Florence Lovelace Craig
1930 - 2021
Florence Lovelace Craig was born on March 17, 1930, in Wessington Springs, South Dakota, the youngest daughter of Edward Arthur and Pearl Sandys Lovelace. She was descended from several early English families of Massahusetts and Virginia.
Florence Lovelace was married in 1950 to the Rev. D. Eugene Anderson. The marriage was ended by divorce in 1984. She married Dr. William E. Craig in 2001, her former pastor at St. James’ Episcopal Church, where she was organist.
Mrs. Craig, known in concert music circles as Flo Anderson, was taught by her mother to read musical notes before words. Her later instructors were among the world’s great. Her pianistic “bloodlines” go back from Carpenter, Schnabel, and Czerny to Beethoven. Most of her training was at the prestigious Morningside Conservatory of Music.
Mrs. Craig had been a conductress, composer, church organist, lecturer at Columbia College and teacher of private students. Her first concert through Community Concerts was in 1977. Her concerts have been recorded, and she appeared in Who’s Who in California. She performed six times for the White House Conference on Aging in 1981. By coincidence, Dr. Craig was a congressional delegate to the same conference. In Sonora, she was
instrumental in forming the Bach Festival Youth Concerts and creating the St. James Concert Series.
She competed in numerous interscholastic competitions. She memorized all the Beethoven concerti and the most difficult sonatas. She has performed in Washington at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The year 1985 marked her most formidable concert tour: around the world, with concert stops at Hong Kong, Athens, Jerusalem and London.
Mrs. Craig’s affiliations included the American Guild of Organists. She was a member of St. James’ Episcopal Church and active in the Republican party. She was active in the Order of the Daughters of the King.
Mrs. Craig is survived by her husband, James “Jim” Duncan; her son, D. Eugene Anderson, of Sacramento, his wife Marcy, and granddaughter Danielle; and several stepchildren, including three daughters, two grandchildren and three greatgranddaughters.
A memorial service will be planned at St. James Episcopal Church “the Red Church” at a future date.