… a Highland Falls family is well-represented
In the spring of 1958, Elliott G. Fishburne III, a native of Waynesboro, Va., was getting ready to go to college. He applied to Brown, Trinity, the University of Virginia and West Point. It made sense he’d apply to West Point, because while he was not from a military family, his dad ran a military school.
He got accepted to the first three, but wait-listed at West Point. He wasn’t overly upset … he’d applied to the military academy on a whim.
Gus, as he is known, decided it would be UVA. He sent in his $300 deposit, and prepared to become a Cavalier.
Until May 2nd, that is. On that date, he got a letter from West Point that said (and he paraphrases) “You’re in. Be here on July 1.”
And so began a long line of graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. This coming Saturday, Gus and Pat Fishburne, Highland Falls residents since 1984, will watch their fourth grandchild, Lexi West, graduate from West Point. That’s after two of their three children also attended the academy.
Let’s back up.
Gus Fishburne’s first Army assignment after graduating was in Staubing, Germany. He was in a bar there one evening and met a young teacher, named Patricia. Pat was raised in Connecticut, graduated from the University of Connecticut and was in her first year of teaching for the Department of Defense in Germany.
They were married not too long after that in Kaiserslautern, Germany. Through the next 22 years of his Army service, followed by 21 years of government service in the Alumni Affairs/Academy Advance-ment office at West Point — all the while she was working as a teacher and guidance counselor, ending up in the Monroe-Woodbury School District — they raised a family of two girls and a boy, Marsha, Holly and Elliott (EG). All three of their children are graduates of O’Neill High School.
While Marsha went to college at William & Mary (where she’s now the women’s soccer coach), Holly and EG both went to West Point. Moving rapidly through the years, so far two of Holly’s and two of Marsha’s kids have kept up that family tradition and attended USMA.
Let’s run those grads down, in order:
First, of course, Elliott G. Fishburne III, USMA Class of 1962.
Next to graduate was Holly, USMA Class of 1991. She’s now Col. Holly West, serving on superintendent’s staff at West Point and nearing retirement.
Third was EG, Class of 1994. EG is also a graduate of Sacred Heart School in Highland Falls, and currently works for Zing Zang Co. in Chicago. He served in the Army for seven years.
Jumping ahead a few decades, the fourth family graduate is Alexandra Lycan, Class of 2015. Allie is currently a helicopter pilot at Fort Drum.
Two years later Allie’s brother, Cooper Lycan, graduated fifth in the family, Class of 2017. He’s currently an Army Ranger in Afghanistan.
Another two years passed and then Keegan West, an O’Neill graduate, became the sixth family graduate, Class of 2019. He’s currently an Armor platoon leader at Fort Riley, Kansas.
And graduating this week, the seventh descendent of Gus, is Lexi West, Class of 2021. She also went to O’Neill and following graduation she is joining the Army’s Engineering Corps and is assigned to Germany.
It should be noted that, really, nearly every number above is off one, because Holly married Mark West, a USMA classmate of hers. Mark was recruited to West Point to play football, and after his retirement a few years ago he has served as Army’s Sprint football coach.
Whew. You can see why Gus and Pat are so filled with excitement this week.
“Gus and I are bursting with pride for each of the Fishburnes in this long gray line of ours.”
Pat Fishburne
They aren’t the only proud ones though. All of the Fishburnes, Wests and Lycans have nothing but love and gratitude for the couple that started it all. While Lexi is being celebrated this week, she is more than proud to share that spotlight.
“As I reflect on my four years at West Point, I can’t help but think about what motivated me to come here in the first place. I always think of my family and the path they created for me to follow, with my grandparents leading the way,” she said this week. “I have always admired my grandparents and their willingness to give to others. Their involvement and service to the community influenced me throughout high school and in my decision to come to West Point. They have been the biggest support system for our family and have instilled in us the values we live by.”
Lexi’s mom, Holly, agrees.
“When I started West Point, there were not a lot of women at West Point. While I know they were a little hesitant about sending their ‘little girl’, my parents were always very supportive,” she said. “My mom knew West Point as my dad was stationed there, but quickly learned that West Point was much different as a parent. She was there for all of the ups and downs of cadet life for not only me, but hundreds of other cadets. We always say, she could write a book with all of her stories of how ‘Mrs. Fish’ helped cadets.”
Holly said she knows her dad is incredibly proud of his kids and grand kids, “but while he enjoys listening to all of our stories, he is quick to tell us how easy we all had it compared to him!”
Like Holly, EG says his parents’ legacy extends beyond just their blood relatives.
“They have been surrogate parents and mentors to all of our cadet friends, as well as the many other cadets they have sponsored since first moving to West Point in 1979,” he said.
And about that legacy? “When my dad decided to attend West Point back in 1958, I’m sure he never imagined he was starting off a family legacy chain of the Long Gray Line that would extend so far,” EG said. “His commitment to Duty, Honor, Country inspired us to follow in his steps. And my mom, also known as West Point’s biggest cheerleader? She was there for each us from the start of the process, providing guidance as a college counselor, as well as providing encouragement, support, home cooked meals and many tailgates throughout the four years.”
Holly and EG both acknowledge that their parents’ pride for their grandchildren is beyond words. Those grandchildren reciprocate the deep love and appreciation for the eldest Fishburnes.
“I always felt a special bond with my grandparents,” Allie said. “I absolutely love coming back to visit West Point, which is probably a stark contrast to many of my peers. West Point has always felt like home because of my grandparents. While I was a cadet and even now, they’ve always been my rock. My grandparents (and the rest of my family) are a ‘ride or die’ bunch. I know that no matter what they will have my back. Whether that means listening to my cadet woes, driving hours to support me during rough times, or always being my biggest cheerleaders. I would not be the officer, or the person I am today without them.”
Allie says when it came time to make her college decision, her grandparents factored in.
“I’ve spent my whole life watching them live and serve honorably. I’ve never met a pair who more embodied the values of Duty, Honor and Country.”
Cooper, referring to his grandparents by the names they most love to hear says he “would not have even considered West Point without them”.
“Throughout my years there, having them right in Highland Falls was like going to school a mile from home. I wouldn’t have gotten through the four years without that luxury. Pat Pat was always there to absorb my gripes, or tell me I wasn’t crazy for wanting to leave. Guppy would be the one to tell me the ‘Corps has’. The impact they had on me, my friends, and my family is truly unmeasurable, and directly led to all of our successes. Despite the seemful ease at which members of my family graduate from the academy, the number would truly be a lot lower without the support and encouragement from Pat Pat and Guppy.”
Keegan says he wanted to emulate others in his family by going to West Point.
“Watching my family members serve on a day to day basis with compassion has and continues to inspire me,” he said, noting that there are some who might describe West Point and the Army as the ‘family business’.
“Quite simply, West Point is who we are. But that was not the reason I chose West Point,” he said. “The way I see it, the values that were instilled in my elders were the reason I wanted to go. My grandfather is very much a man who always puts the needs of others before himself. He is incredibly humble, servant minded and has nothing but love in his heart. My grandmother, the woman who is “the rock” of my family is no different than my grandfather which is probably why they make such an incredible team.”
Getting the last word in this story about a local dynasty? Soon-to-be graduate Lexi, on the family members who graduated from West Point before her: “I would not be who I am today without them and I am so grateful to have the opportunity to continue their legacy of service in my career.”
