Dr. Chalmers Alfred Cromer [Video]

Dr. Chalmers Alfred Cromer

August 31, 1921 – March 15, 2023

Dr. Chalmers “Chuck” Cromer passed away on March 15, 2023 at the age of 101. Born on August 31, 1921 in Gering NE to George and Freada Cromer, Chuck spent his childhood in Gering Valley, where he helped with the family farm work and attended rural elementary school.

He attended high school in Gering where he lettered in all sports and played the trombone in both the band and orchestra. He subsequently enrolled at Colorado College of Agriculture and Mechanics, now Colorado State University (CSU), in 1939.

Following the attack on Pearl Harbor Naval Base in 1941, Chuck supplemented his studies with Naval Officer Training to prepare for military service. He graduated from CSU in April 1943 and proceeded to Midshipman’s School in Chicago, IL. He then earned his Naval Commission and was assigned to the USS Republic in August 1943 and the USS Skagit in May 1945, where he …