Craig Alan Spaulding, 75, died August 30, 2026, while rock climbing in West Virginia. He is survived by his wife, Doro (Dorothy) Schafer, and by his three children Luke Spaulding (Steffi), Berlin, Germany; Ellie Spaulding Hershberger (Andy), Chiang Mai, Thailand; and Jesse Spaulding Weilding (Hannah), Missoula, Montana. 

Craig is also survived by his sister, Janet Spaulding, his brother, Scott Spaulding (Reggie), his former wife, Tree Spaulding, and his niece, Anisa and nephews, Alex and Arthur. Craig was pre- deceased by his brother Doug Spaulding and his parents, Howard and Adelaide Spaulding. Craig was the proud grandfather of six grandchildren: Charlie and Robyn, Hazel and Zeke, and Story and Wonder.

A devoted life partner, father, grandfather, and uncle, Craig brought wonder and enjoyment to family gatherings through feats of magic and creative storytelling, recounting his many life adventures which grew in detail and delight with each retelling.

Craig was born in Pomona, CA and spent his formative years in Montclair, CA. He attended Montclair High School, graduating in 1969, where he ran track and played trumpet in the band. He loved the southern California outdoor life: riding road bikes, hiking and backpacking in the nearby San Bernadino and Sierra Nevada mountains. Craig honed many talents as a craftsperson in wide-ranging fields: rebuilding a Spitfire Triumph Sports car engine, building a hang glider and potter’s wheel, and woodworking. His skills as an artisan supported the many creative projects he undertook throughout his life.

He graduated from Humboldt College, Arcata, CA, with a degree in Geography, later followed by receiving a master’s degree in Conflict Transformation from Eastern Mennonite University, Harrisonburg, VA. Both topics, geography and conflict transformation, reflected his passion and supported his life’s work.

He pursued community development work for over sixteen years in Papua New Guinea where he created a written language based on the oral tradition of the Nankina people. Growing up in PNG instilled in Luke, Ellie, and Jesse their own life-long sense of curiosity about the wider world and their wanderlust.

After Craig returned to Harrisonburg, VA, he continued linguistic research at the Center for Indigenous Languages and at Rosetta Stone, developing language-learning software. He was especially proud of his work with the Endangered Language Program at Rosetta Stone where he managed production of tools to preserve and revitalize languages for Indigenous groups in the United States (the Chitimacha Tribe of Louisiana, the Inupiat Community of the Arctic Slope, the Navajo Nation of the southwest US) and Canada (the Inuit of Nunatsiavut, Labrador) as well as for the Irish, Farsi, and Tagalog languages.

Craig also brought his creativity, ingenuity and curiosity to his love of climbing. He developed innovative devices for climbing training, sold through his company, Sic-Grips, LLC. Climbers the world over often looked to Craig for his expertise and guidance in making commercially available gear ever more effective for their specific, niche-climbing pursuits.

Mentor to many climbers, Craig began his own rock-climbing journey at age fifty. Along with his son, Jesse, the two turned family vacations into another opportunity to go climbing. Over the next twenty-five years, Craig moved among climbers, young and old, neophytes and old hands, traversing rock, and afterwards, refueling on Mexican food and margaritas and instigating vigorous political talk.

For the past year, Craig volunteered with the UpEnding Parkinson's climbing groups in Richmond, VA, helping men and women better manage the effects of Parkinson's disease and continue active and healthy lives.

A celebration of Craig’s life will be held Sunday, September 13 th , 4pm-7pm at the Bluestone Vineyard residence patio area (up the hill past the tasting room) in Bridgewater, VA. Attendees are asked to come with their favorite Craig/Naitch story and some potluck style finger-food to share.

 A private family farewell for Craig will be held cliffside.

Contributions in Craig’s memory may be made to UpEnding Parkinson’s, at www.upendingparkinsons.org, or to the Access Fund, at www.accessfund.org.