Joe Creed

Joe L. Creed died Wednesday, December 12, 2012 at Mountain View Medical Center after a brief illness. Joe was born on May 6, 1935 in Altus, Oklahoma, the son of S.L. Buddy Creed and Ola Belle Newell Creed. He graduated from Altus High School in 1953. He began college at Oklahoma University to study engineering, and became acquainted with Joe Priestly of Las Cruces who told him about New Mexico A & M College that had a great engineering school and Co-op program at White Sands Missile Range. Joe along with three friends, transferred to New Mexico A & M the next semester. He tried out for the football team after his first year and earned a scholarship as a walk-on the next season. Joe Co-oped at White Sands during his undergraduate years and completed his B.S. in Chemical Engineering in 1959. During his college years he met and married his wife of 55 years, Priscilla Meek. Joe was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity, as is his son Tom, and has maintained close ties with his fraternity brothers throughout his life, meeting weekly for coffee and recently the SAE "First Friday Luncheon". Following graduation from NMSU, Joe worked as a sales and design engineer in Tulsa, Oklahoma and in 1966 formed PM&C Inc., an engineering, design and manufacturing firm where he served as President and co-owner for 17 years. During these years in Tulsa, his sons Jeffrey and Thomas were born and as the boys grew, Joe spent many happy years coaching football and little league baseball for his sons and working with the Tulsa parks and recreation department after school sports for children. As the teams grew and won numerous city championships, Joe became known as Coach Creed and his son's friends still call him "Coach" today. In 1982, always wanting to return to New Mexico, Joe sold his interest in PM&C Inc. and returned to NMSU for his second career joining the Chemical Engineering Faculty. He earned his MBA/MS in Chemical Engineering in 1986. He was named Assistant Dean of the College of Engineering in 1988 and was responsible for development activities as well as alumni and public relations and work with charitable foundations. Always an Aggie, Joe was named advisor to the President for athletics and was NCAA Faculty Representative. Although Joe retired from NMSU in 2005, he continued to be an ardent supporter of Aggie Athletics and College of Engineering events. He enjoyed serving as a volunteer at the Klipsch Museum on campus and the Zuhl museum. He enjoyed playing golf at the University golf course and spending time in Ruidoso with "The Ruidoso Bunch". Joe is survived by his loving wife Priscilla, his son Jeffrey of Las Cruces and his son Thomas of Albuquerque and his beloved granddaughter Jessica of Albuquerque of whom he was so proud, as she is a freshman at NMSU; his brother Larry Fred Creed and wife Beverly of Sweetwater, Texas and also his faithful companion Pug Rosie, who was always at his side. Joe will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him. A celebration of his life will be held on Monday December 17, 2012 at 1:00 pm. at La Paz-Graham's Funeral Home, 555 West Amador, Las Cruces, N.M. The family suggests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Joe L. Creed Professorship in Chemical Engineering or the Joe L. Creed Memorial Scholarship for Engineering through the NMSU Foundation. To send condolences go to www.lapaz-grahams.com.