JACKSONVILLE — It’s regularly at or near the top of the Nielsen Audio ratings for North Florida’s largest market, with a veteran morning host teaming up with Yvonne Velasquez to anchor a Renda Broadcasting heritage Adult Contemporary FM.
Now, all at the station, within the company, and across the “First Coast” are mourning the loss of Arthur Crofton at the age of 72.
News of Crofton’s passing was first shared on WEJZ-FM 96.1‘s Facebook page on Wednesday afternoon, as much of the listening area eyed Hurricane Helene’s projected path just to the west of the Jacksonville market. Without giving details regarding the circumstances related to his passing, WEJZ said, “To say that he will be missed is a huge understatement. Arthur has been hosting mornings on WEJZ for over 30 years. He entertained and informed millions of North Floridians and he loved every minute of it. Please keep his family in your prayers.”
By 9:15am Thursday, some 450 comments and 542 shares on Facebook were made by listeners. “Is it even Jacksonville without Arthur??” asked Brooke Sheffey Townsend, a Duval County Public Schools teacher.
Indeed, Arthur Crofton and Yvonne Velasquez are to this generation what Hoyle Dempsey was to WAPE-FM listeners some 35 years ago and, in the late 1970s, what Doug “The Greaseman” Tracht was to listeners of WAPE-AM in Jacksonville.
Crofton came to WEJZ in August 1990 to host mornings. At the time, Dempsey was still on the “Big Ape,” the heritage Top 40 station in Jacksonville; construction cranes ruled the skyline, a sign that a once-sleepy town dominated by the United States Armed Forces was about to evolve. Indeed, Jacksonville became the largest city in the U.S. by square miles and today has a National Football League team and diverse multicultural community. Crofton was there for it all.
Originally from Great Britain, Crofton arrived in the U.S. at age 20, in 1970. He later became a U.S. Citizen, and took a job at CBS News as a mail clerk; he once delivered legendary newsman Walter Cronkite his daily postal correspondence.
Crofton is survived by his wife, Laurie Mitchell; daughter Teresa, who resides in Rome; son Craig, who is in Bristol, England; and daughter Lindsay, who resides in St. Augustine, Fla. He is also survived by four grandchildren.
For Velazquez, the show went on Friday, with her voice emotional at times as comments on the WEJZ webpage were shared on-air. Velazquez’s experience includes a midday shift at KYSR during its “Star 98.7” tenure in Los Angeles, and in nights at WNEW-FM in New York.
