Earnest Martin Crawford Jr.
Earnest Martin Crawford, Jr. was born January 1, 1946, in Hirshberg, Alabama to the late Earnest Martin Crawford Sr. and the late Annie Grace Clark. Earnest was the eldest of 2 from this union.
His mother moved them to Cleveland, Ohio while Earnest was in his youth. Earnest regularly attended Liberty Hill Baptist Church on Euclid Avenue with his Mother. He received his formal education in the Cleveland Public Schools and earned his diploma from East Tech High School. While in high school he was on the Track team and approached by Case Western University for his scholastic abilities.
As he and his first wife were expecting their 1st child, Earnest decided to work instead of attending college. He honed the auto mechanic skills he was exposed to during his formal education and was always a hard worker. He dedicated over 30 years of his life with a career at TRW (aka Argotec and later Eaton) as a Gage Setter which is critical and detail-oriented work. He retired from Eaton to utilize his business aptitude to manage the Kinsman Square Party Center and complex which provided a meeting space, auto parts store, video rental store, deli, and restaurant for persons in the Kinsman East 93rd area and beyond. During this phase of his life, he also invested in real estate to further provide viable living for persons in the community.
In 1963, Earnest married his school sweetheart Carolyn Diane (Lankford). From that union 3 children were born: Beverly, Veronica and Earnest III. After the dissolution of their marriage Earnest added 4 additional children: Nancy, Damon, Earnestine and Achilles. After a 24-year courtship he wed Linda (Arnold) in 2012 and expanded his fatherly duties by 2: Larry and Toni. Family and friends were very important to Earnest, he would often lend a helping hand. He had a gift for building relationships and people naturally gravitated to his charming personality. His work ethic was passed down to his offspring.
Earnest was an advocate sports fan (especially wrestling, boxing and of course the Cleveland Browns) and later in life he loved watching the CNN network. He loved listening to most genres of music, he would often have his Echo play “Thriller” and “Dirty Diana” by Michael Jackson. Hence his favorite pastime was ensuring everyone was having a wonderful time at the Party Center.
Earnest is survived by his beloved wife Linda (Arnold), children Beverly Crawford, Veronica Crawford (Lester), Earnest Crawford (Dominque), Damon Fletcher (Annette), Nancy Garnett-Smith, Earnestine Gallaway, Achilles Moreland-Crawford (Shawn), Larry Arnold, Toni Arnold and cherished beloved siblings Dorothy Smith, Cassandra Kincaid, Deirdre Kincaid, Lisa Kincaid, Michele Ruffin along with his longtime dedicated furry companion Muffin Crawford and hosts of Grandchildren, Great-Grandchildren a multitude of cousins, nieces, nephews, in-laws along with a host of extended family and friends.
