Arden Lowell Crawford of Urbana, IL passed away peacefully at 4:00 pm on Sunday (March 26, 2017) at Carle Hospital surrounded by his three daughters and a grandson.

Born on April 4, 1918, on a farm near Jamesburg, Illinois, son to Harold Benjamin Crawford and Mossie Alberta (Firebaugh) Crawford. He married Helen LaVonne Spain on March 16, 1946, in Chicago, Illinois. She preceded him in death on February 5, 2006.

Arden spent his boyhood on the family farm in Blount Township, Vermillion County. Following his graduation from Potomac High School he attended Eastern Illinois University, and made Eastern's basketball team. He subsequently served on the Civilian Conservation Corps in Irons Michigan and Skokie Valley prior to his military service.

Crawford enlisted in the United States Army on February 13, 1941, and was a Platoon Sergeant in the 2nd Battalion, 30th Regiment, Third Division. He served with valor during WWII in Europe and North Africa. His tour encompassed legendary campaigns in Algeria-French Morocco, Tunisia, Sicily, Naples-Foggia, and Rome-Arno. His citations and decorations include the Presidential-Distinguished Unit Citation, the Silver Star, the Bronze Star with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Purple Heart, the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with Silver Battle Star and Arrowhead, the World War II Victory Medal, the Combat Infantryman Badge, and the Good Conduct Medal. Following the war, Crawford returned to his studies, graduating from Eureka College in 1950 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. He was one of seven seniors inducted into Nu Upsilon honorary scholastic society. He played football at Eureka College and was honored to play left-end on the on the Coach's 1949 Pioneer All Conference first team. He received a Master of Education degree from the University of Illinois in 1964.

Arden Crawford started his teaching and coaching career in 1950 and retired from public school education in 1982. He received the "Coach of the Year" award from Eureka College in 1959 while coaching at Fisher High School. While teaching at University High School he was honored with their yearbook dedication which included the statement, "We the Class of 1966, with appreciations of his friendly understanding, dedicate this yearbook to Coach Arden Crawford. His conscientiousness, his demands that we approach perfection and his sympathy for our problems will always be gratefully remembered." Further tribute to his character and dedication, Crawford's former students would continue to correspond and visit with him for the next six decades. In 2007 letter, a student wrote: "Simply put you have been one of the most positive role models in my life. Since it was always your nature to be modest and humble, you may be tempted to think that I am exaggerating

Coach Crawford's passion for sports continued throughout his life. His unwavering support of the Chicago Cubs persisted for over 70 years culminating with their long-awaited World Series victory in 2017. Even after retirement, his love of high school basketball did not diminish. He remained a staunch supporter of the University of Illinois Fighting Illini, always quick to provide astute commentary and reflection for improvement of the game. He was a perpetual student of history, teaching both American and World History at the high school level, and continuing to pursue historical studies throughout his life. Later he became quite interested in family history, and enjoyed tracing his lineage and ancestry from Scotland, Ireland and Germany whilst forging connections with others he worked alongside in his research.

He is survived by three daughters; Cathy Wiggers of Peoria, Illinois; Donna Crawford of Chicago, Illinois; and Barbara Daub (Matthew) of Lenhartsville, Pennsylvania; and four grandchildren; Joshua Daub (Tara) of Sea Cliff, New York; Sarah Daub of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Sean Wiggers of Morton, Illinois; and Michael Wiggers of Chicago, Illinois.

Arden was preceded in death by his parents, his wife, his sister Betty Lou Crawford and his brother Charles Curtis Crawford. A private graveside service for immediate family was held in Potomac, Illinois.

The family requests that memories of Arden Lowell Crawford and condolences be shared online at https://www.facebook.com/ArdenCrawfordMemorial/