~ IN MEMORY ~
USAF veteran, DL Capt. James Adamson Crookston II
JANUARY 15, 1946 – JUNE 19, 2021
This news was received today from family members….news with
the passing of retired Delta pilot Captain James Adamson Crookston II, age 75. Captain Crookston joined Delta Air Lines
09-04-1972 and was based Atlanta. He is
survived by his wife Susan, his daughters and his grandchildren.
To view the obituary online and share memories please visit
https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/boulder-co/james-crookston-10239710
Captain Crookston’s obituary notes that a memorial gathering
will be held later this summer in Watercolor, Florida.
Thank you,
~ Carol for the PCN
Obituary : James
Adamson Crookston II, 75, of Mexico, MO, Atlanta, GA, Santa Rosa Beach, FL, and
Boulder, CO, died Saturday, June 19, 2021, at home in Boulder, CO surrounded by
his family.
The former Jim Crookston was born January 15, 1946, in
Benld, Illinois, to Rena (Moretti) and James Crookston. Jim graduated from
Mexico High School in his hometown of Mexico, Missouri in 1963 and then from
Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri in 1967 with a BA in Chemistry. After
graduation he received a commission in the United States Air Force serving in
active duty from November 17, 1967- June 4, 1972.
In 1970, living in Tiburon, CA, he met Susan Hoppe while
training at Travis Air Force Base. After a brief courtship they married on June
7, 1970 in Sausalito, CA. He was deployed to Vietnam from June 1971- June 1972
where he piloted an O2A as a Forward Air Controller. His unit supported the
Army 101st Airborne Division based first in Camp Evans near Quang Tri then Da
Nang Airbase. During one of his missions, Jim was the first person to observe
the mass invasion of South Vietnam known as the Easter Offensive of April 1972.
After resigning his commission with the USAF, Jim began his
31-year career with Delta Airlines where he attained the ranks of Captain &
Line Check Airman. He was first briefly based in New Orleans before settling in
Atlanta where daughters, Laura, Jennifer, and Kathryn were raised. In addition
to his commercial airline career, Jim ran a residential general contracting
company while also attending law school prior to passing the Georgia State bar
in 1978. During this time, Jim was an active member of Dunwoody United
Methodist Church.
Approaching retirement, he and Sue moved to Florida in 1996.
They lived in Seaside then Watercolor Beach and enjoyed many wonderful family
gatherings. In 2008, their family expanded with the arrival of grandchildren.
Over the next 13 years five grandsons and one granddaughter came along,
providing much joy and many adventures for Jim and the family. By 2013, Jim and
Sue had children and grandchildren across the country in Tennessee, Colorado
and California and decided to settle part time in Boulder, CO where Katie and
her family live. It was important to Jim to be close to family and watch the
grandchildren grow up. He was a regular attendant at basketball and soccer
games and a fishing companion for his grandsons. In his retirement, Jim taught
himself classic guitar and kept himself healthy, taking up a very fulfilling
road biking routine. Until 2020 he rode his bike up to 30 miles a day, 3-4 days
a week on the local trails in Boulder and 30A in Florida.
In late 2019, Jim faced his diagnosis of chronic
myelomonocytic leukemia, which progressed into acute myeloid leukemia in early
2021, with courage and determination. The doctors and nurses at CU Anschutz
Hospital supported him along with many visits from family and friends. He died
at home after fighting the disease for a year and a half.
Jim is survived by his wife of 51 years, Sue; three
daughters, Laura Deleot and her husband Land Deleot of Nashville, TN, Jenny
Crookston Harrell and her husband Tom Harrell of Moraga, CA, and Katie Birkholz
and her husband Matt Birkholz of Boulder, CO; six grandchildren, Thornton and
Clay Deleot, Nolan and Veronica Harrell, and Beau and Xander Birkholz; his
brother Dan Crookston of Sedona, AZ; his brother-in-law Michael Steffenson of
Davenport, IA; as well as four nieces and nephews.
In celebration of Jim’s remarkable life, there will be a
memorial gathering later this summer in Watercolor, Florida.
In lieu of flowers Jim’s family invites you to make a gift
in support of Colorado Trout Unlimited https://coloradotu.salsalabs.org/2020donate/index.html
or in support of
Pollyea Leukemia Research Fund at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical
Campus. https://giving.cu.edu/fund/pollyea-leukemia-research-fund