Presented to: Lavina Fielding Anderson
For:
As one of the founding foremothers of the Association for Mormon Letters, Lavina Fielding Anderson has probably done more cumulatively for AML than any of its many members. From the earliest days of AML Lavina has created bridges between Mormon literature and history and among the various organizations and publications that take seriously Mormon culture, from her work at the Ensign to her work at Dialogue. She knows everyone that writes seriously on Mormon subjects, and has brokered her knowledge freely to all throughout her lifetime of service.
She has contributed generously to Mormon criticism in her various articles surveying Mormon missionary fiction, adventure novels, romances, etc. Of special note is her 1985 article "Making 'the Good' Good for Something: A Direction for Mormon Literature." But her service to Mormon literary criticism has been of special merit through her career as an editor. With Eugene England she edited the first anthology of Mormon criticism, Tending the Garden, and throughout the history of the Association for Mormon Letters she has patiently and competently edited this association's many volumes of annual proceedings.
This is no small feat, especially given the reluctance of authors to meet deadlines or to respond to her coaxing for drafts and revisions. Today the AML has a strong academic footing, an admirable body of criticism in its annuals that has often been refined and republished in other venues. The number of authors who owe debts to her can be numbered on every table of contents of every AML annual. Lavina consistently went beyond copy editing and responded to authors with encouragement and with specific suggestions not just for better wording, but for better arguments, bringing to light writings and connections authors may not have thought of. And for all of this, she received no formal credit or acknowledgment.
Recognizing the need for and supplying the needed talent for accurate records of our critical conversations, Lavina has exemplified the spirit of this organization and has worked tirelessly and behind the scenes for over two decades. Lavina has been loyal to Mormons literature and to Mormonism itself, even when this arrangement has not been entirely reciprocal.
For her indefatigable dedication to Mormon letters, for helping to found and to ground the Association for Mormon Letters, AML proudly bestows on Lavina Fielding Anderson honorary lifetime membership.