The Berdine Creedy Collection.
Berdine Creedy grew up on a small wheat farm in South Africa, where she earned her certificate in teaching and taught elementary education for ten years.
After her marriage to Mike Creedy, Berdine quit teaching to raise her young children. Berdine, who finds it hard to sit still for long, took up pottery as a hobby. Her hobby turned into a career when she began selling her pottery to stores. She tried her hand at reproduction dolls, but found the work too confining, so decided to sculpt her own. Her very first doll received two awards, prompting her husband to suggest that they consider marketing her dolls in the U.S. They found this difficult to do from South Africa and began to dream of moving to the U.S.In a story, which reads like a fairy tale, the Creedys entered a "green card lottery", sponsored by the
United States, which their son, Michael-John, saw advertised on television. Against overwhelming odds,
they won, which allowed them to move their whole family to the U.S. In Berdine's words, "It was meant to be". They moved in 1996, settling in Florida, where she continued to create her one-of-a-kind and limited-edition dolls. She also continued to win awards.
Berdine's son Kevin makes molds and Michael-John and Keith helps with whatever is needed, while daughter Charlene does the photography and brochures.
Berdine's mother, Helene Smit, hand-crochets items for the dolls, and helps her daughter during doll shows, proving she can sell, as well as sew.
Berdine has combined talent and hard work to win many nominations and awards.
