The Native Plant Society of Northeastern Ohio Awards
Perry Peskin
The Gentian Award for 2012
We are proud to give Perry Peskin our first Gentian Award. Our society created the award to honor those in the community who have made a "significant contribution" to the mission and goals of the Society. The Society's mission is the study, appreciation and conservation of the native plants and plant communities of Ohio.
Perry Peskin exemplifies our mission in a special way. There are many who through their occupation do much to foster that mission, but Perry's life shows that this mission can be pursued with dedication even by those who are not employed in the field of conservation, botany, or similar areas.
Perry was a teacher of English for many years in Cleveland area schools. Nevertheless, he pursued the love of botany that he developed while wandering the hills of Cumberland, Maryland, where he grew up, and while he minored in biology at Case Western Reserve University.
Perry went on many nature walks over the years and he turned what he learned and experienced on those walks into many articles and talks, sharing his knowledge and experience. He wrote more than a half dozen articles for our Society's journal, On The Fringe. He also wrote for Wildflower Magazine and Explorer. Perry's botanical travels have taken him worldwide and he wrote articles about many of his trips. He created a book from the portion of his articles that were about Ohio and the Midwest. The book is called The Search for Lost Habitats.
Perry shared his love of nature with others, not only through his own writing, but also through the writing assignments he gave his students. Often he assigned his English students to take a walk and write about it. We are sure that he prompted many to see things in nature they never saw before.
So for a lifetime of interest in native plants and for sharing his knowledge with others, we are delighted to honor Perry with this first Gentian Award.
Congratulations Perry!
Gentian Award
For Dedication to the Native Plants of Ohio
Perry Peskin
2012
