H.D. "Cris" Crisler

H.D. “Cris” Crisler, 94, of Longview passed gently from this life into Heaven on May 6, 2016. He was born November 3, 1921 in Greenville, Illinois, to the late John and Elizabeth Crisler. He was the only surviving child of six who included brothers Carl, Wayne, and Merle and sisters Doris and Marjorie. Upon graduation from high school he joined the Air Corps where his entire service was stateside working in aircraft maintenance. He attended college at Washington University in St. Louis and Arlington State College in Arlington, Texas. After the service he was employed for a time at LTV in Dallas and then decided to pursue self-employment, as the owner of two self-service laundries. Once he sold the laundries he became employed by the Texas Employment Commission in Dallas and rose to the rank of Office Manager. He retired in 1982, married Sandra Sparkman of Dallas, and moved to Tyler, Texas. Cris was a friend to everyone he met, generous, caring, thoughtful, and a man confident in his relationship with the Lord. He was a member of Mobberly Baptist Church and the Prime Time Bible Study Class where he served as secretary-treasurer and as a member of the Finance Committee. He loved to garden and in addition to the vegetables he raised amazing angel trumpet plants which he shared with anyone who wanted one. His front yard bed of angel trumpets was twice pictured in the Longview News Journal. Though he spent the last 8 years of his life in a wheelchair due to the loss of a leg he nevertheless continued all his activities with enthusiasm. Cris Crisler is survived by Sandra, his wife of 34 years, step-daughter Stephanie Barbee and son-in-law Richard Barbee; granddaughters Olivia and Kate; sisters-in-law Diane Shank and Susan Dentley; three nieces and one nephew. Services are under the direction of Rader Funeral Home of Longview. The family will receive friends on Sunday afternoon from 4-6 PM at the funeral home. Funeral services will be held at 10 AM Monday, May 9, 2016 in the Chapel of Rader Funeral Home with Rev. Scott Schulik officiating. The family request that in lieu of flowers, memorial gifts be made to Mobberly Baptist Church, 625 E. Loop 281, Longview, TX 75605. A memorial guestbook may be signed online at www.raderfh.com.

H.D. "Cris" Crisler

November 3, 1921 - May 6, 2016