Craig Merrill

a 40-year Bainbridge Island resident, died peacefully at Wyatt House on January 28th from cancer. He was 79. A former director of the Bainbridge Island Senior Community Center (BISCC) and Island Volunteer Caregivers (IVC), Craig was also an active member of Grace Episcopal Church.Marriner Craig Merrill was born in Logan, Utah, July 7, 1935, to Marriner Wood Merrill and Claire Louise Hulme, but raised primarily in Phoenix, Ariz. His father encouraged his love of music and appreciation of the importance of hard work. Craig's father also shared with him the pleasures of fly fishing, which the two of them enjoyed together in Idaho, Colorado and elsewhere.As a Colorado College senior studying economics, Craig married Helen McKenzie (who survives him) in 1956 just after she had graduated from the school. Craig and Helen moved to Phoenix following his graduation and began a family--his two daughters, Jennifer Merrill of Bainbridge Island and Laura Merrill of Bethesda, Md., survive him. His banking career took the family across Arizona: from Phoenix to Ajo, then Prescott--which they loved--and finally Camp Verde.After a summer vacation to the Seattle area in the mid-1960s, Craig and Helen moved their family to Bellevue, "with no job and only $200 in the bank," as Craig was fond of recalling. The family moved to Bainbridge Island in the early 1970s. Changing careers from banking to community college administration, Craig was Assistant to the President and Dean of Students at Bellevue Community College. In 1990, Craig retired from the commute and the college and devoted his energies on the Island, particularly at BISCC (where he also served as director from 1995 to 1999) and with the IVC (serving on the board when it was incorporated in 1997, and as a one-on-one caregiver until illness prevented him, when he was named to Board Emeritus). He loved driving groups to the symphony and the opera, as well individuals to medical appointments and knitting classes. The friendships he developed during this volunteer service enriched his life beyond words.Before joining Grace church, Craig spent several years as an active member at Eagle Harbor Congregational. He and Helen, avid hikers and cross-country skiers, also spent a great deal of relaxed and happy time in the Methow Valley.Along with his wife and daughters, Craig is survived by two sisters -- Claire O'Connell of Los Angeles and Carolyn Martin of Berkeley, Calif. -- and a devoted circle of extended family and friends. He is survived by four grandchildren who, though young adults now, still enjoy remembering their grandfather's stories about "squidgee-cum-squees," elusive creatures who swallow themselves when startled.A memorial service will be held at Grace Episcopal on Sunday, Feb. 15, at 2:00 p.m. Gifts in Craig's memory are encouraged to Island Volunteer Caregivers and Grace Church.