Joseph Wright Spradling

Joseph Wright Spradling, 92, died February 13, 2009 at Madison, Wisconsin, in the company of his family.   Born in Sparta, Wisconsin on November 18, 1916, he was the youngest of the seven children of James Wright Spradling and Genevieve Church Spradling.   Joe was preceded in death by his parents and all of his siblings: James, Betty (Toland), Frank, Mina (Trainer), May (Rumreich), and Arthur, and by a grandson, Eric David Spradling. He is survived by his wife of 65 years, Betty Morgan Spradling, their son David Spradling and David's wife Maryanne Larson Spradling of Pacific Grove, California, and a grandson, Christopher Spradling, who is a student at Sonoma State University in California. Joe was a graduate of the UW College of Engineering, where he was inducted into Tau Beta Pi and Pi Tau Sigma scholastic honor societies.   After enlisting in the US Army Air Corps Reserve in 1942, he served in the Marianas and Philippine Islands and was discharged in 1946. Joe's professional career was primarily in product development of medical equipment with Ohmeda of Madison, where he developed a number of patented devices in worldwide use today, and design and development of air conditioning equipment with Carnes Corporation of Verona. Active professional memberships were in the Society of Professional Engineers, the Society of Mechanical Engineers, the Society of Air Conditioning Engineers, and the Society of Quality Control. Following retirement, Joe was an active volunteer with the American Red Cross, Kiwanis Club citizenship activities, the Service Corps of Retired Executives, and Oakwood Village. It is Joseph's request that his body be cremated and following a private service for the family, that there be no public visitation nor memorial service. The family wishes to express its deep appreciation for the compassionate care provided by the staffs of Oakwood Village West and HospiceCare Inc.   Contributions in his memory will be appreciated by Oakwood Village or by HospiceCare Inc.   Cress Funeral & Cremation Service