Mr. Cradick was born in Gosport, Indiana, on May 21, 1929, and moved to Greensburg, Indiana in 1930. After graduating from Greensburg High School in 1947, Mr. Cradick attended Indiana University before entering Kings Point where he graduated in 1951. Howard married JoAnn Esbensen in 1953 and they remained married until her passing in 2012. He spent seven years sailing as an officer in the Merchant Marines and another eight years in various ocean marine positions ashore before entering government service in 1965, from which he retired in 1990. During his federal tenure, Mr. Cradick spent two years as an operations officer (Navy) in Mobile, Alabama where his first son, Alan, was born in 1954. His first daughter, Jackie, was born a year and a half later shortly after he left the Navy as a Naval Reserve Officer. He entered federal government service in Washington, DC, where he spent his entire career until retiring in 1990. During his federal career he worked for Military Sealift Command, the Maritime Administration and the State Department (AID). His second daughter, Kathy, was born in 1958 and son Brian was born in 1962. He is predeceased by his brother, Estil, of Dunedin, Florida and survived by his sister, Mary, of Greensburg, Indiana. At the time of his death, Mr. Cradick was living with his son, Alan, in Wilmington, NC.
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Wilmington Funeral & Cremation, 1535 S. 41st Street, Wilmington, NC 28403 910.791.9099
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