Judson College has announced the awarding of the Gloria Huey Crawford Music Scholarships to Sara Jean Lane of Conyers, Ga. and Macey Carter of Fultondale, Ala.
The scholarship benefits students in the Music Department at Judson College. Two Crawford Scholarships are awarded each academic year–one to a voice student and one to a performance instrument student, with preference given to piano.
Judson freshman Macey Carter is a music major from Fultondale, Ala. Assistant Professor of Music Dr. Sadie Goodman gave voice lessons to Carter as she prepared for college application auditions and was influential in Carter’s decision to enroll in the Music program at Judson. “Macey is an outstanding vocal student, whose natural gifts and talents when it comes to the timbre and quality of her sound are very mature for her age,” Goodman said. According to Goodman, Carter is an “ideal voice major” with an “incredible heart for the Lord”. Carter dedicates some time outside of her Judson studies as a scholarship singer at Vestavia Hills Baptist Church in Birmingham.
Sara Jean Lane is a senior music, math, and English major from Conyers, Ga. “Sara Jean is one of our most gifted students,” said Dr. Cindy St. Clair, Head of the Judson Music Department and piano instructor to Lane. “Sara Jean spends many hours studying her music scores and thinking about how she wants her music to sound,” St. Clair said. “Additionally, Sara Jean has a special gift called “synthesia,” which means that musical sounds produce a certain color in her mind. Exploring colors in her own playing has been an enlightening experience for her. A few notable composers such as Messiaen and Rimsky-Korsakov had this gift, along with French poets Arthur Rimbaud and Charles Baudelaire. For Sara Jean, music and poetry create a perfect combination, and her musicianship reflects the intricacies of language.” Though Lane plans to explore graduate study in English, St. Clair added that “music will be a lifelong art for her.”
The Gloria Huey Crawford Music Scholarship was established by Marion resident George Crawford in 2012 in honor of his mother, Gloria Huey Crawford. “Mother was a wonderful coloratura soprano at Huntingdon College, and I heard her beautiful voice growing up,” Crawford said. “I felt that this would be a meaningful way to ensure that her love of music and her beautiful voice are remembered. My hope is that the Gloria Huey Crawford Music Scholarships at Judson College will help these students to achieve their life goals,” Crawford said.
Dr. Cindy St. Clair, Head of the Department of Music, expressed gratitude for Crawford’s “continued support of our students and our programs.” “His generosity ensures that two of our extremely talented and hardworking students will continue in their musical growth and development,” said St. Clair.
Mrs. Crawford, the daughter of George Bolling and Vonceil Huey, grew up in Enterprise, Ala. She enrolled at Huntingdon College and later met Lawrence Crawford, a veterinary student at Auburn University. The two married and moved to Mobile, where Dr. Crawford founded his veterinary practice. Mrs. Crawford played an integral role in the establishment and management of the Crawford clinic. The Crawfords moved to Marion in 1946, where Mrs. Crawford assisted her husband in the operation of his new practice in Perry County and helped to superintend the family farm. Dr. Crawford died in 2004.
Mrs. Crawford was a member of the Margaret Lea Houston Chapter of Daughters of the American Revolution, which recognized her in 2014 for 65 years of active membership. She was also a committed member of Marion United Methodist Church. She sang the dedicatory concert when the new organ was installed at the Marion Methodist Church in late 1940s. Mrs. Crawford died on August 19, 2016, at age 92.
For more information about the Gloria Huey Crawford Music Scholarship, or to contribute to the Gloria Huey Crawford Music Scholarship Endowment Fund, contact the Judson College Office of Institutional Advancement at 334.683.5109.