Dr. Cromartie was born on February 5, 1928 in Albany, Georgia. He was the son of the late Hendrick Lafayette Cromartie and Mary Wallace Cromartie. After graduating from Leesburg High School in 1945, he attended and graduated from Marion Institute in 1947. He then enrolled at the University of Georgia where he was a member of Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity. During the spring quarters at UGA, he played minor league baseball with farm teams for the Boston Red Sox and the Cleveland Indians. Following his graduation in 1951, he enlisted in the United States Air Force and served for four years until his discharge in 1955. Having worked in the dental lab while he was in the Air Force, he decided to apply to dental school. He enrolled in the Emory University School of Dentistry in 1956 and graduated third in his class in 1960. He was a member of Xi Psi Phi dental fraternity and was inducted into Omicron Kappa Upsilon, the honorary dental society. It was during his time at Emory that he met and married Dorothy Fincher, who was also at Emory working on her Master’s in History.
Upon graduation from dental school, he and Dorothy moved to Rome where he was a beloved dentist, known for his kind and gentle manner, for thirty-eight years. In addition to the practice of dentistry, he had a passion for invention. He has four US patents, two for knee braces and two for specialized men’s swimsuits. He sold one of his knee brace designs to DonJoy, a prominent knee brace manufacturer. He was a member of First Presbyterian Church where he served as President of Men of the Church and as a Deacon. He was a longtime member of the Coosa Country Club where he was an avid golfer during his retirement years, and he was a member of the Nine O’Clock Cotillion where he and Dorothy would joyfully dance the night away.
Dr. Cromartie was preceded in death by his wife of 58 years, Dorothy Fincher Cromartie. He is survived by his son, Hendrick Lafayette Cromartie III (Jill), his daughters, Caroline Cromartie Higgins (Tony) and Catherine Cromartie Norris (Keith), and his grandchildren, Catherine Higgins Belote (Michael), Anthony Boone Higgins III, William Hendrick Norris, Emma Frances Cromartie, and Hendrick Lafayette Cromartie IV.
Funeral services will be held Tuesday, July 23, 2019 at 11 a.m. at First Presbyterian Church with a private interment to follow at Sunset Hill Memorial Gardens. The family will receive friends on Tuesday, March 23, 2019 from 10 a.m. until the service hour in the Fellowship Hall of First Presbyterian Church.
Memorial contributions may be sent to First Presbyterian Church, 101 East Third Avenue, Rome, Georgia 30161.
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