Florence Kate Tonkin

Florence was born March 13, 1928 in New York, NY, to Clarence Karstadt, a famous industrial designer, and Florence Karstadt, née Masson. Florence attended Glenbard High School, Glen Ellyn, IL, where she played flute in the marching band, and graduated with top honors from Ivy-League ranked Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota in 1949. Her love of art and fashion led to a career as a window-dresser and then interior designer at Chicago's famous Marshall Fields department store.

Florence first met future husband Thomas Tonkin while he was working in Chicago, and they continued a correspondence after Tom returned to Berkeley and Florence’s family relocated to Santa Monica, California. Their relationship blossomed while she worked as an interior decorator at I. Magnin in San Francisco. Shortly after their wedding on December 29, 1954, Florence and Thomas moved to the Monterey Peninsula, where they would remain, happily married, for the remainders of their lives.

In addition to the responsibilities of raising five children, Florence assumed a number of public duties. During the 60s she volunteered for the local Junior League charity branch, memorably building sets for, performing in (with Thomas), and raising money for the annual Footlight Follies stage show. She was active with the Family Service Agency as well. Florence served as docent at both the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History (where her wildflower and mushroom watercolors were displayed) and the Point Piños Lighthouse. She served as a legal assistant at the law firm Hoge Fenton Jones and Appel. In later years, she volunteered as a grant-writer, fund raiser, graphic designer, newsletter editor, and even caseworker for the local AIDS outreach non-profit ministry John XXIII. Additionally, she was a member of the Casa Abrego club and a supporter of the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Florence was probably best known for her passion for, and relentless curiosity about, the natural world, including such unglamorous subjects as bats, ravens, nudibranch sea slugs, cephalopods, deep sea creatures, and slime molds. Local mushroom varieties were a favorite subject. Informed by her library of dozens of well-thumbed and annotated field guides, she took pride in knowing the Latin names for all manner of flora and fauna, even conquering her fear of flying to visit Carl Linnaeus’ gardens in Sweden. She was a passionate and talented gardener, creating homes for all manner of plants in her gardens. She also delighted in language, speaking at least three languages fluently and even studying Russian in later years. Florence would frequently dash from a family dinner she'd prepared to look up a difficult word in her well-worn unabridged dictionary.

Florence also displayed a great love for the arts and played the piano, banjo, flute, and piccolo adeptly. She was prolific in creating all manner of art forms, including poetry, fiction, calligraphy, needlepoint, and knitting. She was particularly gifted as a watercolor artist, making it her lifelong quest to capture as many forms as possible of Monterey Peninsula plant life, creating hundreds of lovingly rendered, lifelike studies.

Florence is survived by her daughter Jane (John) Creech, daughter Martha, son Andrew (Lucy) Tonkin, and daughter Emily Tonkin (Michael VanLandingham). She is survived by four grandchildren, Ryan, Nai Nai, Samantha, and Max. She is predeceased by her daughter Sheila (d. 1984), grandson Duncan (d. 1996), husband Thomas (d. 2008), and sister Claire (d. 2011).

A mass will be said in Florence's name at the Mission San Carlos in Carmel, CA. A memorial service will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Florence's name can be made to Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History or the Carmelite Monastery. Please visit www.thepaulmortuary.com to sign Florence's online guest book.

If there is any consolation to Florence's passing at age 84, it is that she never missed a day of living, filling every 24-hour period with learning, creativity, and love.