In Honor Of:
Larry McCravy
Larry McCravy was born in Birmingham, AL on July 3, 1953. He grew up in Birmingham and attended Ensley High School and Jefferson State Community College. Larry and his wife Debbie moved to Charleston in 1978 while working as a Branch Manager for New York Life. He worked for New York Life for 16 years. While in Charleston Larry has also worked for Mead’s Tree Service for 10 years, a property management business on Kiawah Island for 10 years, and has volunteered at Heartland Hospice for 2 years.
Larry has been married to his beautiful wife Debbie for 35 years. They met on a blind date in 1972 in Hoover, Alabama. Their only child Leslie went to heaven in 2007. He is looking forward “to seeing her again after this life.” He misses her every day.
Larry loves to make people smile and to tell jokes, although he doesn’t have a favorite joke. He also enjoys watching America’s Funniest Home Videos and he enjoyed watching Alabama Crimson Tide Football win the College National Championship last year. His hobbies include reading, fishing, cooking, and traveling. Costa Rica is his favorite place to visit.
Larry is inspired by his wife Debbie. He claims that she is the most amazing, talented, versatile person that he has ever known. He feels extremely blessed to have her as his wife and best friend. He wants the world to know that he is thankful for all of his great family and friends. He is a very caring person and enjoys helping others. His best advice is to be yourself, be kind, and be honest. Larry has two favorite quotes that inspire him. “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift, that’s why it’s called the present.” Also, Corinthians 2:9 No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.
Samuel “Sammy” Crowe Jr Sammy Crowe was born on
May 5, 1960 in Charleston, SC. He now resides in Summerville, SC with his
family. He attended Chicora and Bonds Wilson High Schools. He is employed by
Action Abatement and Demo in Monks Corner, SC and has been with the company 12
years. He and his wife Debra have been married for 33 years and have five boys
James age 32, Samuel III age 31, Kevin age 27, Victor age 26 and Brandon age 22. He is also the proud grandfather to four
beautiful grandchildren: Veronica age 14, Samuel IV age 8, Chancelor age 8,
Maliyah age 2, and 5 month old Zander. Sammy is an avid NASCAR
fan and loves to visit his favorite track in Charlotte, NC. He loves every aspect
of racing from the excitement he feels when the announcer says “gentleman start
your engines” to collecting NASCAR memorabilia. Dale Earnhardt Sr. was his
favorite driver. He now follows Dale Jr. Sammy used to live an
extremely active lifestyle that included riding motorcycles, boating, and
fishing. He loved to take long rides through the mountains on his motorcycle
with all of his buddies from work. He misses those rides; He misses a lot of
things. His favorite words of advice are “to live every day as it’s your last.
We are not promised tomorrow.” Sammy would like the
world to know that he has worked hard all of his life to take care of his
family. He never expected this to happen to him, but he is not going to give up
the fight. He is inspired by God, the men that he has worked with, and his
wife, children, and grandchildren. John McKinley John was born in
Albany, NY on April 15, 1957. He attended high school at Hammondsport, New
York. He then went on to attend the State University of NY, Wanakena Forest
Ranger School, and AAS Forest Technology. John spent 30 years working for the
MeadWestvaco Forest Research Department. He also worked for 10 years in the
Westvaco Research Center in central Virginia as a Forest Technician. During
this time he conducted studies in genetics, fertilization, site prep, thinning,
soil mapping, herbicides, and stand management of forest crops. He then
transferred to MeadWestvaco Forest Nursery near Summerville, SC, as a
supervisor for 20 years. He coordinated the growing of “30-some million” forest
tree seedlings annually, to be used for reforestation efforts on company and
private customer’s lands. John and his wife
Denise have been married for 28 wonderful years. They have two sons Joseph age
20 and Nathan age 13. John enjoys
watching kids play baseball and fish, reading, writing, and e-mailing friends
and family with whatever pops into his head – “whether they want to read it or
not”. John is extremely
passionate about his work with youth baseball teams. John cherishes the awards
that he has received from sports teams and scouting groups that involve
children. The most recent award, from his son’s school baseball team, was
inscribed with the words: “To the ‘Father and Son’ Team that taught us more
about life than they will ever know”. John would like the
world to know that it has been a great ride. He has seen a lot, and
accomplished pretty much everything that he wanted to accomplish. He has
competed in many outdoor sports and enjoys many other outdoor activities. He
feels that he has gained a tremendous amount of knowledge through self-study
about the history of the world. He has gained many friends both young and
old. He is ultimately inspired by anyone
who tells the truth, whether society is ready to hear it or not.
Brigadier General Thomas Roy Mikolajcik, USAF (Ret.) On April
17, 2010, Brigadier General Thomas Roy Mikolajcik, USAF (Ret.), age 63, husband
of Carmen Heft Mikolajcik, was killed in action while battling Amyotrophic
Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, for six and
one half years. Brigadier
General Mikolajcik had a distinguished career in the US Air Force, serving as
Director of Transportation for the Air Force at the Pentagon and as Commander
for the 437th Airlift Wing at Charleston Air
Force Base, SC. After serving 27 years, he made Mt. Pleasant his
permanent home and traveled extensively as an independent transportation
logistics consultant until being diagnosed with ALS in 2003. Following
his diagnosis, General Mikolajcik became a tireless advocate for victims of the
disease, placing a special emphasis on veterans as they show a 60% greater risk
of contracting the disease. His sustained campaign led him to testify
before the Congressional House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs in 2007, and he
was instrumental in the US Department of Veterans Affairs’ decision to grant
service connected disability benefits to all veterans with ALS. He was a
strong advocate for establishing an ALS national registry, necessary for
research and information sharing, and was instrumental in establishing The ALS Association
South Carolina Chapter and ALS clinic at the Medical University of South
Carolina. General
Mikolajcik was born Thomas “Tom” Roy Mikolajcik on August 17, 1946 in Norwich,
CT, the son of Teofila Wasniewski Mikolajcik and the late Roy Mikolajcik.
Following his 1964 graduation from Norwich Free Academy and a year at the University of Connecticut, Tom received
an appointment to the United States Air Force Academy. He graduated in
1969 and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant. Three days later, he married
his beloved wife of forty-one years, Mary Carmen Heft of Denver, CO. He
completed pilot training in 1970, eventually becoming a command pilot with over
4,000 hours in C-141, C-9, C-130 and C-17 aircraft directing international
tactical and strategic operations in Europe, the Middle East, Central Africa
and South America. He earned an MS in
Management and Supervision from Central Michigan University and moved through
the ranks of Air Force leadership as C-141 Squadron Commander, McChord AFB,
Tacoma, WA, Deputy Chief of Exercises 5th Allied Tactical Air Force, Vicenza,
Italy, Vice Wing Commander and Wing Commander of the 435th Tactical Airlift
Wing at Rhein-Main Air Base, Germany and Wing Commander of the 437th Airlift
Wing at Charleston Air Force Base, SC. His final assignment for the Air
Force was Director of Transportation of USAF Headquarters, the Pentagon,
Washington, DC where he coordinated Air Force transportation resources and
ensured national security and emergency humanitarian mission requirements were
met. General
Mikolajcik served in Germany during the fall of the Berlin Wall in November,
1989 and the reunification of Germany in 1990. During his command,
Rhein-Main Air Force Base was known as the “Gateway to Europe” and played a
critical role in the execution of the first Gulf War against Saddam Hussein in
1991. He was the US Air Force Component Commander in Somalia during
Operation Restore Hope where he was responsible for aircraft from seven nations
that delivered humanitarian relief to suffering Somalis. Brigadier
General Mikolajcik helped activate the first squadron of C-17s, the Air Force’s
newest generation airlifter, while in command at Charleston Air Force
Base. The first operational C-17 was delivered in June, 1993. While
stationed at the Pentagon thirteen years earlier, then-Major Mikolajcik served
on the C-X task force that was commissioned to determine the quantitative and
qualitative requirements for the new airlifter. His
many awards, decorations and achievements include the Order of the Palmetto in
1994, the highest award given by the state of South Carolina; the Joseph P.
Riley Leadership Award, June 2007; Town of Mt. Pleasant Order of the Gavel for
Distinguished Service, June 2008; Rose Arts Festival Favorite Son, Norwich, CT,
1993; knighted by the St. Slanislaus Society; and both the Mikolajcik
Engineering Laboratory at Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command Atlantic and the Brigadier General Thomas R. Mikolajcik Child Care
Center, Charleston Air Force Base were dedicated in his name. His many
military honors include the Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit with
two oak leaf clusters, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service
Medal with three oak leaf clusters, Aerial Achievement Medal, Air Force Commendation
Medal with oak leaf cluster, Combat Readiness Medal, National Defense Service
Medal with service star, Vietnam Service
Medal, Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm and Republic of Vietnam
Campaign Medal. Tom
Mikolajcik’s most cherished accomplishments are his loving family: his wife
Carmen, his mother Teofila Mikolajcik of Norwich, CT, his sister Dorothy
Mikolajcik of Southington, CT, his daughter Julia Vanderpool and husband Dr.
Anthony and their children Victoria, Alexandria, Sophia and Francesca, his
daughter Christina Robertson and children’s father Brad and their children
Giuliana, Angelina and Luca, and his son John Paul Mikolajcik and fiancé Anna
Kochowska, all of Mt. Pleasant.