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Photos above by Debbie Folkerts, top (title) photo by George
"I thought I was going to be a herpetologist but it turned out that I was interested in everything in nature. I have managed to keep working over the years as a result of two factors, the discovery of the wondrous in nature and seeing the light of understanding in the eyes of students." --George Folkerts, 2007
1983
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1992
2007
Photos above by Debbie Folkerts, top (title) photo by George
Memorial Contribution
George's family has requested that those wishing to do something to honor George's memory plant a native tree and/or donate to The Nature Conservancy. A memorial fund has been set up by the Alabama Chapter of The Nature Conservancy and information is posted on their website here. Plans are to use memorial donations to expand TNC's Splinter Hill Bog Preserve, an area that was first identified by George as being worthy of preservation, and was among his favorite places.
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Newspaper Obituary, 12/17/07
George W. Folkerts was born November 26, 1938 and died December 14, 2007 at his residence in Auburn. He was a valued member of Trinity Lutheran Church and Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Auburn University for the past 38 years. He earned a B.A. degree in zoology and a M.A. degree in botany from Southern Illinois University and a Ph.D. in herpetology from Auburn University. During his career as a teacher and researcher, George studied every aspect of nature. His comprehensive knowledge of the plants, invertebrates, and vertebrates inhabiting the Southeast was second to none, and he was a renowned expert in the ecology of disappearing habitat types and declining species. George’s passion for conserving nature made him a leader for local, state, and national conservation efforts. Part of his legacy for these efforts was his being honored by having multiple native species named after him. In the late 1990s, he led a successful effort to save Auburn University’s Davis Arboretum from building encroachment and ensure its preservation as a sanctuary for native plants. During his tenure as a faculty member at Auburn University, George was a dedicated teacher who loved teaching and was loved by his students; however, his purpose was never to be the teacher but, rather, to teach students to learn. He won numerous teaching awards and exposed countless students to the wonders of the natural world both in the classroom and field. His courses were truly inspirational and his classroom teaching style was one in which students were simultaneously challenged and made to feel comfortable in the presence of a friend and mentor. He successfully trained many graduate students who have gone on to secure positions as teachers and scientists across the United States. George was kind to all who met him, generous with the time he offered to others, and humble despite his exceptional accomplishments. He had a magnetic personality that enlivened every gathering and made him a beloved member in the local trivia community.
George is survived by his loving wife, Debbie (Dr. Debbie Folkerts), his sister, Trudy, his daughters Molly and Merrill, and his son Evan.
George is survived by his loving wife, Debbie (Dr. Debbie Folkerts), his sister, Trudy, his daughters Molly and Merrill, and his son Evan.
from www.cnah.org
LAMENT OF A FIELD BIOLOGIST
My former choice collecting spots
Are shopping center parking lots.
The meadow, once abuzz with bee
Is still now, thanks to DDT.
Shades of Rachel Carson,
Whatever will become of me
The glen where trilliums lolled in shade
And toadlets hopped, and chipmunks played,
In a watery grave has lain for years
Drowned by the Corps of Engineers.
My wild world is sinking fast,
Whatever will become of me
The marsh, a haunt of coots and rails,
Where Typha waved and wagged its tails,
Succumbed to an ignominious fate,
It's a cloverleaf on the interstate.
Nature heaves a dying breath,
Whatever will become of me
Clear birch‑edged stream with fauna rank,
With iris blue upon your bank,
Your poisoned pools I now scan,
My seine haul yields one Falstaff can.
Everything I love is gone,
Whatever will become of me
The fields are being, with great precision
Transformed into a subdivision,
The eagle falls, the lily dies,
And on the road a 'possum lies.
No doubt what will become of me,
White-topped pitcher plants, Packer Bog, Baldwin Co., AL
6 comments:
My tribute to George is here
Thanks to Thomas Spencer's article on Splinter Hill Bog and tribute to our late friend George Folkerts in today's Birmingham News Sunday paper (6/1/08) I learned of his passing late last year. I was a student of his in the early '70s at Auburn in the Biology department and a member of his first "Field Biology Course" in 1973. Reading all the remembrance postings on Blogspot brought back a cascade of memories of those years.
Although I left academics in the early '80s, my love and respect of plants and animals is firmly rooted in Folkertsian teachings. From pitcher plant bogs to the Sonoran desert to redwood forests to Ozark caves to balancing broomsticks, George Folkerts opened a new world to me that I have shared with many people since.
Late night study breaks in Funchess Hall would bring us to George's office where we would take down a Mammology textbook and quiz him on scientific names of random exotic species. He never missed a one that I remember.
I always said he was the smartest man I ever knew.
George Folkerts will always be a part of me as a naturalist at heart. My best to Debbie and the family. Splinter Hill will be my next field trip as a tribute to him.
Bruce Wheat, Hoover, AL. 6/1/2008.
I was unaware until a month ago that George had died. I had two courses, Systematic Evolution and Vert. I, under him, in about the fall of ’65 and spring of ’66.
I regret that I had not seen him since that time. I was a wildlife management student who left Auburn from ’67 thru ’69, courtesy of Uncle Sam. I came back and graduated in the summer of 1970.
I spent a career in environmental public health, working with soils and sewage, insect vectors, etc. and now environmental consulting. I later received an MPA from AUM. I am a Cub Scout leader and am helping raise my 7 year old grandson as a Naturalist.
I am one of about 6 or 7 in Alabama who were accepted & trained by the Climate Project. I teach Climate Change classes to elementary children and adults.I feel sure George would have approved.
I fondly remember him as my most favorite college professor. (Dr. Don Davis & Plant Ecology would be #2).
In evolution he would draw these funny little cartoon critters to demonstrate genetic traits.
My favorite story is from my vertebrate I class. We had to make a live collection, the more rare or poisonous the critter, the more points toward our grade.
I had collected, along with other reptiles and amphibians, a Diamondback Water Snake (Nerodia rhombifer rhombifer) from the lake above the falls at Little River Canyon, on a week-end trip to DeKalb County, with a Botany Grad student, Bob Daly (now Dr. Daly, Univ. N. AL), and our wives. (a loose snake in Chevy Corvair, with an under the floor heater duct—is another story).
On the next class day I turned in my weekend live collection, a Cave Salamander, a Copperhead and the Diamond Back Water snake, to Dr. Folkerts. During the next lab session, Dr. Folkerts was, by-the-numbers, showing us how to catch a snake by the tail and swing the snake between your legs, and quickly closing your legs to capture the snake’s "secure" head. The demonstration by-the-numbers was of course done slower than normal and George got bit in the rear. It did not, as I remember it, bother him at all.
I hope George's family will have one more small memory--My tribute to George. I will be donating to the Nature Conservance in his honor.
Samuel (Sam) C. Robertson
onsitesam@charter.net
Prattville, AL
Not sure what I can say about George that hasn't already been said. George was my friend, like he was to so many others.
I wrote the following in the acknowledgments section of my thesis so many years ago.
"I am fortunate enough to call Dr. George W. Folkerts of Auburn University a friend. His zeal for the study of our world has inspired and humbled me. He taught me
to see the world from many perspectives and to notice the things no one else cares to see. Thank you."
Somebody really needs to develop a Wikipedia page for Dr. Folkerts. He influenced so many people (myself included). I can honestly say that I would not be the person I am today had it not been for the inspiration I gained from my short exposure to the man. When anyone asks if I had a mentor, he is the first person to come to mind. Dr. Freeman and Dr. Dixon are high on that list as well.
Lee Elliott, Columbia, MO
Having spent this day running across a large number and variety of insects and spiders I thought, "I haven't seen this many bugs since taking classes in Funchess Hall! I wonder what Dr. Folkerts is doing these days?" I am saddened to have learned that he is no longer with us. Attending his classes, lectures and labs was always a favorite of mine. His quiet yet humorous demeanor, his creative drawings on the board, his ability to give time and attention to his students is demonstrated by few professors, but unlike others Dr. Folkerts wanted us to learn and to love the material he was presenting as much as he did!
In the spring quarter of 1976 I had the privilege and pleasure to take Biology 1 taught by him. As was often the case one topic led to another, then another and we eventually had a lengthy discussion on genetics. His comments piqued my interest and I seriously considered needing to leave AU to pursue a degree in genetics since AU did not have offer one at the time. Eventually my heart stayed true to the orange and blue, and I ended up graduating with a degree in special education and spent years working with intellectually disabled students and learned more about genetic conditions and anomalies than I could imagine. Many times when reviewing case files I remembered Dr. Folkerts speaking with me about genetics and smiled to myself wondering if he were reminded of our conversation whether he would realized that his comments helped steer me onto a very rewarding professional path. Thank you dearly Dr. Folkerts!
I have read many of the remembrances and hope that this one will let his family and friends know that he was a kind soul and great educator who had a lasting and positive influence upon me.
Robin McArthur Aderson, '79
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