A crowd filled the VFW hall in Oxford Sunday for a community celebration marking local resident John Crumpton’s 100th birthday.Crumpton grew up in Mississippi but has lived in Maine for decades and knows much of the local history.He graduated from the Naval Academy in 1948 and went on to have a distinguished career in the Navy, serving on eight different ships, including as the commanding officer on the USS Jackdaw, USS Theodore E. Chandler and USS Dale and as the XO on the USS Ault. He retired with the rank of captain after serving in Korea, Vietnam and the Cold War.His list of awards includes the Legion of Merit, presented in 1974.”If you’ve ever crossed paths with him, you’ve surely heard him say, ‘How you doing?’ A simple phrase that sums up his warmth to others,” one person said during Sunday’s celebration.Crumpton was happy to share stories and plenty of …
