D. Craig Chapman ’69

Our class recorded a great loss with the Jan. 18, 2014, death of Craig Chapman.

Roommates and devoted friends Mark Jewett and Steve Wunsch have shared thoughts on his life — one of real distinction. Craig’s prodigious intellect motivated him to master 12 foreign languages, classical piano, church organ, folk guitar, and rock climbing. During our undergraduate years, he was a cook at Lahiere’s, subsequently became an accomplished chef, and authored three cookbooks.

After graduation, Craig pursued both law and medicine and had a distinguished military career, including service as a tent commander in Korea, where he directed the U.S. Army chorus.

An enthusiastic Princetonian, he recruited and interviewed applicants in his hometown of Columbus, Ohio, where he spent his later years with his wife, Cathy. They previously lived in Savannah, Ga., where Craig established a medical partnership and worked as an emergency-room physician and forensic pathologist. He also became a private pilot, launched an air-ambulance and insurance service for travelers, and wrote a novel.

In retirement, Craig did pro bono medical work serving indigent patients, and after 9/11, volunteering to assist veterans.

Besides Cathy, Craig is survived by his sisters, Cathleen and Christine Chapman, and an extraordinary number of friends and admirers.