Craig Charles Wratten (1938-2017)

WINSLOW – On Oct. 7, we lost a good man. ALS made him a prisoner in his own body, but never stole his sharp mind or sense of humor.

Craig Charles Wratten was born in Batavia, New York. His early years of education were in Amherst, New York schools and he graduated from Amherst Central High School. He followed in his brothers’ footsteps and attended Bethany College in West Virginia, graduating in 1960 summa cum laude with a B.S. in Chemistry. He furthered his education at the University of Wisconsin completing his M.S. and Ph.D. in Biochemistry in 1965. He did post-doctoral research at the Institute of Molecular Biology at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. Craig taught in the Biochemistry Department at the University of Maine at Orono for seven years. In 1973, Craig attended The University of Connecticut and earned his B.S. in Pharmacy, magna cum laude.

He was a pharmacist for 25 years. The majority of his pharmacy career was spent as a community pharmacist at Berry’s Pharmacy in Pittsfield; Craig also worked for Wellby’s, LaVerdiere’s, Rite-Aid, and Hannaford in the Central Maine area. In addition, for two years, Craig had the chance to live in Oregon and enjoyed exploring the West Coast. After his retirement, Craig embraced his passion of photography. For more than 15 years he sold his photography at art shows. Thanks to those sales, his photographs can now be found in 39 states and seven countries. In addition to photography, Craig pursued many hobbies. He loved canoeing and fishing the quiet waters of Maine. He enjoyed woodworking, making bookshelves and other items for family and friends. Recently he taught himself the traditional skill of using hand tools and crafted wooden banks, boxes, and furniture totally by hand.

Craig is survived by Ardeene, his wife of 19 years; who cared for him 24/7 and whose love was unparalleled. His daughter Stephanie Wratten and husband David Engerman and children Nina and Simon; daughter Jennifer Bragg and children Emily and Rachel and her daughter Lily Ann; stepson Darren Moscrip and wife Jody; stepdaughter Tammy Moscrip and husband Ben Boese and children Tristin and Brennan; his brother Jim; nieces and nephews Darcy, Gary, Chris, Linda, Tim, Leigh, and Tom; travel companions and great friends Charlie and Jan, Bob and Marilyn, Don and Martha. Craig is predeceased by his parents William and Geneva Wratten; a brother Gary, an Army surgeon killed in Vietnam; and Nancy, his first wife of 31 years.

There are not enough words to express our deepest appreciation for the commitment of Dr. Kleinman and his staff at Maine Neurology in Scarborough. We also want to thank Dr. Caccamo and his staff at Twin Pines Family Medicine who went above and beyond to assist us. In addition, Dawn and the rest of the team at Maine General Health and Hospice were all genuinely concerned for Craig and provided the best care possible – we couldn’t have done it without them. Multitudes of thanks and deep appreciation are extended to friends and out-of-state relatives who took the time out of their busy lives to come and visit. And a very special thanks and our sincere gratitude to our friends Wally and Giselle for weekly meals, Pam for weekly cards, Darrell and Janet for their assistance in accomplishing so many projects and Deb for her help and support.

Craig will be sorely missed but never forgotten for being kind, generous, fair, supportive, thoughtful, compassionate, talented, intelligent and mostly … being a genuinely good man. May he rest in peace. The world was a better place with him in it.

A Celebration of Life Service will be held at 11 am on Sunday, October 22nd, followed by a lunch reception and visiting hours from 12 – 2 pm at Maple Hill Farm Bed and Breakfast, 11 Inn Road in Hallowell, Maine. For anyone who wishes, there will be a chance to share memories of Craig during the service.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Craig’s honor to the Nature Conservancy of Maine or the ALS Association Northern New England Chapter.

Arrangements are under the direction and care of Dan & Scott’s Cremation Services, Skowhegan, Maine 04976.