Jean McLeod Craig

On May 19, 2020 Jean slipped the surly bonds of earth, put out her hand and touched the face of God.

Jean was born on June 7, 1930 on her father’s fishing boat halfway between Ketchikan, Alaska and Prince Edward Island. Jean was the oldest of 13 children and was proud of her Alaska Native heritage. She was of the Eagle Frog clan in the Haida tribe which is well known in the Pacific Northwest for their distinctive totem poles. Jean worked in a cannery as a teenager and assisted her father who was a commercial fisherman.

Jean joined the United States Air Force in 1949 and served in administration and as a crew member on transport and medevac flights during the Korean conflict. Following discharge from the Air Force in 1952 she attended Seattle University on the G.I. bill where she received her nursing degree. Jean worked as a public health nurse in Seattle for a brief period and then became a flight attendant for Pacific Northwest Airlines. She also served as a flight attendant supervisor for Capitol Airways from 1967 until 1969 where she was responsible for transporting G.I.s to and from Vietnam.

Jean served as a U.S. Army personnel specialist in Stuttgart, Germany from 1969 until 1981 and that is where she met her husband, Rogers.

When Rogers retired from the U.S. Air Force in 1981 they relocated to Marlin, Texas where she became co-owner of Cedar Springs Enterprises (CSE) whose activities included farming, ranching, long haul trucking and the manufacture and packaging of heating and cooking wood (Mesquite and Hickory) products.

Jean retired from CSE in 2005 and became actively involved in a variety of community service activities. She served on the Allen House board and was responsible for establishing a community garden in Marlin. She was active in the Falls County Republican Party, was a member of the American Legion Post 31 and attended the First Presbyterian Church in Lott.

Jean never met a stranger and every day woke up with a smile on her face and she kept it there all day. She was a world traveler, an entrepreneur, an avid reader, a gourmet cook, a talented seamstress, gracious hostess and an accomplished artist. Other amazing things in her life; she was a pilot, race car driver, author, fluent in German, and past secretary of Los Amigos del Mesquite – an international organization whose purpose is to promote and develop new uses for the Mesquite Tree. Jean was fortunate enough to have lived the American Dream. She lived life to the fullest and will be missed by all who knew her. No sadness please but rather, lift your glass to the memory of a great and wonderful spirit. There is a brand-new star in heaven tonight.

In lieu of flowers, the family would ask that you help someone in need, participate in a charitable cause or make a toast to enduring friendship. Jean will like that.