assigned to Company A-2 for two years and, like all members of his class, moved to another cadet company, E-3 for his last two years.  A quiet, soft-spoken and, at times, shy exterior concealed a free spirit.  He enjoyed pranks and jokes and, as often is the case, was subjected to many pranks and jokes throughout his years at West Point.  He attended Northern Warfare School, learning the art of cold weather operations.  During his first class summer, he purchased a silver anniversary edition Corvette and spent many hours in it getting away from the flagpole, including driving his Corvette in the E-3 First Class Spring Break convoy to Florida in record time.

He was a true friend and always ready to help another.  One of his additional duties in E-3 his last year was Academics Officer, and, as such, he was very active in demanding excellence in academics from all the cadets of all classes in the company.  He was not a star man, but he had a true gift for coordinating and getting the right people together.  More than once, however, he stayed up all night playing the game Risk with the other math hives in his company.  On one of those occasions, one of his academically less-gifted roommates remembers Greg coaching him through a big Engineering test while he played.  On the other hand, he did hate writing papers.  He loved to receive mail, and his companymates remember the great respect he had for his parents.  Many of his classmates have fond memories of spending leave time with Greg at his parent’s lake home in Hot Springs, water skiing, swim­ming and talking.

Upon graduation in 1979, he joined the Signal Corps and was assigned to the 1^st Battalion of the 320th Field Artillery in the 82nd Airborne Division.  There Greg found his niche.  His chain of command nominated him as the outstanding junior officer in the unit.  Participating in Operation Big Drop II at Eglin AFB, his platoon received the highest scores in the Division Artillery during a battery-level Army Training and Evaluation Program field test.  In January 1981, his platoon was satisfactory or commendable in every category during a Division Maintenance Evaluation and Annual General Inspection.  He was a truly outstanding officer with an unlimited horizon.  His commander called him a shining star, an over-achiever who excels and consistently produces outstanding results.  Some of his classmates also remember Greg doing weekends jumps in his race to see who could accrue the most parachute jumps among them.

Participating in Joint Training Exercise Gallant Eagle ’82, 24-year-old 1LT Greg Watson joined the other side of the Long Gray Line during an airdrop of the Rapid Deployment Force in the Mojave Desert at Ft. Irwin, CA.  He died on 1 Apr 1982 of injuries sustained from his last jump.  One of the soldiers helping Greg rig his rucksack that morning said Greg put an extra case of C-rations in his pack that had missed being loaded on his section’s truck.  He did not want to take the chance of his men going hungry.  His men thought a lot of him—a perfect tribute for a soldier and leader.  He was posthumously awarded the Meritorious Service Medal by his unit chain-of-command.

We lost a special man, destined for more, that day in a tragic accident.  We miss you.  Those assigned to Ft. Irwin have a favorite farewell—see you on the high ground—it seems appropriate.  We will, brother.

—His family and classmates

• West Point Association of Graduates
   

http://apps.westpointaog.org/Memorials/Article/37073/