Donald W. Pritchard, an AERS charter member, died April 23, 1999, after a massive stroke. He was 76.
Pritchard, a California native, was a 1946 meteorology graduate of the University of California at Los Angeles. He received his M.S. degree in 1948 and his Ph.D in 1951, both at Scripps Institution of Oceanography of the University of California in La Jolla. He served with the army in the European and the Pacific theaters during World War II, helping to forecast surf conditions for amphibious landings.
He came to Maryland in 1949 as a Scripps PhD candidate and was the first chairman of the Johns Hopkins University Oceanography Department and director of the University's Chesapeake Bay Institute. His PhD thesis was devoted to the circulation of Chesapeake Bay and proved to be a seminal study in estuarine dynamics. As a result, many workers in the field think of him as the father of modern estuarine dynamics.
He remained at Hopkins as chair of the oceanography department until 1968. He also served from 1949 to 1973 as director of the Chesapeake Bay Institute, and, from 1973 to 1979, as its senior research scientist. He was a teacher and administrator at SUNY, Stony Brook from 1978 to 1988, serving as a professor of oceanography and the associate director for research at the university's Marine Science Research Center from 1978 to 1986, finally becoming acting dean and director, then associate dean of the center. Since 1965 he also had been an adjunct professor of the University of Maryland's Center for Estuarine and Environmental Studies, while serving on the Maryland Governor's Science Advisory Council when he could.
Don was an honorary member of AERS, past president of the oceanography section of the American Geophysical Union, a past vice president of the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography, and a life fellow of the International 0ceanographic Foundation. He was also elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1993.
The author of 85 technical works, he had served on the editorial boards of such publications as the Journal of Marine Research and Estuaries.
He was the recipient of numerous awards from private, professional and government groups. His many honors include the Lifetime Achievement Award given by the Estuarine Research Federation, and the Mathias Science Medal in recognition of scientific excellence in studies of the Chesapeake Bay. The Mathias Medal is jointly sponsored by the Chesapeake Research Consortium, the Maryland Sea Grant College and the Virginia Sea Grant Program. Don left some very big footprints that will be hard to fill. His contributions to estuarine science have influenced all of us in some manner.
Waterman's Hall at VIMS was filled with electronic expertise and scientific insight as 77 attendees of the AERS spring meeting enjoyed a total of 23 oral presentations and 17 poster sessions, as they partook of the usual warm VIMS hospitality. The laptop replaced the overhead and slide projectors for many of the presenters, resulting in perhaps the most aesthetically pleasing meeting of all time. The science was pretty interesting, too. Authors discussed problems associated with estuaries as far away as Portugal and as close as the Chesapeake Bay.
A special treat was the plenary address given by James T. Hollibaugh from the University of Georgia. It was entitled "Examining the Composition of Microbial Communities - What Can It Tell Us about an Ecosystem?"
Special thanks should be given to Iris Anderson and her local arrangements people who, in addition to everything else, put together a fabulous box lunch on Friday and breakfast-at-the-hall Friday and Saturday. Special thanks also to Janet Nestlerode, who helped with everything, and Kent Mountford for his untiring efforts with the old timer's 50th year video.
Near the end of the recent and excellent spring meeting at VIMS, Jerry Williams approached me to say that it is time for him to move on to pursue other interests. After more years than he can remember of editing the AERS Newsletter, Jerry asked to be replaced by the Spring 2000 meeting. It felt like the day went from sunny and bright to overcast and cloudy. While I'm always up for a challenge, Jerry was asking the impossible. There is no way to replace the kind of dedication and service that Jerry has demonstrated as editor of the newsletter. But in Jerry's very efficient and get things done way, he had several excellent suggestions for potential newsletter editors. After some negotiation (i.e., begging and pleading on my part) and plying with appropriate beverages, the very capable Pat and Frank Reilly have agreed to take on the editorship of the newsletter.
During the next year, Jerry will continue as editor of the newsletter. Pat and Frank have assured incoming President, Stan Hales, that they will take over as newsletter editors after the Spring 2000 meetings. I expect the transition will be rough on Pat and Frank, but that the membership won't be aware of that and the transition will appear to be seamless. However, I'm certain we all will miss the kind of wisdom and humor that infused the newsletter during Jerry's editorship. Many thanks to Pat and Frank for stepping forward to take on the newsletter editorship. Finally, there aren't words to express my thanks to Jerry for the outstanding job that he has done with the newsletter since I've been a member of AERS.
Linda Blum
AERS dues for 1999 are now due. We depend on your dues to help defray the cost of providing you with your newsletter and other printed materials. Please, take a minute right now and check the address label on your newsletter. The last year shown on the label is the last year for which we have a record of you paying dues. If the year on your label is not '99 or later, take the time to put a check in the mail right now for $10.00 per year.
Any whose last dues year is 96 or earlier will be taken from our mailing list and suffer the humiliation of no longer being an AERS member. Save your reputation. Make out your check to AERS and send it to Tim Morris, AERS Membership Chairman, Cove Corporation, 10200 Breeden Road, Lusby, MD 20657. Do it today, or at the very latest, tomorrow!
The latest scoop from and about AERS
NOTICE - THOSE MEMBERS WHO ARE HAVING TROUBLE WITH THEIR AERS NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIPTIONS SHOULD CONTACT TIM MORRIS AT tmorris@chesapeake.net
New Student RepsThe AERS Board has appointed two new student representatives to serve on the board. Elizabeth Hinchey (ehinchey@vims.edu) will represent PhD students, and Marianne Ott (otter1975@hotmail.com) will be the MS representative. Any student oriented problems should go to Elizabeth or Marianne. They will bring them before the Board. In addition, they will act as repositories for any student news, so if you have been doing anything of note, let them know and they will see that AERSNEWS reports it.
Honorary MembersHarold Humm, one of the founding members, will be the next AERS Honorary Member. He, Dexter Haven, and Will Van Engel will be officially added to the hallowed list at the fall ERF meeting in New Orleans.
Videos AvailableDon't let this opportunity slip away. There are still videos available of the old timer's presentations at the 50th year meeting. They are just $10 + $3 postage. Send your request with a $13 check to Linda Blum, Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903.
AERS Fall 1999
MeetingThe Fall meeting of the Atlantic Estuarine Research Society will be held during the Estuarine Research Federation Meeting in New Orleans, LA, September 25-30, 1999.
AERS Spring 2000
MeetingPlans are being developed for a joint AERS, SEERS, and Benthic Ecology meeting for Spring 2000 in Wilmington, NC on March 9-12 at the UNC-Wilmington campus. Bob Christian (AERS) and Judy Heath (AERS) will be coordinating local arrangements with Martin Posey (Benthic Ecology Society), Joe Pawlik (Benthic Ecology Society), Eric Keopfler (SEERS program committee), and Evan Chipouras (President SEERS). A summertime meeting of this group is projected. More details about Spring 2000 will be available after this summer planning meeting.
AERSNEWS will stay on top of this and keep you informed as further details develop. Stay tuned.
ERF's journal Estuaries has a new editor. He is Stephen T. Threlkeld, from the University of Mississippi. He brings a ton of experience in electronic publication to the job, and the immediate evidence of this is that Estuaries will be available on line - free for the next few months; membership required after that. Check it out.
Arrangements are under way to locate ERF 2001 in St. Petersburg, Florida and ERF 2003 in Seattle, Washington.
It's official. The ballots have been collected and counted. By just a few votes in each case, the new AERS President-Elect is Stan Hales, Jr. (Rowan University), and the new Secretary is Chris Swarth (Jug Bay Wetlands Sanctuary). Interestingly enough, both of the new officers are wetlands people, since Stan is pretty closely associated with the Stone Harbor Wetlands Institute
The Secretary assumes his duties immediately, while the President-Elect doesn't move into the presidential chair until next spring.
A total of four student paper awards were presented at the spring meeting at VIMS. Each of the winners received a certificate and a one year subscription to the journal Estuaries.
Judged to be the
best Undergraduate Oral Presentation was that of: Charles V. Metzger
from Richard Stockton College of New Jersey.
The winner of
the best Graduate Oral Presentation at the master's level was Tracy
Buck from East Carolina University.
The best Graduate
Oral Presentation at the doctorate level was Alessandra Sagasti
from The College of William and Mary.
Judged
to be the best Poster Presentation was that of Helen E. Woods from
the Virginia Institute of Marine Science.
The AERS poster contest has been extended. There is still time to put together something to adequately present AERS to the rest of the world. Prize is an estuarine book having a value up to $75. More info from Tim Morris (tmorris@chesapeake.net) or Judy Heath (jkh38326@glaxowellcome.com).
Wild cheers echoed through the auditorium in response to the announcement that Frank Reilly was the spring, 1999 winner of the coveted Venerable Clam award. Frank responded by delivering a most meaningful acceptance speech. "The Venerable Clam Award," Frank said, "is a reminder of the fact that AERS is militantly informal with regards to everything except its science." Right on, Frank!
Venerable Clam Recipients Listed
At great expense and effort, AERSNEWS has managed to obtain a complete list of those who have received the Venerable Clam Award. The Clam Venerees (AKA The Venerabilia) are listed below in alphabetical order:
Bette
Bauereis
Dave
Cargo
Mel
Carriker
Tom
Carver
Mike
Castagna
Bob
Christian
Dexter
Haven
Tom
Hopkins
Tom
Jones
Vic
Kennedy
Don
Lear
Nelson
Marshall
John
McDermott
Kent
Mountford
Steve
Rebach
Frank
Reilly
Fred
Sieling
Dick
Williams
Jerry
Williams
Steve Rebach, Chair of the Endowment Committee, reports that only two students applied for travel money to the Spring 1999 AERS meeting at VIMS, Gloucester Point. One of the students subsequently obtained funding from his advisor, while the second was not a member of AERS. Consequently, no travel funds were awarded for the Spring 1999 meeting.
Four students applied for travel money to the Fall 1999 ERF meeting in New Orleans. One of the four was not a member of ERF and the remaining three students have fulfilled all requirements. These students were awarded $150 each: Janet Nestlerode, Elizabeth Hinchey, and Sandra Rene Hypes.