Admiral Furashita, aka Craig Burke, has died

I posted this on another Forum, but since I talked Craig into becoming a member here after I heard of his illness, I figured I should risk the new gizzmos and post here as well:
I'm sure that many posters here knew Craig, who was a regular poster on THC and other boards, usually going by "CTBurke" (he was CTBurke here as well). My first posts on any forum were in response to Craig's "Pearl Harbor, 1 Hour's Notice" what-if back in Dec 97. His father had served aboard the Enterprise (CV-6) as a radar officer during WWII, and he really knew his USN, Pacific War stuff, knew alot about WWII in general, as well as gaming and models. One of his last models was of the Enterprise, complete with wooden deck, with wood from the Enterprise herself. Er, that's not it below, although I did tease him about replacing his "ironing table" decking:




Craig had a distinctive writing style, he wrote younger than his age, could be cranky at times, but was always appreciative of new info/knowledge. We stayed in touch over the years, I was aware his prostate cancer had returned with a vengeance about 6 months ago, and when he didn't respond to my emails I went looking ...



http://www.bonhammortuary.com/craig-burke/


His site, on Combined Fleet is still up, worth a look even if you didn't know Craig. He always got a kick out of folks visiting, thinking they were viewing genuine history, then posting comments, even quotes, on the board he frequented!!!


http://www.combinedfleet.com/furashita/furamain.htm#ijn


"Fair winds and following seas," Admiral!

 

Hey, Looks Good!!!

 

ww2 forums loses a good one....Anchors away yank.

 

I had just made his acquaintance a month or two back. I have always admired his work as Adm. Furashita. A little late to say this after some one has already set sail, but maybe they can get the mail out to his ship one way or another: Bon voyage, kind sir. May the seas you sail be fair, clear, and filled with wonders.

 

Rest easy, CT Burke

 

Thanks for the notice Marmat. Craig was a mainstay on the old THC board back in its heyday. He will be missed.

 

This is certainly sad news. My condolences to his family and loved ones. He will certainly be missed here as well.

 

He and I were long time cyber friends when THC was still a functional forum, a few years back he and his lady made a trip up my way and I met him at an Asian Grill for supper. I could at the time only eat thin soups as I was undergoing radiation therapy and had suffered the indignity of having all my teeth pulled, and my dentures were really just cosmetic rather than functional.

We went out to the Custer site, and wandered around for a day, and I was impressed with his humility in person. His online "persona" was a bit less tolerant of uninformed opinion (if you guys recall). I had begun to suspect that all was not well with his cancer quite some time ago, but then my own went sideways and I didn't follow up on confirming my fears. Craig will be missed by all who knew him, both as a forum member and as a human. Fair seas and following winds my friend.

 

Your loss too then Clint....A trip to remember...One for the wish I'd been there too books for the rest of us...