Ida Mae Crafton

Ida Mae Eans Crafton was born on June 18, 1929. Although she was born in Pueblo, Colorado, Ida spent most of her life in Owensboro, Kentucky. As a young child, she learned the value of hard work. She spent most every day on the family’s farm in Daviess County, Kentucky, taking care of the animals and planting and stripping tobacco.

Ida attended West Louisville High School. Following graduation in 1947, she earned her registered nurse license at the Owensboro-Daviess County Hospital School of Nursing on July 20, 1950. Shortly after receiving her degree, she began working the night shift in the Labor and Delivery (L&D) Department at the Owensboro-Daviess County Hospital. She served in that role for the next 25 years.

During this time, hospitals did not have 24-hour in-facility hospitalists or L&D physicians. It was not uncommon for patients to deliver their children before their doctors could arrive at the hospital, therefore it was up to Ida and other L&D nurses and staff to deliver the babies. Ida had a hand in thousands of births during her career.

In 1978, Dr. J. Russell Ross asked Ida to become his surgical nurse and head office nurse for his developing urological practice in Owensboro. Dr. Ross, a WKU graduate, credited her with helping build the largest urology practice in Kentucky. She was the first nurse in Owensboro to accompany their physician to the hospital to make rounds and assist in surgery. According to Dr. Ross, Ida was the most capable nurse he had ever worked with.

In 1980, Ida retired from nursing. Alongside her beloved husband, Colonel Charles William Crafton, she moved to Maryland. They returned to Owensboro in 1987.

Even though Ida did not attend WKU, her ties to the university were strong. Charles was a student on the Hill from 1946-1950, where he played basketball for legendary Coach Diddle. Ida would travel to Bowling Green, Kentucky, on a regular basis to support the Hilltoppers basketball team. Many of their nieces and nephews climbed the Hill, as did their youngest son, Lieutenant Colonel William Toby Crafton, who graduated in 1980.

Toby and Tina Crafton established the Ida Mae Crafton Memorial Nursing Scholarship Fund. The fund assists deserving WKU students w