Crook Stewart Jr.

Crook Stewart Jr.

August 23, 2018

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U.S. Veteran  
Crook Stewart Jr. (CAPT USCG RET), age 86, was born in Birmingham, Alabama and reared in Panama City Beach and Parker, Florida. He gently passed away on August 23 surrounded with love and tenderness in his childhood home at Parker.
Crook said he had enjoyed a wonderful life and he loved his close and extended family members. He did a lot of traveling both for business and pleasure and made friends from all over the world. He danced, he body surfed, he piloted small aircraft.
He attended Bay High, graduating with the Class of 1950. He finished with the Class of 1954 at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Engineering and was commissioned Ensign. In 1970, he received his Master’s Degree of Engineering from Florida State University.
Military service, employment and business ventures included Two Crooks, Inc., gas stations and a fuel oil distributorship in Bay County. Active duty U.S. Coast Guard; then continuing with the Reserve for a total of over 27 years service, retiring as Captain. He was with civil service as a general engineer and an expert in minesweeping and mine countermeasures gear at the Navy lab, Panama City. During his years at the lab, he accomplished special missions in North and South Vietnam, Cambodia, the Suez Canal, Israel, Egypt and had assignments in the United Kingdom and at NATO in Brussels Belgium. He served at the Pentagon as Scientific Assistant to the Head, Mine Warfare Branch, Chief of Naval Operations. Over the years he received many awards and honors (too many to list).
Crook (a/k/a Mr. Smooth Moves) was a dancer with the Orlando Beach Boppers and Panama City Bop and Shag clubs; and he often attended dancing reunions with the Beach Bums at Panama City Beach and Society of Stranders (SOS), North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Crook was predeceased by parents Crook Stewart Sr. and Genevieve O’Kelley Stewart. Left to cherish his memory are his family: son Crook Stewart III (Vicki) and daughters Leigh Pettibone (Kevin) of Panama City and Kelley Heaton (Tracy) and grandson Aidan Heaton of Auburn, Alabama. His son Robert Patton (Danielle) and their daughter Rebekka live in Phoenix, Arizona. Sister Beth Stewart of Chipley. His wife of 39 years, Gwyneth Johnson Stewart and her son Steve Ashton (Ara) and daughter Kimberly Barbero, plus Gwyn’s six grandchildren, ten great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild. Crook had many nieces and nephews from the families of Guilford, O’Kelley, Johnson and Stewart.
His family and friends will miss Crook’s blue eyes, sweet smile, kindness and sense of humor. When his health declined he showed an inner strength and dignity which blessed and comforted loved ones. He is missed but will stay in many hearts and memories.
The family is grateful to Covenant Care, Encompass Home Health, Excel Therapy, Dr. Hayat and Dr. Nunez, Bay Medical and Gulf Coast Regional Medical Center, and to each nurse, aide and caregiver who helped Crook through his end-of-life journey.
A celebration of life will be held at Wilson Funeral Home on Saturday, October 20 with visitation starting at 1 p.m. and the service at 2 p.m. A notice will be published close to that date. Crook’s ashes will be placed next to his mother’s grave in the Parker Cemetery.
The family requests that, in lieu of flowers, those who wish might give to a favorite charity and/or do some acts of kindness and be joyful.

Memorial Service

Wilson Funeral Home
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  • 214 Airport Road
    Panama City, Florida 32405
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