MCCRACKEN, Anna Mae

The Wickenburg Sun, Wickenburg, Arizona Wednesday, July 09, 2014 Anna Mae McCracken, 93, and originally from Butler, Pa., died July 1 at the Royal Oaks Life Care Community in Sun City, where she and her deceased husband W. Ralph McCracken were long-time residents. In retirement, the couple moved to Arizona in 1972, settling in Wickenburg in 1975 for 19 years. There, Anna Mae worked as a school special education aide, was a deacon and taught Sunday school at the First Presbyterian Church, held offices in the local chapter of Business and Professional Women, and volunteered at the Desert Caballeros Western Museum. At Royal Oaks since 1994, she put her years of work experience in Pennsylvania as a licensed practical nurse to good use by helping in its health and day care centers. Anna Mae became a hospice volunteer and was an active member of both the First Presbyterian Church of Sun City and the Creative Quilters Club. Always interested in health issues, she was also one of the first to volunteer for ADAPT, a clinical trial for the prevention of Alzheimer’s disease then being conducted in Sun City and five other centers across the country. In addition to her husband (who died in 2002), Anna Mae was preceded in death by her daughter Barbara in 1984 and grandson Jake McCracken in 1989. She is survived by her daughter Jane Herlihy and husband Bernie of Oakland, Calif.; son Thomas McCracken and wife Anne of Baltimore, Md.; grandchildren Susan Serra, Stacey Sterner, Shawn Herlihy, Kevin Herlihy, and Hollis McCracken; and six great-grandchildren. A memorial service was held July 8 at the First Presbyterian Church in Sun City. The family requests contributions in lieu of flowers be made to Royal Oaks Life Care Community, 10015 W. Royal Oaks Rd., Sun City, AZ 85351.