Dr. Crawford T. Hawkins Jr.

SARASOTA, Fla. — Dr. Crawford T. Hawkins Jr. was born Dec. 12, 1923, in Fargo, N.D., the son of Crawford Tucker Hawkins Sr. and Myrtle Olson, the oldest of four boys, brothers Donald Hawkins (deceased), Loughery (Gail) Hawkins and Henry Hawkins, both of St. Louis, Mo.

Crawford left Fargo at 18 and joined the U.S. Army artillery in the Baltic region, and never returned to Fargo. He served in the Korean War as a doctor. With the military, he went to the University of Illinois and interned at Cook County Hospital in Chicago. While at Cook County, he met and married Evelyn Margaret VanDerVeen, now deceased, and had seven children, Vicki Nolan, of Champaign, Mary Russo, of Jacksonville, Ill., Tucker Hawkins, now deceased, Debra Hak, of Santa Monica, Calif., Nancy Claussen, of Glen View, Ill., Kathy Montemurro, of Glen View, and Mark Hawkins, of Chillicothe.

Crawford practiced in Streator from 1953, where he founded the Medical Arts Group/Streator Medical Clinic S.C. in 1960 with 13 doctors.

Crawford married Joann Glos in 1974 and added three stepchildren, Valarie Jarocki, of Albuquerque, N.M., Robert Glos, of Cincinnati, Ohio, and Julie Wig, of Ottawa. Together they have 19 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

Crawford carried four medical licenses in California, Arizona, Illinois and Florida. He spent three months visiting all of Sarasota, and moved there in 1978. He began a new practice and served on the staff of Sarasota Memorial Hospital and Doctors Hospital. Eventually selling his practice, Crawford worked for Holland America Wind Star Sailing Ships as a ship’s doctor.

They loved their schedule, spending three months every spring in Tahiti, three months at home, and three months in the Mediterranean, bringing the ship to Barbados in the winter.

Crawford retired again, but retirement didn’t suit him, so he worked part-time at the local V.A. Clinic, and then for the Rosekamp Institute until he had an accident that left his speech impaired.

He loved his yard, and he worked to keep it lovely. Joann will miss him greatly.

Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday, July 6, at Toale Brothers Funeral Homes, Gulf Gate Chapel. Funeral Mass at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church will be scheduled at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, Crawford’s family requests memorial contributions be made to The Alzheimer’s Association at alz.org.

To send condolences, please visit toalebrothers.com.

Toale Brothers Funeral Homes & Crematory

40 N. Orange Ave., Sarasota, FL 34236

941-955-4171 toalebrothers.com