William Andrew “Andy” Rux II was born 15 Dec 1937 in Ashland, KY, but soon moved from there and remembered little of his birthplace. The family named him after his grandfather, and to distinguish him from this grandfather (who was called William/Bill) his parents called him Andy. The name stuck with him throughout his life. His interest in West Point began while attending high school in California, and his appointment to West Point was by the local state Representative after Andy applied to him for admission to West Point.

Andy entered the Corps of Cadets at West Point on 3 Jul 1956, and soon was trying to survive the rigors of Beast Barracks. None of his family had a military background, so he was completely unfamiliar with military pro­tocol. Andy quickly adapted to the life of a cadet, however, and became an integral part of life in company H-2. During his tenure at West Point, Andy was both a student of high aptitude in technical subjects while taking an interest in the many and varied physical sports available at West Point. Although he showed little interest in the social sciences, he ultimately graduated 60th in the Class of 1960. Andy had his wild and rebellious side, however, and was on the receiving end of many ‘encounters’ with the military disci­pline at West Point. Perhaps his most notori­ous encounter was the “Big Bang” of Yearling year. A classmate had scavenged a blank round and brought it to one of the June week parades. For some unknown reason, Andy decided to try to discharge the round in concert with the firing of the retreat cannon. Unfortunately, the cannon was silent that day, but Andy’s went off! He received the highest penalty that can be given to a cadet: loss of his summer leave that year. Instead, he walked the area at Camp Buckner. Andy ultimately ended up with 196 hours on the area but declined to get another slug so he could pass the 200 mark!

At graduation, Andy chose the Corps of Engineers and then attended Airborne training at Ft. Bragg, NC, and The Engineer School (TES) at Ft. Belvoir, VA. Andy’s first assignment after schooling was at Ft. Lewis, WA. During this assignment, Andy married Dale, his Firstie year sweetheart, and soon was watching the Minnesota National Guard become activated for the Berlin Crisis. After a two-year stint at Ft. Lewis, Andy went on to aviation training at Ft. Rucker, AL. Flight training took al­most a year, and during that time his son, William Andrew Rux III, was born. After flight training, Andy and family were sent to Germany to serve a three-year tour of duty. Here his daughter, Toni Lee, was born. After Germany, Andy transitioned into the OV-1 Mohawk and was sent to Vietnam, where he received the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with 19 oak leaf clusters. After eight years of active duty, Andy and family then returned to civilian life.

Andy first attended Illinois Institute of Technology, at Chicago, IL, and earned his master of science in operations research. He then obtained a position with RCA in their Operations Research Division. In 1975, after slowly moving up the corporate ladder, Andy left the corporate world for a new adventure in Oregon, where he continued his techni­cal career with Freightliner Corporation. Andy stayed with the Freightliner until the mid 1980’s when he again struck out on an­other new adventure with a startup medical equipment manufacturer as a design engi­neer/product manager developing electronic muscle stimulators. Andy worked in this ca­pacity until his retirement in 2005.

When Andy moved to Oregon, he dis­covered that a National Guard aviation unit was in Oregon, and they were flying OV-1 Mohawk aircraft. Since he loved to fly the Mohawk, Andy joined the National Guard to fly. The only problem was that Andy had to revert to warrant officer status to fly the Mohawk! So for eight years Andy flew as a warrant officer, working his way up through the ranks to CWO-4 status. Andy is prob­ably the only West Point graduate in the Class of 1960 to also have served as a war­rant officer! After eight years, the Army changed their rules, and allowed officers to retain their rank without having a position on the TO&E. So Andy was able to return to commissioned status as a major. To be promoted, however, Andy was required to first attend the Officers Advanced Course (which he missed because of his Vietnam tour). To meet the time frames for promo­tion, Andy was granted active duty status to attend the Advanced Course. After gradu­ation, Andy then attended the Command & General Staff College via the Reserves training program. After graduating from the course, Andy was promoted to lieuten­ant colonel and given the task of starting a new supply and services battalion for the Oregon National Guard. Andy retired from his position as commander of the 741st Supply and Services Battalion in 1990 as a lieutenant colonel. His most memorable ac­complishment from his military career was the attainment of the Master Army Aviator badge, awarded to aviators with at least 15 years flying experience and 3,000 total fly­ing hours.

Throughout his life, Andy always had a unique outlook on life and always looked at the humorous side of life. His exploits and accomplishments will be fondly remem­bered by all who knew him. His legacy is an example for all to ‘kick back’ and enjoy life, and to look on the positive side, for the glass is not “half empty,” but is “on its way to full!”

Here’s to you, Andy. Be thou at peace—we will remember you with joy, love, and a warm smile!

—Dale Rux, wife