Frederick J. Cremona

Joe was born in Calvert, Texas on November 3, 1931 and passed away peacefully on January 31, 2024 in Austin, Texas in the presence of loved ones. He is preceded in death by his loving wife of 18 years, Darlene Louise Cremona; his parents, Tony and Rose; his sisters Dora, Louise, Rosie, Mary, and his brothers Sam, Tony, Vincent, Frank and Johnny. Joe is survived by his daughters Connie Pacifico, Judy Murphy, Cathy Cremona, Carolyn Cremona, and his sons, Frederick Joseph Cremona, Jr. and James Cremona. He is also survived by numerous grandchildren, great grandchildren, cousins, nephews and nieces. “Italian Joe,” as he was known by the children in his hometown of Calvert, was an active boy who was quick to help out in his family’s general store business. When Joe was a teenager, his family moved to Houston where he attended Stephen F. Austin High School. Joe had a paper route and gave every cent he made to his mother, Rose, who saved it to help pay for his college. Through hard work and determination, Joe graduated with honors from the University of Texas at Austin in 1953 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Zoology. He later received his Doctor of Medicine from Baylor College of Medicine in 1957, where, in his senior year, he joined the Naval Medical Student Program. This was the start of Joe’s decorated career in the Navy. After a rotating internship at the Naval Hospital in Oakland California from 1957 to 1958, Joe served with the 3rd Marine Division in Okinawa, Japan as a Battalion Surgeon. In late 1958, Joe was transferred to the naval hospital in Corpus Christi, Texas where he was a staff doctor of Orthopaedic Services. It was here that Joe met the love of his life, Darlene Louise Gothard. Darlene was a widow with two young children, Connie and Judy. Joe and Darlene were married in Corpus Christi. Soon after getting hitched, Joe and Darlene moved their family to Boston, Massachusetts where Joe was a resident of Orthopaedic Surgery at the Boston Naval Hospital. In 1964, Joe was transferred to Orlando where he was a resident doctor in the Children’s Orthopaedic Service of Orange Memorial Hospital. The following year, Joe was transferred to Camp Lejeune Naval Hospital as Chief of Orthopaedic Service. He achieved the rank of Captain while in Camp Lejeune and in 1971 transferred to the Naval Regional Medical Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. From 1971 to 1977, Joe served as the chairman of the NRMC Orthopaedic Department and Director of Residency training. Joe retired from the Navy in 1977 after 20 years of dedicated service to his country. He received the Meritorious Service Medal and a Letter of Commendation from the Naval Regional Medical Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1971-1977. After retiring from the Navy, Joe moved his family to Houston, Texas and began private practice with MacGregor Medical Associates. Joe was Staff Surgeon, from 1978 to 1988, and Chief of Staff from 1986 to 1987. During his time at MacGregor Medical Associates, Joe was appointed to active staff of HCA Medical Center and courtesy staff of Hermann Hospital from 1978 to 1988. Joe retired from private practice in 1988, and moved to Dripping Springs, Texas in 1991 where he built his dream house on 3 acres of prime Texas real estate. Joe enjoyed visits from his children and grandchildren, working his land, and attending church. Not many people know that Joe wasn’t baptized until he was 30, and he remained a devout Catholic and churchgoer for the rest of his life. He was a parishioner of St. Martin de Porres Catholic Church in Dripping Springs, Texas where he donated a stained-glass window to the church in memory of his dear wife, Darlene. Joe was an extremely charitable man and gave to many organizations, including The American Red Cross, Alzheimer’s Association, UNICEF, Maryknoll, Disabled Veterans Foundation, and American Cancer Society, to name just a few. At age 71, Joe came out of retirement to take a position with Texas Disability Determination Services as a reviewing physician consultant. He held that position for nearly 16 years until his final retirement in 2018. Joe was truly an officer and a gentleman as well as a dedicated family man. During the decade of the 1970’s, he essentially raised 6 children by himself while working full time as a busy physician - all the while attending to his beloved wife who was stricken with an unknown, debilitating illness. After Darlene’s death in 1979, he never remarried. Joe never abandoned his duty to his wife, his family, or his country. He healed so many people and never asked for anything in return. There are not many people in this world who would have stayed the course through such adversity – but he did. The latter years in Joe’s life were spent enjoying simple pleasures like watching sports – especially Longhorn football, reading books, solving crossword puzzles and jumbles, smoking fine cigars, enjoying a smooth cocktail, or a cold bottle of beer as he listened to jazz and folk music. Joe was an amazing chef. He loved making the family marinara recipe and other Italian dishes. Stuffed artichokes, cauliflower soup, BBQ ribs, sweet potato casserole and eggplant parmesan were only a few of his specialties. The care and love he put into each dish exemplified the care and love he gave to all who joined him at the table. The family wishes to thank the wonderful staff of Brookdale Senior Living in North Austin, for making Joe’s final days as comfortable as possible. A graveside service for Joe will begin at 12:00 PM on Tuesday, March 12, 2024, at the Forest Park Lawndale Cemetery, 6900 Lawndale, Houston, Texas, 77023. Following the service, there will be a reception at 1:00 PM in the Forest Park Funeral Home reception hall. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Alzheimer’s Association, 6055 South Loop E., Houston, Texas 77087.

Frederick J. Cremona

November 3, 1931 - January 31, 2024