Ralph G. Craib; Bay Area Reporter and Editorial Writer

Ralph G. Craib, 70, whose more than 40 years in newspapers were interrupted by highly decorated service in World War II. A reporter and editorial writer, Craib had a career that stretched from his start as a copy boy at the Oakland Tribune at 16 to his retirement from the San Francisco Chronicle in 1991. The Society of Professional Journalists gave him its lifetime achievement award. Craib “was a journalist’s journalist who earned the respect of both his readers and those he covered,” said Matthew Wilson, Chronicle executive editor. In World War II, Craib served as a machine gun squad leader under Gen. George Patton and helped liberate Ohrdruf Nord, a satellite of the Buchenwald concentration camp. Decorated seven times for his military service, he was honored this year by the Jewish community of San Francisco. On Sept. 28 of congestive heart failure in Palo Alto.