November 29, 1930 – January 29, 2025

“Flo” Bullock died while sleeping in her home in Eastsound, Washington on January 29, 2025.

Florence Sprague was born in Palo Alto, California in 1930 to her parents Clara Marea Melvin of Latah, Washington and Charles Myron Sprague of Bath, Maine.

She grew up in an idyllic old farm house, on the Stanford University campus in California surrounded by athletic playing fields, horse pastures and a lake.

Flo’s father was a football coach and a swimming and diving instructor and encouraged his daughters “Flossie” and Claire in wide range of athletics, with field hockey being one of Flo’s favorites.

Flo attended grade schools in her home town and then graduated from Stanford University with a major in Biology and a minor in Art.

After college she took a job in Philadelphia making scientific illustrations of fish for a professor. She then returned to the Bay Area to continue her education studying art at San Jose State College, then later at Arts and Crafts in Oakland where she met fellow student Fred Bullock, whom she married and had three sons with.

Flo was an active jewelry maker and crafts fair seller for most of her life making cast silver and bronze pieces in Berkeley in the mid sixties, then transitioning to pounded wire and bead, then adding abalone shell later on after she and family relocated to the central coast/ San Luis Obispo area.

After moving to Orcas Island she discovered Fimo, a polymer clay which she turned her creativity towards. Her early studies of biology and scientific drawing showed up in her artistic endeavors throughout her life.

Along with jewelry, Flo became a very active maker of tie-dye garments which she continued to design, make and sell into her early eighties. She held a fairly regular position at Farmers Market and the Artworks on Orcas.

Becoming a single mom through divorce in the late sixties, Flo went back to college to get her teaching credentials, then got a full time job teaching third and fourth grades in Shell Beach, California for about 16 years before following her sons to Orcas Island where she eventually became a grade school teacher again for another ten years.

Flo is survived by her sons: Douglas, Joseph and Samuel, daughter in-laws: Maria, Irina and Yuriko. Her grandchildren: Ryuma, Ayame, Marina, Pasha, Ivan, Kajetan and Naya and great grandchildren: Noah, Umi, Hana and Momo. Her nieces and nephews: Scott, Janet, Peter and Jim.

Flo was great care giver, organizer, teacher, artist, mom and friend.

She will be missed!

There will be a memorial for Flo on Saturday, April 19, 2025 Oddfellows hall, Orcas Island. Please bring finger food, drinks and stories to share. Hot water and tea provided.