Melvin Craig

Melvin Craig April 1, 1920-November 7, 2013 Melvin Craig, 93, of Riesel, Texas, went home to be with the Lord on Thursday, November 7, 2013, in Conroe. Funeral services will be 9:30 am, Thursday, November 14, at the Wilkirson-Hatch-Bailey Funeral Home with Dr. Craig Blaising officiating. Burial will follow at Mission Park North in San Antonio. Melvin was born on April 1, 1920, in San Antonio, Texas, to Neil and Helen Dix Craig. The family moved to Riesel where Melvin's father worked for many years as a depot agent for the railroad. Melvin enjoyed sports and played basketball for Riesel High School where he graduated in 1938. He attended Texas A&M University until he began his service during WWII. Melvin put his life on the line with his fellow soldiers of the 35th Infantry Division, 134th Regiment in France, Belgium, and Germany. The 134th Regiment landed at Omaha Beach on July 6, 1944, and saw action in several battles, including the Battle of the Bulge. After being honorably discharged from the Army, Melvin worked in accounting for an oil company and a large construction company in Okinawa, Japan and Guam. He returned to San Antonio where he worked for 25 years in security services at Kelly AFB. Following retirement, Melvin purchased properties in Riesel and Mart where he was active in community events, such as volunteering at the Riesel Fair each year and playing dominoes at the Mart Community Center. He was a Shriner and a 32 Scottish Rite Mason and a past Master of the Riesel Masonic Lodge #835. He later moved to Conroe to be closer to his brother, Harold, and his family. Melvin loved the Lord and was a loving brother and a kind and thoughtful uncle. He was preceded in death by his parents; brother, Harold Craig and sister-in-law, Pearl Courtade, and brother, Bud Craig. Melvin will be missed by his surviving sister, Mildred Craig Blaising and her husband, Claude; nephews, Dr. Craig Blaising and wife, Diane, and Stephen Blaising and wife, Judy; nieces, Charlotte Craig Herrin and Joy Blaising; and great-nieces and great-nephews, Carrie Lynne Herrin, Lizzie Blaising, Emily Blaising Craig and husband, Josh, Kate Blaising, Jonathan Blaising, Jack Blaising; as well as other relatives and friends.