Ken Craw

 

Kenneth William Craw, Jr. 

Kenneth William Craw, Jr., died peacefully on April 9, 2026, at the age of 86, surrounded by family at his Timber Ridge at Talus home in Issaquah, Washington.

The son of Kenneth William Craw and Beulah Gaylord Craw, he was born on January 16, 1940, in Lafayette, Indiana.

He graduated from West Lafayette High School with the Class of 1958 and received a Bachelor of Science degree in geology from Indiana University in 1962, where he was a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity.

Thereafter, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Air Force and began a 21-year career as a weather officer in the Air Weather Service, which included graduate studies in meteorology at Saint Louis University and a master's degree in computer science from Texas A&M University.

Field assignments included Little Rock AFB, Arkansas; Howard AFB in the Panama Canal Zone; Global Weather Central at Offutt AFB, Nebraska; Headquarters Air Weather Service and the 7th Weather Wing at Scott AFB, Illinois; and a one-year tour at Osan AFB, South Korea. As a weather officer through the Vietnam War and much of the Cold War, he supported American and allied aviators and soldiers in executing defense and humanitarian missions around the world. Later, as a computer systems administrator, he built and maintained pioneering computer systems for Air Weather Service operations. In 1983, he retired honorably as a major from the Air Force.

While raising his son in O'Fallon, Illinois, Ken volunteered with the Boy Scouts and the O'Fallon schools' parent-teacher association and coached several youth sports teams. As an adjunct professor of computer science at McKendree College in Lebanon, Illinois, Ken helped create the school's first computer science degree curriculum. He finished his professional career in the private sector as a contract information technology program manager, serving various government and private-sector clients across the country.

In retirement, he served as a substitute math and science teacher at O'Fallon Township High School and enjoyed time with Joan, his wife of 61 years. They frequently road-tripped around the country in their RV, lovingly called "The Silver Bullet," and often visited their Lake of the Ozarks condo, "The Craw's Nest." They also traveled extensively in Europe, Asia, Africa, and South America. Ken's final years were spent in Issaquah, near his son and his son's family.

Ken was preceded in death by his mother, Beulah; his father, Ken; and his sister, Pauletta. He is survived by his wife, Joan; his son, Kenneth W. Craw III ("Chip"); his grandchildren, Linsey and Gavin Craw; his daughter-in-law, Lori Craw; and his nieces, Cynthia Johnson and Kristin Sidney.

A ceremony, at which Kenneth will receive full military honors, will be held on Tuesday, April 28, 2026 at 12:30 p.m. at Tahoma National Cemetery in Kent, Washington.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Ken's honor to Shriners Children's (shrinerschildrens.org), Texas A&M Foundation (txamfoundation.com), or the Tunnel to Towers Foundation