Reviews for
William F. Craig

Inventing Oneself is an enjoyable read. The author has a comfortable manner of telling you a story. It feels like you are inviting the reader into a personal conversation.

Father Peter M. Donohue - President of Villanova University

Inventing Oneself is an interesting perspective of the S&L crisis combined with a compelling autobiographical account of William F Craig ......a man with a unique personal journey.

Tucker Carlson - Host of Fox News - Tucker Carlson Tonight

“More than a business memoir, Inventing Oneself is an account of a leading banker, bold entrepreneur and deeply religious family man. Bill Craig’s impressive journey is an inspiring case study for all ages highlighting his principles, resilience and consummate networking.”

Charlie H. Moore Jr. - Olympian, retired CEO and author of Running on Purpose

Inventing Oneself is a book that artfully weaves through an extraordinary array of issues, events and personalities. The story is not just about business success and challenges but also tackles the joys and heartbreak of family life. At the center of the story is a man who has done much for others and has been justly rewarded. Bill Craig was lucky to be born into a family of loving immigrants who came to the U.S. from Ireland in 1913 to find a new life. His mother and father raised three sons, who were all born in the Philadelphia area. Bill’s father was a chauffeur for a very wealthy family. He was asked to come to Maine each summer with his wife and children. Bill and his brothers had the opportunity to experience the beauty and fun of the Maine coast, an experience that formed a lasting impression. Bill attended parochial schools and then Villanova University. He was always aware that his goal was to achieve an education that would give him an ability to start a career that would make him self-sufficient. Who would have foreseen that through hard work and a keen intellect and a great personality he would build a large and wonderful family and a wonderful business career? In a delightful autobiography that spans his 87 years, Bill brings us through his career in the banking industry, first at Irving Trust company in New York and then Shawmut Bank in Boston. He introduces the complexity of dealing with the utility lending department at Irving Trust and at the same time introduces his growing family, soon to be nine children with his lovely wife Louise. He moved to Shawmut Bank in 1978 and began to build a vast network of friends throughout Boston and New England. He introduces Cardinals, governors and business people who will become friends and supporters. He becomes involved with some of the most well-known charities in Boston, weaving his influence widely throughout the city. He draws a vivid picture of the role a president of a bank can play in the life of the city. He describes the incident when his career came to an end at Shawmut Bank. He had been an outside Director of the Pittston Company, an operator of coal mines. The company was in a major dispute with the United Mine Workers of America. The union could not get to first base with the company and so targeted individual directors and brought pressure on their employers. Shawmut Bank was targeted and pressure brought on the then mayor of Boston and the City Council to withdraw deposits from the bank. Bill did not want to back down from the dispute. He had been one of the longest serving directors - for over 30 years - at Pittston. He did not want the Bank to be hurt. So he chose to resign from the Bank rather than leave the Pittston Board. It was a courageous move that brought him great praise in the greater Boston community. The book concludes with a very satisfying achievement of his business career. Too young to retire, he organized a novel approach to the FDIC to buy the assets of a number of failed banks in New Hampshire. Bill brought together private funds to make it happen. Bill’s group was the successful bidder. Three years later after the banks were back on a profitable basis, Bill and his group were able to sell the banks at a sizable profit. It was a fitting end to a great career.

John P. Hamill - Director - Liberty Mutual Insurance Company

KIKRUS REVIEW

A retired businessman reflects on his successful career in banking.

Debut author Craig, who descended from Irish immigrants, was born in Philadelphia in 1931. His upbringing taught him the value of frugality and hard work, principles especially important during the war years when food and gas rationing were necessary—he was 10 years old when Pearl Harbor was attacked. He attended Villanova University and then earned an MBA at Drexel, publishing his thesis on the economics of public utilities. Over the ensuing years, writing about financial matters provided a boost to his budding career. His was always upwardly mobile—after years working at the Irving Trust Company in New York, he took a job at Shawmut Bank in 1978, eventually becoming its president and then vice chairman. Craig’s remembrance is limpidly composed, well-organized, and meticulously detailed, but for the most part free of the kind of drama or general life counsel that will magnetize a wide readership. There are two exceptions. Toward the end of his career, while president of Shawmut Bank, he was appointed to the board of directors for the Pittston Company, which owned and operated coal mines. He became embroiled in a bitter dispute with the United Mine Workers of America. As a result of that angry contest, he decided to resign his position at Shawmut. And in his retirement, he devised a new strategy to bail out foreclosed banks—form private investor groups to acquire them, a plan that turned out to be wildly successful for him. Craig’s recollections are effortlessly charming, and his victories are a testament to his character, which abounds in a rare combination of decency, ambition, and prudence.

A well-written recollection.

Early Amazon Reviews

Ann

5.0 out of 5 stars

Reinventing “too big to fail” bank take-overs by infusing investor capital in the 1990’s November 1, 2018 Format: Kindle Edition Craig’s story of being the first to ever gain approval to buy foreclosed banks from the US Treasury in 1990 is largely unknown. His experience, stellar reputation, and inventive strategy, using private equity, resulted in protecting depositors of failed banks by purchasing the foreclosed banks. This new public-private effort positioned the banking system to better meet the needs of area businesses and consumers and ability to forestall future economic storms of foreclosure.

ARC, BBA Wake Forest University

Gordon Bruno

5.0 out of 5 stars

Adversity can be your friend. November 1, 2018 Format: Kindle Edition Where others see obstacles, Bill Craig sees opportunity. Here is a businessman with a soul who takes the collaborative path to success. There is much to learn from visionaries like Bill. I'm sure his nine children and many grandchildren and friends and business associates would agree. From the board room to the game room to the class room to the ball room he deals, he competes, he learns, he glides, comfortable in knowing that he takes life as it comes and gives it his all from the heart. I highly recommend this memoir and personal adventure story -- Inventing Oneself.

Ed.D. Harvard University