Elbert Allen McCracken

Elbert Allen McCracken, Jr., born December 11, 1950, passed away peacefully at his home in Fairfield Bay, Arkansas on December 29, 2025.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Dr. Elbert Allen McCracken, Sr. (“Dr. Mack”) and Mary Frances Cooke McCracken Damour, and by his first wife, Mary Charla Pollard.

He is survived by his sister, Sue Mistric-Brown (Pat) of North Little Rock, nieces Vikki Mistric (Julie) of Benton and Juli Clark (Sam) of Pearcy, great-nephew Matthew Mistric of Memphis, TN, great-niece Maddie Clendening of Austin, TX, great-niece and nephew Sarah and Jacob Clark of Pearcy, AR, cousins Charlie McCracken (Dee) of Harrison, AR and Jo Blankenship of Greensboro, NC, as well as other extended family and many friends.

Known as Pat to family and Mack to friends, he was born in Stuttgart, Arkansas at McCracken Clinic on Main Street and graduated from Stuttgart Public Schools in 1969. He was the manager of the football team and became a life-long, accomplished fisherman and hunter, changing bows for rifles, shotguns, or fishing rods as hunting seasons came and went. He worked many farming and construction jobs, drove long distance trucks, was a licensed realtor, and trained retrievers for duck hunting.

In 1989, he pursued a career in nursing. As an RN, he specialized in heart monitoring, critical care, and emergency nursing. He moved to Montana to be able to hunt, fish, and live in the mountains, and there he became an avid wildlife photographer.

In 2017, he announced, “I don’t have another Montana winter in me,” and moved back to Arkansas. He retired at Fairfield Bay on Greers Ferry Lake to take advantage of the fishing. When asked about how it was going, he would say, “Livin’ the dream!” We will miss you, Pat Mack McCracken.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Museum of the Arkansas Grand Prairie in Stuttgart, AR.

To honor his wishes, family and friends are invited to a celebration of life story sharing and fish fry at 12 p.m., March 21, at the Yoder Community Center, 933 South Yoder Road, Stuttgart, AR.

“Y’all take care now.”