Master Gunnery Sergeant Ronald Craig Hockett, after 78 years, went to play the great gig in the sky on May 16th, 2025. His kind heart and warm spirit will be forever missed by his beloved wife Michelle, his siblings Sue and Scott, and their families: sister-in-law MaryLou, stepdaughter Alexandra and her husband Jon, his niece Linda and her husband John and daughters Susanna, Janie, and Laurie, and his nephew Jim.
After establishing himself as a teenager on the Chicago jazz scene, he toured the Orient with The Dukes of Dixieland. He graduated from Princeton University with a degree in music before joining the Marine Band at The White House, "the President's Own", as principal saxophone. Upon retirement from the band, Ron was invited to play clarinet with the famous Jim Cullum Jazz Band on the Riverwalk in San Antonio for twelve years, where they played six nights a week and made many radio shows for National Public Radio. He continued to share his brilliant talents for five years in England before settling in Charlotte to be near family.
There will be a private family remembrance at McEwen Funeral Home and final interment at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington D.C.
