Richard Lawrence Crutchfield, Sr.

Richard “Dickie” Lawrence Crutchfield Sr. died peacefully Saturday, November 28, 2020, at The Arboretum at Heritage Green in Greensboro, NC. Mr. Crutchfield was born October 9, 1943, in Danville, VA, to the late Estelle Carter and Emmett Robert Crutchfield.

He was a 1962 graduate of Chadbourn High School. He was an outstanding athlete and was selected to participate in the 1962 North Carolina East/West Allstar High School Football game in Greensboro. He attended New Mexico Military Institute in Roswell, NM on a football scholarship before transferring to Guilford College in Greensboro, NC, where he graduated in 1967.

He served in an Army Reserve medical unit out of Winston-Salem which was deployed to Vietnam at Chu Lai in 1968.

He worked for American Tobacco in Reidsville, NC, from 1967 until 1974 before moving to Whiteville. He became president of Whiteville Plywood where he worked for 39 years.

He was a member of Grace Episcopal Church where he sang in the choir.

A man who loved his community, Mr. Crutchfield gave back whenever he had the chance. He was a member of the Whiteville Civitans and was a founding member of the Columbus County Community Foundation. He served on the HPVA (hardwood plywood veneer association, an international wood organization) board and served as Chairman during the ’80s.  

He served on the Whiteville City School Board and was a Trustee for Southeastern Community College. He had many good friends who enjoyed golf, hunting, fishing, and just being together.

A graveside service will be held on Friday, December 4, 2020, at 11:00 am at Whiteville Memorial Cemetery with military honors.

He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Lynn, his brother, Bob (Gail); four children, Susan (Dennis) of Littleton, CO, Julie (Chad) of Weddington, NC, Rich (Anne) of Greensboro, NC, and Sarah of Lake Waccamaw; one niece, Laura (Joe) of Longwood, FL. He has seven grandchildren, Anna, Lizzie, Maggie, Emily, Wes, Carter and Lucy; one great-niece, Sarah Kathryn. 

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Grace Episcopal Church, 105 S. Madison St., Whiteville, NC  28472, The Alzheimer’s Association, or the SCC Foundation, P.O. Box 151 ,Whiteville,  NC  28472.

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