Voices of Liberty
for his daughter’s wedding. Marlin gave him a ride to the airport in his cruiser so that the man wouldn’t miss his flight. He received thank you letters from the grateful father for years. He also saw more bad wrecks than he cares to remember. He served Meals-on-Wheels to seniors, which he thoroughly enjoyed. He would sometimes be late with his deliveries because he stayed to listen to the stories of the lonely people he encountered. No one seemed to mind. Having lived to be one hundred years old himself, he fully understands the need for companionship and fellowship as one ages. Marlin also kept bees for years and taught a young neighbor the craft. She has several hives on her property now, and Marlin is never in want of the sweet honey he previously sold.
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VETERAN SPOTLIGHT: Marlin Crider, a real keeper
By Reuben Keith Greene
M
arlin Crider is a real keeper. He keeps track of his birthday quite easily. He was born on December 7, 1920, so for him, Pearl Harbor Day is doubly significant.
He was a twenty-year-old Navy radioman when the infamous Pearl Harbor attack occurred. He keeps a copy of the telegram reporting of the Japanese bombing in his home office. He kept his promise to the Indiana girl he went home and married in 1942, to love her until death do them part. He keeps a picture of his bride, Gladys Patton, on his desk, though she died about a decade ago. He also keeps their children close; Linda and Douglas live on the property with him. Like his father and fellow Veteran who served and was wounded during World War I, Marlin is from sturdy Indiana stock. His father didn’t want him to enlist, having seen the ravages of war. Undeterred, Marlin hitchhiked to the nearest recruiting station from the farm and enlisted a few months later in 1939. He wanted to see the world. He first became an aviation technician and then later switched to radioman. He served on destroyers (affectionately called “tin cans”), at bases in England, and later transferred to the aviation community. He helped sink enemy submarines, flying in the most widely used aircraft during World War II: the Consolidated PBY Catalina, a flying boat and amphibious aircraft. When he was a chief petty officer, he would invite Sailors over to his house for barbecues and companionship on the weekends, helping them feel less homesick and keeping them out of trouble. They returned the favor by helping him build the house that he and his family still live in today. He and his wife worked two jobs each and paid for the work on their home as it was being completed. A friend from South Dakota came down and built the beautiful and impressive brick fireplace. Marlin didn’t slow down after he retired from the Navy in the 1960s. He went to work for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), traveling throughout Central and South America, repairing and maintaining equipment. Following that, he was a Florida state trooper for 30 years. In 2019, he earned the Florida Highway Patrol Lifetime Achievement Award for completing more than 50,000 hours of auxiliary service. During his time as a state trooper, he once helped a man whose rental car broke down on the interstate as he was heading to the airport to catch a plane 10 | LibertyLifeMedia.Com | MARCH 31, 2021 VOL. 1 / ISSUE 14
Not many people have cars old enough to draw social security, but Marlin has four of them. He kept the brand new 1950 DeSoto he bought while serving at NAS Jacksonville. He liked it so much that he eventually bought three more, all still in showroom condition. Marlin has license plates from throughout the country in his primary garage. He doesn’t remember when he started collecting them, but it seemed a natural thing for him to do. As he and his friend Jesse Pittman of Pittman’s Tree Service walked across his five-acre lot to his garages to admire his antiques, Marlin lamented that he didn’t keep all of the property he’d originally purchased, having gradually sold it off. He was still mowing his expansive lawn until a couple of years ago. A huge NASCAR fan, he has attended every Daytona 500 since World War II, except for the most recent two. He was at Daytona when the legendary Dale Earnhardt was killed in a crash. He and his daughter have a good-natured NASCAR rivalry; he heartily disagrees with her choice of favorite driver. Having grown up on a farm with no television or radio, fields in every direction, and knowing the names of every cow, he traveled farther and saw more than he ever expected to. One regret is not keeping the property he eventually sold off, but his neighbors who bought the property are glad he did. He’s a local celebrity, and they all look out for him. Other than that, this is one Veteran who made the most of his service, his life, and his blessings. If his late wife Gladys were still here, she’d tell you: he’s a real keeper.
