John Crocker, Jr.

John Henry Crocker Jr, age 72 of Cheboygan
passed away at home on June 7, 2016, just minutes
away from his 73rd birthday.

He was born on June 8, 1943 in New Orleans, LA
to Lea (Prados) and John Crocker Sr.

He graduated from Nicholas High School in New Orleans and furthered
his education at Chalmette Community College in Chalmette, LA and at
Rets Electronic School in New Orleans where he studied electronics and
television repair, He joined the United States Coast Guard in 1964 and
was stationed at Granton, CT where he continued his schooling in
electronics, He was transferred to Cheboygan, MI in 1965 and served on
the USCG Mackinaw. It was there that he met and fell in love with his
“Big Angel” Sharon Blaisdell and married her on Sept. 19, 1966. Shortly
after they married they were transferred to Ketchikan, Alaska where he
completed his service duty in 1968. They returned to New Orleans and he
worked for Kaiser Aluminum and Chemical Company until they made the
decision, in 1979, to move back north to Cheboygan to raise their two
children and co-own Country Corners Store in Riggsville. In 1991 he
graduated 3rd in his class at Northwestern Technological Institute for
heating, venting and air conditioning. He worked at Gary’s Plumbing and
Heating in Alanson and at Cooper Standard Products in Gaylord, from
which he retired in 2005, He was thankful to be able to live in northern
Michigan and enjoyed the beauty that surrounded him, however, he shared
his love of the south by making trips to New Orleans and returning with
seafood or crawfish and shrimp boils to share with his family and friends,

Some of his favorite pastimes included playing darts with his buddies,
golfing, camping, woodworking in his workshop (prior to zipping his
fingers off), motorcycle riding with his son and his Gold Wing group
(prior to his motorcycle accident in 2005) listening to music, eating
New Orleans style southern food, traveling, but most of all, spending
time with his grandchildren. You could often see him, if you didn’t hear
him first, around town beating on his “dashboard drums”, singing slightly
off key at the top of his lungs while listening to his old time favorites:
Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and Rod Stewart.

He will forever be remembered as a fun loving husband, dad “Guga”,
brother, “Uncle Johnny Boy” and friend: ALWAYS TEASING, laughing
and making people smile.

He is survived by:
his loving wife Sharon,
his son John (Tammy Kirsch) Crocker and their son John IV of Cheboygan
and his daughter Doniel (Brian) Bur and their children Kevin, Zachary,
Matthew and Alyssa, and his grand dog Buster, also of Cheboygan,
Siblings, Bill (Karen) Crocker of Minot, ND, and Anita (John) Dubbs of
Tempe, AZ, and brother-in-law Willis Lilly of Slidell, LA. He also leaves
behind several nieces and nephews, all of whom he loved dearly.

He was preceded in death by his parents and also by his sister Phyllis Lilly,
Per his wishes, a private family gathering will be held.

John was a member of the Gold Wing Road Riders Association and enjoyed
volunteering his time to fund raise with them for The Rainbow Connection,
www.rainbowconnection,org/donate/. Any monetary donations can be
made in his memory to this wonderful charity whose mission is to grant
wishes to Michigan children with life threatening or terminal illnesses.