Merrill L. "Bud" Crippen

Merrill L. “Bud” Crippen, 96, passed away August 7, 2019 at Pulaski Memorial Hospital in Winamac.

He was born November 21, 1922 in Cass County to William and Thelma (Conrad) Crippen.

Bud attended Metea High School and upon graduating went to work for the Pennsylvania Railroad.  After the attack on Pearl Harbor he joined the United States Marine Corps and  served in the Pacific during WWII.  Bud was awarded a Purple Heart and a Silver Star for heroism on Iwo Jima.

Bud married Ruth Boyer on February 17, 1943 in San Diego, California.  He returned to his job on the railroad in Logansport after the war where he retired from Conrail in 1984 with 42 years of service.  He enjoyed golf and was a member at Dykeman Park for many years.

On June 26, 1987 Bud married Dorothy Hiatt in Las Vegas, Nevada.  They moved to Seven Springs Golf and Country Club in New Port Richey, Florida where they resided for 32 years before moving to Royal Center in April 2019.  Bubba, as he was known at Seven Springs, continued golfing well into his 90s, playing several times a week.  He enjoyed going to the horse races and his weekly poker games, and he was a season ticket holder to Tampa Bay Buccaneers games where he was honored as their ‘Hero of the Game’ at the Bears-Bucs game during the 2015 season.  He participated in an ‘Honor Flight’ from Tampa to Washington, D.C. in 2016 and he never missed the Marine Corps Birthday Party at the club.

Bud is survived by his wife Dorothy, a son Michael (Glenda) Crippen of Lafayette, twin daughters Jan (Thomas) Denny of Logansport and Jean (Richard) Denny of Squaw Lake, Minnesota, stepdaughter Teresa (Ike) Brown of Royal Center, 8 grandchildren, 18 great- grandchildren and 14 great-great-grandchildren.

Bud was preceded in death by his parents, stepfather Harold “Skip” McKinley and two sisters Winifred Crippen and Betty Hensel.

Graveside services with Military Rites performed will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, August 17, 2019 at McKinley Memorial Gardens in Winamac.

Sign Bud’s online guestbook or leave condolences for the Crippen family at www.ransfuneralhomes.com

Arrangements have been entrusted to Harrison-Metzger-Rans Funeral Home & Crematory, Royal Center Chapel.