Erin Springsteen

West Point, 2002

Be Thou At Peace

Posted by Anne McClain on April 15, 2004:

Bruce... I cannot picture Erin without a smile on her face - you know the one - where her eyes squint real small. She was always so full of energy and a level of mischief. I am still shocked by her loss. I met Erin at a pre R-day picnic for the softball team, and continued to share great experiences with her at West Point. I'll never forget when she drove up with her family in the van with the canoe on top, and out came this girl with no tan and, oh man, the hair! And the smile was there, always there. She used to make us laugh at softball practice all the time, she would run to third to cover a stolen base, tripping over her catching equipment the whole time only to get to the base and trip over it, too. Then she would stand up, a huge grin, and run back and do it all over again, just muttering "sorry coach." She reminded us all that the game was just a game, and it was supposed to be fun. I rememer yuk year when she decided she wanted to go to Navy dive school. A while before the try-out, she let me know she couldn't swim real well. So, we went down to the pool whenever we could find the time, and we speant time treading water, retrieving bricks, and swimming underwater. Typical to Erin, she then got selected over me after nearly acing the water events of the try out. That is how she was - giving all her energy to everything she was involved in. I will never forget how she could make me laugh, from doing "taps check" dressed up with water pistols plebe year in Florida to just keeping the seriousness of WP in perspective. I am sad she is gone, but happy I had the opportunity to cross her path. To her family, no words can console you now, but I hope you can find comfort knowing that people all over the world were touched by Erin, laughed with her, and are thankful to have known her. I hope she has found a better place.

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