Dr. John Robert Crawford III

John Robert Crawford III, M.D., 80, died Wednesday, March 28, 2018, at the Glenn A. Kiser Hospice House after a gradual decline in health. Dr. Crawford was born November 1, 1937, in Salisbury to John Robert Crawford, Jr. (deceased) and Hesta Kitchin Crawford (deceased). His grandparents were John Robert Crawford, Sr. and Jennie Kluttz Crawford. Dr. Crawford was educated in Salisbury City Schools and a graduate of Woodberry Forest School (Woodberry Forest, Va.). He was graduated from the University of North Carolina (1960), where he was a member of Sigma Nu Fraternity, and he served as an Air Medic in the United States Air Force from 1960 to 1962. He graduated from the UNC School of Medicine (1966) and completed his internship at Geisinger Medical Center (Danville, Pa.), followed by a residency in ophthalmology at the University of North Carolina and at McPherson’s Hospital in Durham, N.C. Dr. Crawford opened his ophthalmology practice in Salisbury in 1971 and proudly served on the staff of Rowan Memorial Hospital. At the time of his retirement in 2016, he was the oldest practicing physician in Rowan County. He was a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a Diplomat of the American Board of Ophthalmology. He was a member of the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the North Carolina Society of Ophthalmology, and the North Carolina Medical Society, which recognized him for fifty years of membership. During his career, Rob served as the Chief of Surgery for Rowan Memorial Hospital and as a Clinical Instructor in Ophthalmology at the Bowman Gray School of Medicine. He published seventeen papers in medical journals and received the A.M.A. Continuing Education Award in each of his years in practice. He was an approved ophthalmologist for Southern Railway (now Norfolk-Southern Corporation) for many years. A lifelong member of Saint John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Salisbury, he served on the boards of Rowan Cotton Mills, the North Carolina Lutheran Home, Wachovia Bank, the Children’s Home Society of North Carolina, Chatham Hall (Chatham, Va.), and Historic Salisbury Foundation. He had been a member of Salisbury Rotary Club, Salisbury Country Club, and Charlotte City Club. He is survived by his wife of fifty-four years, Anne (née Way, of Charlotte); his son John Robert Crawford, IV of Lexington, N.C., his wife Amy and their son, John Robert “Jack” Crawford V; his daughter Virginia Crawford Phillips of Spartanburg, S.C., her husband Courtney Stuart Phillips and their children, Virginia Anne Phillips and Courtney Stuart Phillips, Jr.; his sister, Claudia Crawford Fleming of Winston Salem, N.C., her husband Gary and their children; and by many cousins. The family wish to express their deep and abiding gratitude to his caregiver, Queen Esther Fogle, for her loving care and devoted attention, and to the staff of the Glenn A. Kiser Hospice House, who have graciously cared for him and supported the family. A service celebrating Rob’s life will be held Monday, April 2, at Saint John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, at 2:00 p.m., the Rev. David K. Huddle presiding. Burial will follow at Chestnut Hill Cemetery. The family will receive visitors and friends at the church, in Peeler Hall, beginning at 12:30 p.m. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Children’s Home Society of North Carolina (P.O. Box 14608, Greensboro, NC, 27415), the Glenn A. Kiser Hospice House (1229 Statesville Blvd., Salisbury, NC, 28144), Historic Salisbury Foundation (P.O. Box 4221, Salisbury, NC, 28144), or to the charity of the donor’s choice. Summersett Funeral Home is serving the Crawford family. Online condolences and memorial tributes may be made at www.summersettfuneralhome.com.

Dr. John Robert Crawford III

November 1, 1937 - March 28, 2018