Descendants of Richard Crouch

of Goochland County, Va.

To: Index Contact: Joe Crouch

James J. Crouch Jr. Elsie S. Crouch JJ and Elsie Crouch
1943 Jim Crouch OSU      Elsie Schneiter OSU 2003 - Jim & Elsie Crouch        

 

James Jesup Crouch, Jr. 7 (James Jesup Crouch, Sr. 6, James Thomas Crouch 5, William Smith Crouch 4, Richard Crouch 3, John Crouch 2, Richard Crouch 1) was born at his parent's home on March 21, 1921 in Elkton, Todd County, Kentucky; and died September 1, 2004.  The son of James Jesup and Margaret (Hollins) Crouch.  He received his education in the Elkton Public Schools and then in 1938 entered Western Kentucky State College (Western Kentucky University), in Bowling Green, Kentucky, for his Pre-Veterinary course.  He then entered the College of Veterinary Medicine of Ohio State University in 1941, from which he graduated in Sept. 1944.  While at Ohio State University, he served in the Army Specialized Training Program of the Veterinary Corps.  On June 17, 1944, he married Elsie Louise Schneiter of Sugarcreek, Ohio.   After graduation, he and his new wife moved to La Center, Kentucky where he was employed by Dr. W.M. Coffee, a 1952 President of the A.V.M.A. 

On October 15, 1945 he moved to Glasgow, Kentucky, where he organized the Animal Clinic of Glasgow, Kentucky.  He helped organize the South Central Rural Telephone Cooperative and served a four year term as its first president.  He served as president of the Kentucky Veterinary Medical Association in 1966 and was named Kentucky Veterinarian of the Year in 1974. Jim Crouch served as an elder and trustee of the Glasgow First Christian Church. While at the Animal Clinic of Glasgow his partners included Doctors Nelson A. Pott, Edwin A. Page, Bobby A. Guilfoil and Steve Webb.

In 1995 at the age of 74 he retired from veterinary practice, at which point in time he was the oldest practicing veterinarian in the state. In 1998 he founded By-products for Cattle and traveled across Kentucky, Tennessee and part of Georgia helping cattle farmers increase productivity with a cost-effective nutritional supplement for beef and dairy cows. When a someone questioned him on the wisdom of someone his age driving such long distances he replied with "What do you want me to do, sit on the front porch in a rocking chair, waiting to die?".  On the afternoon of September 1, 2004,while on one of these trips, he fell asleep while driving on Interstate-65 south of Elizabethtown, Kentucky and died a few hours later from chest injuries sustained in the single vehicle accident.

His wife Elsie Schneiter Crouch, known for her bright smile, died July 1, 2011 in Murray, KY. She was born on December 26, 1921 in Shanesville, Ohio to Frederick Karl Schneiter and Elise Lengacher Schneiter, both from Canton Bern, Switzerland. In 1939 Elsie graduated from Sugarcreek-Shanesville High School and in 1944 she graduated from Ohio State University in Nursing Education. Elsie married James Jessup Crouch, Jr. of Elkton, Kentucky in June 1944. In 1945 Elsie and Jim moved to Glasgow, Kentucky where he practiced veterinary medicine for fifty years. They celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary before his untimely death in 2004.

Elsie Schneiter Crouch was a deacon of the First Christian Church and a member of the Christian Women's Fellowship.  The Glasgow Garden Club initiated the Lighted Dogwood Tour during her term as its president in 1981-1983. In early 2006, after having lived in one home for almost 60 years she downsized and moved to Highland Ridge Assisted Living Facility in Glasgow, KY.   In 2009 she moved to Hickory Woods Senior Living Community in Murray, Kentucky. In Murray she attended the First Christian Church.

His children remember him for the following:

And his specific wisdom on naming children:

-"If people see the name in writing, can they pronounce it?"

-"If people hear the name spoken, can they spell it?"

-"If people see the name in writing, or hear the name spoken, do they know, 'That's a boy' or 'That's a girl'?"

-"Before you make a final decision on the name, check out the initials - make sure the initials don't spell out something less than desirable."

-His final guideline on naming children: "Don't name a son junior."  He said, "I'm James Jessup Crouch, Jr.  I've been called James, I've been called James Junior.  I've been called Junior.  And worst of all, I was called June."  Then he said, "Besides that, if you name your son Junior and he doesn't turn out well, then everybody knows who his father is."

His grandchildren remember him with a collection of words and phrases that concur special memories of the time they spent with Papaw: