John Edward Creager passed away at the age of 75 from pneumonia on March 29, 2023. He is survived by his wife of 51 years, Beth Ellen Purdy Creager and their two dogs – Robby and Diamond. He was preceded in death by his parents, Delmar Edward Creager and Betty Eileen Martin Creager of Winchester, VA. His son, David Scott Creager, lost his life at the age of 19 in Ohio. Surviving John are his wife, Beth Ellen Purdy Creager, his sister, Janet Creager Alger (Fred) and his brother, David Delmar Creager.
John lived a very active life. He attended high school at James Wood (class of 1966) in Winchester, VA. He was in wrestling and played football. He attended Shenandoah College in Winchester, VA before transferring to Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, VA for two years. He then enlisted in the Navy for 4 years before returning to VA Tech for his Bachelor of Arts in business. In a few years, he obtained his master’s degree.
Following his degree, he was employed by Lane Furniture Co in AltaVista, VA followed by B&W in Lynchburg, VA. While there, his company merged with McDermott Int. and was transferred to New Orleans, LA. His work was in purchasing and materials managing. From New Orleans, he was transferred to Dubai, UAE. He was in Dubai for a total of 9-10 years. Within this time frame he was also in China for the B&W side of the house for a few years followed by 1.5 years in Singapore where his job took him to Indonesia on numerous business trips, he was then transferred to Houston, TX. Four to five years later he returned to Dubai which ended in 2004 and his departure from McDermott. In Houston, again, he was employed by Exxon Mobile followed by contract work on a project in Australia for Chevron. In his few years with Exxon, he traveled frequently to Nigeria. John retired in 2015.
During the years of 2009-2012, John and his wife hosted three exchange students in the FLEX exchange program sponsored by the US department of state. The students were from Azerbaijan, Tellar Ulukhanova, Polina Dolgacheva from Russia and Nino Kvaraia from Georgia. They hosted another exchange student in 2022-2023, Marine Frelechoz from Switzerland.
In retirement, John had property in Smithville, TX, Durango, CO, and Princeville, Kauai in HI. In Durango, John and his wife Joined Guide Dogs for the Blind from California, first as puppy sitters and then, as a puppy raiser. The first dog was Davina, she made it through the program and is currently in Canada with her special lady.
Following his mother’s passing in Durango, John returned to Smithville, Texas. Following Covid, John and his wife decided to move to the east coast to be closer to family. The Bluffton, SC area was where they decided to settle. Finding a lovely place in Sun City, they settled in to the life of retirees.
A memorial service is being planned for the future in Winchester, VA. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Guide Dogs for the Blind: https://www.guidedogs.com/ or Southeastern Guide Dogs: https://www.guidedogs.org/
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