A quest for a better life took him from the cotton fields, to France and a career with Fulton County Juvenile Court.
John “Red” Crutchfield, 85, of Dallas died April 7 of complications from Parkinson’s disease. A memorial service will be at 2 p.m. Saturday at Benson Funeral Home in Dallas.
Mr. Crutchfield was born in Cochran and was one of nine children. He attended school through the sixth grade, eventually resumed his education, and obtained a GED. According to his daughter, Rebecca Crutchfield of Atlanta, he joined the Army “as soon as he was eligible” to get out of the cotton fields where he and his siblings worked.
Army life led him to France and to the woman who would become his wife. He and Anna met in 1954, and were married later that year at Versailles.
Along the way, Mr. Crutchfield was stationed in Germany, Paris, Jacksonville, Fla., Virginia and Georgia. He retired as a sergeant first class in 1966, and was later hired as a Fulton County sheriff’s deputy.
Ms. Crutchfield said her father and his partner were attached to the county’s juvenile court, and rounded up youths who’d failed to report for a court date. Mr. Crutchfield eventually transferred to Fulton County Juvenile Court as a clerk, and assisted judges with their calendars.
George Blau, a Fulton County Juvenile Court associate judge, knew Mr. Crutchfield for more than 10 years.
"He had a good rapport with children, and would get cases lined up; make sure the children knew when to come to court; what their charges were, and what their rights were," he said. "He was very strict -- but also very kind. He treated the children as children -- not as adults -- and took into consideration their ability to understand things."
Attorney John W. Greer III, a former referee for Fulton County Juvenile Court, called Mr. Crutchfield, "One of the most honest, ethical and capable people I've ever seen. He was a real gentleman, and treated all people well. He never met an enemy."
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Henry Newkirk, a former staff attorney with Fulton County Juvenile Court, called Mr. Crutchfield, "firm, but fair. He was former military, and if someone did not pull their weight, he knew it. He was an institution in the juvenile court at the time. He served Fulton County well, and had the utmost respect of both employees, and the public."
Rosalyn Heard, a former accounting clerk and former chief deputy clerk with Fulton County Juvenile Court, recalled, "I had two sons, and one of them lived and died for baseball -- as John did. Years ago, he was playing in a Little League all-star game in DeKalb County and I could not get away from work to go. I did not know it 'til much later, but John slipped away from work to go watch him for a few innings -- just so someone was there. That's the kind of friend he was."
Ms. Crutchfield said her father retired on his birthday in 1991, and turned his attentions to watching baseball, especially the Braves, and bowling.
“He was in a senior league into his 80s,” she said. “He just loved it."
Mr. Crutchfield -- or “Uncle Red” as he was known to family -- also enjoyed cooking up a batch of his secret recipe barbecue for loved ones, and tending to a lawn adorned with azaleas and dogwoods that his daughter said he’d transplanted from a nearby forest.
In addition to his wife, Anna, and daughter Rebecca, survivors also include daughters Ester Durham of Bremen, and Michelle Lindsey of Duluth; and a sister, Sally Tallent of Hogansville.
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