Howard Nathan Crawford

Howard Nathan Crawford, Jr passed away as the sun rose November 7, 2009. He was 83. He was an independent, diverse spirit with a dry wit. He was a gentleman rancher, experimental farmer, aviator, independent oil-and-gas landman, alternative health researcher/advocate, patriot, Presbyterian, genealogist, husband, father and grandfather. He grew up between Shreveport, LA and Hallsville, TX. At the age of 16 Howard convinced his mother through her tears, to sign papers for him to enlist in the Navy. Upon the discovery of a heart murmur, he was denied the opportunity to participate in combat and served as a secretary. At the end of WWII, as his last duty, he recounted typing up the final discharge papers (his own), before ceremoniously throwing his Navy-issued typewriter overboard. He studied engineering at Centenary College and Oklahoma State University. He was a free-spirited traveler with a baby blue convertible Cadillac when he walked into Shell Oil in Jackson, MS and met Deborah Martin Stevens, the granddaughter of Judge John Morgan Stevens, Sr. Howard was a bachelor, convinced he'd never wed or have children. Though Deborah was engaged and technically off the market, Howard found himself driving to Jackson every spare moment to court her on her grandparent's porch by tutoring her in the game of chess. With diligence, the bachelor oilman won over the unavailable debutante. She called off her former engagement and they married April 12, 1956. After their honeymoon in Coral Gables, Florida, they moved to Lafayette to start their life and family. Howard was a true dichotomy. He was impatient in one breath, loving beyond words in the next. He moved and spoke slowly with a thick-as-black-crude, Texas drawl yet nothing got past him. He was terribly serious but known for his spontaneous bursts of humor. At times he would laugh so hard he couldn't stand up straight. He maintained an office in the Oil Center and a farm in Ossun, originally part of the Rod're Plantation. He was fiercely adept at oil and gas leasing, noted in Who's Who in America, but his heart lay in the country. He spent half his life dressed sharply in a suit, tie and fedora to go to work or worship at church. The other half he was in a baseball hat, khaki pants and cowboy boots working his farm. On his farm he planted experimental crops for the University of Louisiana. He also built his own private runway and hanger for his Taylor Craft and Beechcraft Baron and raised 13 '' Malaysian prawns in ponds. He had organic gardens, bred Montana Hereford cattle and King Ranch horses. A bit of a Johnny Appleseed, Howard planted fruit trees wherever he lived and hybridized his own varieties. He reveled in the glory of Texas wildflowers and loved to show off his blue bonnets and wild irises at the farm. He often brought orphaned baby critters home for his children to raise: skunks, flying squirrels, owls, turtles, raccoons, wild rabbits, possums and entire bee colonies were all part of the Crawford menagerie at 601 Brentwood Boulevard. Howard was an avid hunter and fisherman. On his honeymoon in Florida he caught a horsefly, tied it on a line and hoisted a fish. He and his sons spent numerous hours sitting in blinds hunting turkey and deer in Mississippi, ducks and geese in Louisiana or doves in Texas. He also set up a quail reserve on his property by planting bi-colored lespedeza to feed and attract them to nest. In his lifetime, he cheated death several times due to great instincts and fast reflexes. He deftly performed emergency landings in his plane, got stepped on, kicked and thrown by horses, stung by multiple bees, saved his daughter from being abducted in the Bahamas and was hit by a car in downtown Baton Rouge when crossing a street and thrown off its hood fifty feet forward. Howard's nature was humble and private. He played his emotions and generosity close to his vest. A bit of a Good Samaritan, he rarely divulged his secrets, even to his own family. He was the man who would quickly offer to fly someone in need, pay for a child's education or set up a scholarship fund for college students at his church while never once mentioning such things to his family. He rarely wanted things for himself and lived in very sparse conditions. He was nearly impossible to give gifts to. In his younger years, Howard was a Mason. He was very politically active, penning copious labored-over letters to various newspaper editors. He worried about where he felt the United States was headed and ardently worked to preserve the Constitution, and in turn, Americans' rights. He was a member of the American Association of Petroleum Landmen, National Rifle Association, and spent most Sundays after church brunching with his family at the Lafayette Petroleum Club or the Lafayette Townhouse. He was fiercely passionate about his lineage and traced his ancestry back to Daniel Boone and beyond. He was a longtime member and served as President of the Attakapas Chapter of the National Society, Sons of the American Revolution. He went to Paris and met with the Senate as an ambassador for the twinning of the Lousiana and Parisian chapters of the SAR/DAR. He was a proud member of the National Society of Magna Charter Dames & Barons and wore the Royal Order of the Garter on formal occasions. Primary keystones of Howard's life were his unwavering spiritual beliefs and devotion to Grace Presbyterian where he served as a Deacon and Elder and taught Bible Study. Howard knew where he was going when he left this world and was happy to be received into his heavenly home. Howard is survived by his children: Deborah Lys Martin Crawford, John Morgan Stevens Crawford and his wife Tess Anne Crawford, Dorothy Kate Stevens Crawford, and his beloved granddaughter Laurel Hope Stevens Crawford. Also surviving him are throngs of nieces and nephews and his siblings: Dr. Loyce Lenore Crawford, Sing Joanne Gibson and her husband Louis Gibson, Wayne Scott Crawford and his wife Bettye Crawford and brother-in-law Walter Langford. He was preceded in death by his eldest son Howard Nathan Crawford, III, his parents Claudia Fields Crawford and Howard Nathan Crawford Sr., and his siblings: Janet Owen Moore and Bitsy Louise Langford. And though they were no longer legally married in his heart he remained devoted to and was preceded in death by the love of his life, Deborah. A memorial to celebrate the life of Howard N. Crawford Jr. will occur November 21, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. at Grace Presbyterian Church located at 518 Roselawn Blvd., Lafayette, LA 70501. A reception will take place afterward in the Fellowship Hall in front of Deborah's stained glass window. In his honor, his family suggests planting a fruit tree, your own wildflower patch or vegetable garden or donating to the fund he started, the Grace Scholarship Fund for Education. The family is also collecting stories of Howard and would love for you to contribute. Because he touched so many yet was so private, we're sure there are many stories we haven't heard. Please email any remembrances of Howard you'd like to share to DKateC@mindspring.com. They will be compiled in a memory book and available at a later date for all to enjoy. "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do... Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." Mark Twain Delhomme Funeral Home, 1011 Bertrand Drive, Lafayette, is in charge of all funeral arrangements.

Howard Nathan Crawford

March 15, 1926 - November 7, 2009