Michael Jonathan McCrann Sr, fullback for the 1963 National Champion football team of the University of Delaware, laid in the glow of the Moore County sunset and warmth of his beloved children and wife – Kelly, Jonathan, KC, and Josephine – on Thursday October 5th before peacefully passing away early the next morning.
His death came almost 80 years after his birth and nearly 3 years since he began battling Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS).
The eldest son of William Joseph McCrann and Josephine Brannon McCrann, he was an accomplished athlete, scholar, lawyer, veteran, and community activist. A fullback to the end, he protected those around him – at a championship level – throughout the rest of his life.
Mr. McCrann was called to active duty as an officer in the United States Army. He achieved the rank of captain after serving with the 25th Infantry Division in Cu Chi South Vietnam.
While in law school, he won the Award of Honor in Constitutional Law and a spot as an editor on the NCCU Law Review. He earned degrees and honors from the University of Maryland and Wake Forest University in addition to his Delaware bachelors.
He practiced law for 45 years – winning a number of significant jury verdicts, settlements in civil cases, and exonerations for accused defendants as their appointed counsel. At the end of his career he served people in financial difficulty alongside Henrietta Godwin, his paralegal, in consumer bankruptcy. And perhaps his most lasting legacy in the law came not as a lawyer but as a father. He and Kelly joined Jonathan as petitioners in a “David-vs-Goliath” suit which won greater control over financial and health planning decisions for individuals with disabilities and their families.
He was a community leader working for those in need. He served on the boards of the Kiwanis Club, the Moore County Children’s Center, the Arts Council of Moore County, the ARC of Moore County, Prancing Horse, the North Moore Family Resource Center, and Monarch – a nonprofit serving people with disabilities.
Yet, the man whose mailbox identified him as Kelly’s “Man Servant,” was far more proud of his accomplishments in the home than out. He and his wife renovated and maintained two beautiful homes in Pinehurst over their 48 years of marriage which were usually filled with some combination of family, friends, friends of family, and pets that became a part of the family. He was most proud of his wife, Kelly Coughenour McCrann (originally of Salisbury, NC), and their three children, Michael Jonathan McCrann Jr., Kelly Coughenour McCrann, and Josephine Brannon McCrann II. He was pleased that each of his children became interesting and productive human beings. He delighted in their accomplishments.
Mr. McCrann is also survived by his grandson Clement Bender McCrann his sister, Jacqueline Claire Westbrook and his brother, Duncan Francis McCrann.
Mike was a fullback: he loved fiercely and was loved deeply by all his “teammates.”
In lieu of flowers or gifts please contribute to one of the following organizations: North Moore Family Resource Center, The ARC of Moore County, Prancing Horse Center for Therapeutic Horsemanship, or Monarch NC.
A memorial service will be held at 12 p.m. at the end of this week on October 13th at Boles Funeral Home, in Southern Pines. All are welcome and encouraged to join at a reception at the Clubhouse of the Country Club of North Carolina following the service. Condolences and more information can be found at www.bolesfuneralhome.com.
Services are entrusted to Boles Funeral Home, Southern Pines.
