Thomas Edward Craig

Thomas Edward Craig was born January 12, 1955 in Ashdown Arkansas, but as he would tell anyone who would listen, “There are two kinds of people… Texans and people who want to be Texans.” Tommy got to Texas as soon as he could and never left!

That was the kind of person he was. He had a passion for life and fierce loyalty to people, animals, places, music, and products .

Tommy’s father was a deputy sheriff in Ashdown Arkansas. Tommy had fond memories of riding in the patrol car and turning the siren on and off. Tommy’s dad died of brain cancer when Tommy was eight years old. His mother died from a fall on a staircase when Tommy was eleven. He then moved to Houston to live with an aunt, uncle and cousin.

Tommy attended the Arkansas School for the Blind, The Texas School for the Blind and graduated high school in Houston at a public school. He attended college classes at Stephen F. Austin and UT Austin.

Forever curious and always learning something new, Tommy enjoyed the Boy Scout program for many years. He became an Advance Amateur Radio operator, and assisted many young people in getting licensed as HAM radio operators.

Tommy met his wife-to-be, Margaret “Cokie” Dennison-Craig, at a convention of the National Federation of the Blind in the late 1970s. They married in 1986. Together Tommy and Cokie raised Siberian Huskies and adopted rescued Greyhounds. They have been active delegates several times to the Democratic conventions in Texas. Both have been leaders in the National Federation of the Blind of Texas. Tommy and Cokie have been traveling extensively since Cokie’s retirement. They have visited Alaska and the Orient and many other places. During their travels Tommy obsessed over going to Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville restaurant to eat Jambalaya. He swore it was the best ever!

Fascinate by technology from the beginning: Tommy recognized the importance of home computers shortly after Apple invented their first computer. Through the years he was fiercely loyal to the Apple brand. He had almost every product they made and made sure friends had them, too. Tommy served on the board of the Austin Capitol Macintosh Users Group for several years. He was President of that group for one year.

Tommy worked in the field of adaptive equipment for blind people. He traveled the United States selling adaptive devices such as Braille displays, speech enabled computers, and Braille embossers. He trained many people to use this equipment. Among his clients were people like Stevie Wonder and Ray Charles.

Together with other leaders of the National Federation of the Blind of Texas Tommy championed a “Braille Bill” which became the model for other Braille bills in America. This was legislation which guarantees blind children the opportunity to learn Braille. He and his best friend Jeff Pearcy were given service awards by the American Foundation for the Blind for their work on this project. Tommy and Jeff headed up the legislative team for the NFB in Texas. Major changes in Texas legislation came about through their efforts. There was a bill and administrative rules at the insurance commission that ended discriminatory practices in selling insurance to blind Texans. Also, they helped get the legislature to place Kurzweil Reading machines in all public libraries of cities with a population of over 50,000 people. As state president of the National Federation of the Blind Tommy worked with the Public Utility Commission to bring the NewsLine program to Texas. This is a program that makes over 400 publications available to blind people in Texas.

Those of us left behind mourn the loss of our friend. His passing was sudden and unexpected. He was planning his rehabilitation from his many injuries he sustained when he was struck by a car. In his usual “take charge” attitude Tommy was already setting goals for himself to beat the time limits his doctors reported for normal recovery. He chose his rehabilitation placement based on reports that he could have his dogs visit him there at the facility and that there would be plenty of visits from Therapy dogs and horses! His zeal for life held out through his very last moments! We might say “Rest in Peace” but Tommy probably has other ideas for his future. He is probably romping with all his beloved animals, and visiting friends and family who went on before him!