CRAIG F. BIELERT, PhD., 74, passed away peacefully in his sleep on July 31, 2021, at his home in Oneonta, NY.

Craig was born in Highland Park, IL where he was a third-generation student at Highland Park High School. He received his PhD in zoology from Michigan State University, then served as a research professor at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in South Africa for 10 years before coming to Oneonta in 1986 where he was a professor of psychology at SUNY Oneonta. Craig served on many committees throughout his career and was dedicated to his fellow colleagues and students and staff alike.

Over the last twenty plus years he co-led many student trips back to South Africa with his wife, Dr. Connie M. Anderson, also of Oneonta.

He is survived by his wife and their children, Shiloh Chickerell, Evie Estell, Troy Bielert and Lorien Bielert; grandchildren Eowyn, Lakota and Logan Chickerell, Aden and Ethan Estelle and Nola Gorman-Bielert, and numerous cousins.

Craig will be greatly missed. He was a kind, thoughtful, fun-loving, generous person. He was a lover of life, travel, adventure and spending time with his friends and family. He loved to entertain and have elaborate dinners or go to movies and enjoy simple dinners out with his friends.

Visitation will be from 5 to 6 p.m., with his memorial service at 6 p.m. Friday, August 13, at the Lewis, Hurley & Pietrobono Funeral Home, 51 Dietz St., Oneonta.

Memorial contributions may be made to either, NAMI Organization, www.nami.org or to the Bugbee Children's Center https://suny.oneonta.edu/bugbee-childrens-center both of which Craig served on for decades.

Online condolences may be sent to, www.lhpfuneralhome.com