James Ronald ‘Ronny’ Crawford, 79, died August 7, 2026, after 58 years of marriage to his college sweetheart, Dorothy Jean “Dottie” Penton Crawford. Born November 4, 1946, in Greensboro, Alabama, to James Walter Crawford and Dora Dell Hales Crawford, Ronny’s life was defined by family, faith, service, enduring friendships and a deep sense of community.
Ronny grew up in Greensboro and graduated from Greensboro High School in 1965. He met Dottie while attending Snead Junior College, and the two married on December 29, 1967, at Church of the Nativity in Huntsville. He later graduated from Livingston University in 1969.
Ronny and Dottie raised their family in Greensboro, where they built a life deeply rooted in the community they called home. In 2012, they moved to Huntsville, beginning a new chapter that brought new friendships, a new church home and a community they quickly came to love, while maintaining the lifelong friendships and ties to Greensboro that remained an important part of their lives.
Ronny retired from the State of Alabama after 34 years with the Alabama Department of Revenue’s Ad Valorem Tax Division. He also served for 27 years in the United States Army Reserve, retiring as a Master Sergeant, E-8.
Service was woven throughout Ronny’s life. He was deeply involved in the Episcopal Church, serving in leadership at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Greensboro and within the Diocese of Alabama. After moving to Huntsville, Ronny and Dottie made the Church of the Nativity their church home, where he continued serving through various committees and outreach efforts. His faith journey included attending Cursillo #192 and faithfully living out his Fourth Day with his beloved friends of The Soap Reunion Group. Those friendships became an especially meaningful part of his life in Huntsville.
Ronny was one of those people who simply became part of the fabric of the places he loved. That was especially true at Southern Academy, where his children spent their K–12 years and graduated. Ronny and Dottie were involved parents through PTA, sports and school activities. Ronny filmed football games and was a proud member of the barbecue chicken team, and the friendships formed during those years lasted long after their children left school.
And then there was Alabama football.
To call Ronny an Alabama fan probably understates the role Crimson Tide football played in Crawford family life. There were countless football parties at home and decades of Saturdays spent tailgating in Tuscaloosa. The tailgate evolved through the years—from a car, to the Mound, and eventually to a tent on the Quad—but the tradition remained. Alabama football became part sporting event, part family reunion and part Crawford family institution, eventually shared with another generation of children and grandchildren.
Travel was another great pleasure for Ronny and Dottie. In the early years, that meant family trips to Panama City Beach with the children. After retirement, Ronny and Dottie bought a motorhome and traveled all over the country. The destination rarely mattered. Being together was always the larger part of the adventure. After a year and a half of living on the road, they decided to put down roots in Huntsville, where they would spend the next chapter of their life together.
Ronny’s life was marked by family, faith, service, enduring friendships and a remarkable ability to make a community his own. From Greensboro to Huntsville and everywhere the road carried him in between, he was someone who showed up—for his church, his community, his friends and, most of all, his family.
Ronny was preceded in death by his parents, James Walter Crawford and Dora Dell (Hales) Crawford, and his beloved niece, Abigail (Crawford) Dobie.
He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Dorothy Jean “Dottie” Penton Crawford; his children, Holly Crawford Ellis; James Matthew Crawford and his wife, Angie (Stephenson); and Madeline “Sissy” Crawford Mullins and her husband, Robert; his six grandchildren, William Parker Ellis, Lucy McCarter Ellis, Katie Anne Crawford, James Matthew Crawford, Jr., Anna Crawford Mullins and Mary Elizabeth Mullins; his two brothers, Timothy Dale Crawford and his wife, Angela, and Kenneth Whitfield Crawford; his niece, Hannah Crawford Clark; his sister-in-law, Madeline Penton Sitzes; his aunts, Betty Hales and Faye Hales Robinson; numerous great-nieces, great- nephews, first cousins and extended family; and a chosen family of dear friends gathered over a lifetime.
A memorial service celebrating Ronny’s life will be held at Church of the Nativity in Huntsville, Alabama, on Friday, August 21 at 11 a.m., with a reception immediately following the service.
His ashes will be interred at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in his hometown of Greensboro, Alabama, following a committal service on Saturday, August 22 at 11 a.m., with a reception immediately following.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Church of the Nativity Accessibility Campaign in Huntsville, AL, or to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Greensboro, AL.
The family also wishes to express its sincere gratitude to Huntsville Hospital and Huntsville Hospital Hospice Family Care for their exceptional care, compassion, and support during this difficult time.
