Dr. Joy Craddick

Dr. Joy Craddick

Dr. Joy Craddick - beloved mother, best friend, mentor, physician, spiritual seeker, courageous fighter - passed into the Great Mystery at her home on Tuesday evening, May 1st.

She is survived by her loving daughter, Marla Craddick; her son-in-law, Anton Abben; and her grandchildren-in-law,
Safana Abben and Orion Abben. Dr. Craddick lived a life in service of her family and her patients, to whom she remained dedicated until her very last breath of this life.

She had a storied career, first as a pediatric cardiologist who became Chief of Cardiology at Children's Hospital in Oakland, California and served on President Nixon's panel on heart disease. Later in life, Dr. Craddick then used her own journey through cancer to educate, support and encourage countless others battling the disease. It was the great joy of her life to do so.

She also loved living the country life, communing with all creatures great and small, gardening, bird-watching, farming, reading the words of great thinkers, and visiting with her many dear friends. In the words of Herman Hesse,
Dr. Craddick summed up her life:

"I am a poet, a seeker, and a confessor, obligated to truth and sincerity. I have a charge albeit small and confined: to help other seekers to understand and to cope with the world, if only by assuring them that they are not alone."

A celebration of Dr. Craddick's life will take place at her farm, 187 E. Butler Lane in Ashland, on what would have been her 75th birthday, Tuesday, May 29, 2007 at 3 pm. Please RSVP by May 22nd to 482-7275. In lieu of flowers, donations will be most humbly accepted by Dr. Craddick's daughter, Marla, to help with expenses.