William Patrick "Bill" Crawford II

William "Bill" Patrick Crawford II was a retired United States Air Force technical sergeant and civilian engineer from Statesboro, Georgia, who died on October 24, 2026, at the age of 95. He was not a public figure in the national sense, but his long life of military service, decades of civilian work, and devotion to his family and community made him a well known and well loved presence in his hometown, and his passing has been marked by an outpouring of tributes from relatives, neighbors, and former colleagues.

Born on May 21, 1931, Crawford was raised in Wrightsville, Georgia, by his grandparents after the loss of his parents, Exie Gibbs and William Crawford. He went on to serve in the United States Air Force for 21 years, rising to the rank of technical sergeant. During his military career he was stationed in locations around the world, including Thailand, Bermuda, and the Philippines, and he served during both the Korean War and the Vietnam War.

After retiring from the Air Force, Crawford began a second career in civilian engineering, spending 20 years working in the physical plant at Georgia Southern University in Statesboro. He later went on to work in the maintenance department at Pineland Mental Health, continuing a lifelong pattern of practical, hands on work long after most people would have chosen to rest. Those who knew him described him as a man who could repair almost anything, and he was often found tinkering in his garage or tending the lawn he kept with his wife, Eloise Deloach Crawford, who died before him.

Crawford's life was defined less by public achievement than by quiet, steady service, first to his country through two wars and more than two decades in uniform, and then to his community through his long civilian career and his devotion to his family. He and Eloise built a family life anchored by yearly summer vacations to Tybee Island, and by the daily routines of a long marriage spent largely in Statesboro.

He died peacefully in the early morning hours of October 24, 2026, at the age of 95. His death was announced through an obituary published by Joiner-Anderson Funeral Home and Crematory of Statesboro, Georgia, which is handling his arrangements. He is survived by his son, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, a sister, and extended family, and he leaves behind a legacy built on service, resourcefulness, and devotion to the people and place he called home.