Hazel Rebecca Crump

She is survived by her children, Elaine Ayres, Michael Crump, Pat Crump, Carolyn Crump, Bonnie Egloff and husband Michael; 13 grandchildren; 24 great-grandchildren; sister, Iva Dell Miller.

Visitation will be held from 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm Wednesday, May 13, 2015 at Weed-Corley-Fish Funeral Home 2620 South Congress Avenue. Funeral Service will be held at 1:00 pm on Thursday, May 14, 2015 at Weed-Corley-Fish Chapel. Interment will follow at Forest Oaks Memorial Park.

Grandma's Story

By Amy Banda

Grandma was born Hazel Rebecca Lewis in Comanche county, Texas at the home of her parents William Robert Lewis and Addie Beatrice Jetter Lewis. She was a healthy eight pounds. Born during WWI, she was the fourth child born into her family but the first daughter. She had three older brothers: Gene, Lee, and Frank. Her parent would then have four more daughters: Helen, who died at 11months old from the flu, Ivadell, Ruby, and Aleta. Grandma was named after her Grandmother Rebecca Jetter.

As a young girl grandma's family moved to El Dorado, in Schleicher county. Although grandma was raised during the depression, she says her and her family never felt the full effects of the depression because her family farmed and raised animals and they never wanted for food. The only food they had to buy was sugar and flour. Her mother sold eggs and butter that they churned to make extra money. The family often gave food to other families who were not as fortunate. Her family picked and chopped cotton as well as raised Ramboleigh sheep. It can be noted that the Pfluger family who founded Pfugerville, Texas owned one of the farms the family lived on.

On Sundays the family would hookup the horses to a wagon for church. Her mother would lie out blankets in the bottom of the wagon for the children to sit on. Her father helped to build the schoolhouse that also housed the First Baptist Church in El Dorado where it still stands today.

Grandma attended school in El Dorado where she graduated at the age of 22. Because she came from a farming family, she had to miss school to work in the fields and started school late. When she began first grade at the age of 8 it was discovered that she had very poor vision. Whether it was genetic or caused from the spider bite that had nearly taken her life at the age of six was not known. She was taken to her father's brother Dr. Lewis and fitted for glasses. She never knew she could not see and was surprised when she put on her glasses. Grandma attributes all of her academic success to her long time schoolteacher, Ella Cummings, who came from Burnet, Texas to teach in El Dorado. Ms. Cummings encouraged her and gave her extra help. Grandma says she must have known how badly she needed it. After seeing an add in the local paper, grandma inquired about a business school in Austin.

Aside from all of her duties as eldest daughter, you could often find her in the fields helping her father because she was a daddy's girl. This is where the school of business recruiter found her the day he came to speak with her parents about her coming to attend school in Austin. Although her mother had already opposed to her leaving, her father agreed right there in the field and wrote the recruiter a check for $300.00 to cover two years tuition. She would have to work for her room and board. She spent the summer sewing dresses and packed the small trunk her father had bought her. She rode the bus to Austin.

The bus station was on 10th street and directly across the street from the Nixon-Clay Business College. Grandma lived with a host family and worked for her room and board. After some training, Grandma worked for the 48th Legislature as a secretary for the Lamar county representative. While she was working at the capitol, she met her future husband, Marley Austin Crump. He was a sergeant at arms for the legislature. When WWII broke out soon after, the government had a great need for typist. Grandma became a typist for the government. She recalls everything had to be in triplicate and the carbon paper always made such a mess. She worked at Camp Swift as well as lived and worked in San Antonio. She worked at Kelly Field and rented a room off Broadway Street. She was later transferred to Hondo, Texas where all the women were housed in the officer's quarters. The women were guarded at all times. Either to keep the women in or the neighboring soldiers out, she was not sure which. Franklin Delano Roosevelt made a great impression on her that has stayed with her to this day.

Grandma was married in January of 1941. Because it was wartime, security was high at the phone company. Grandpa was needed as an armed policemen and went to work for Southwestern Bell where he later retired. Grandma stayed home to raise five children. Elaine was born in 1944 followed by Mike in 1946, Pat (William) named after her father came along in 1948. Caroline was born in 1949 and a little surprise came in 1957 named Bonnie. With her family well on its way, she went to work for the Internal Revenue Service. She retired from the IRS after 18 years.

After 33 years of marriage, grandma was widowed in 1974. That same year, she began to attend Baptist Temple Church. She taught Sunday school to the children which often included several of her own grandchildren. She has been a member for the last 40 years. Even though she moved away from the neighborhood and later became unable to drive, she remains devoted to the church and all her friends there. She always finds a way to make it to church on Sunday.

Grandma has five children, thirteen grandchildren, and twenty-four great-grandchildren who love her very much and will miss her terribly but know that to be absent from the body means to be present with the Lord. 2 Corinthians 5:8