James Richard Craig

James Richard Craig, 89, passed from this life on May 19, 2016 at the Woodmark at Uptown, 7201 Prospect Pl. NE, where he had resided for the past five years. James was born on June 21, 1936 in Roseville, OH to James Leonard and Gladys Helen Craig. During his early childhood, he alternated between living in Roseville and living in Albuquerque. He joined the U.S. Navy in 1944 and was assigned to the U.S.S. St. Louis. He served as a Radioman 3rd class and saw action in the South Pacific. In 1945 the ship was decommissioned, and he was assigned to the Navy yard in Philadelphia, then on to Long Beach, CA where he was honorably discharged from the Navy in 1946. While he was on a weekend pass in Philadelphia in 1945, James met a nursing student named Alice Gardner from Lancaster, PA. Three years later they married on April 10, 1948, in Lancaster, and were married for 47 years. On August 4, 1948, James was hired at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque where he worked until his retirement in February 1985. One personal accomplishment while working in the Initiating and Pyrotechnic Components Division at Sandia was the invention of a gas generating device for which a patent was issued. For several years, James enjoyed artistic painting and left numerous works to his four children. He was an avid reader, a ham radio operator, and a gourmet cook. He and Alice had the opportunity to enjoy a number of cruises taking them to different parts of the world. Alice passed away in 1995. The Craigs were past members of the Church of the Risen Savior.
James is survived by three daughters and their spouses, Kathi Lewis and husband, Brian of Amarillo, TX, Cheryl Adams and husband, Gary of San Antonio, TX, and Donna Larragoite and husband, Mark of Albuquerque; one son, Leonard Craig and spouse, Barbara of Gilbert, AZ; eight grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren.
A private Rosary will be held with private burial to take place at Santa Fe National Cemetery in Santa Fe, NM. The family wishes to express their deepest gratitude to the caring and dedicated staff at the Woodmark at Uptown and to the staff of Hospice of New Mexico.


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