St. Paul, MN (July 15, 1998)—"As a plant pathologist and an African American, I'm certainly honored to be a part of the same scientific discipline in which Dr. Carver trained and worked," said Robert L. Brown, USDA, New Orleans, LA.
"Carver possessed all of the natural components required for a great scientific career: a love of nature, an inquiring and talented mind, self discipline, a drive to excel in the face of great odds, and an excellent formal education. His life serves as a light to me, inspiring me to strive for excellence and truth in my work and in life in general."
Brown and many others working in the field of plant pathology credit this legendary man for inspiring and shaping their careers as plant doctors.
"George Washington Carver and Tuskegee Institute were instrumental in laying the foundations for most of what I have accomplished so far as a modern plant doctor," said Mervalin Morant, associate professor at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. "Dr. Carver's legacy as a scientist who devoted his life's work to Tuskegee Institute and to agriculture was instrumental in my decision to become a plant pathologist."
Dedicated to agricultural service, Carver strove "to be of the greatest good to the greatest number of my people." Through research on numerous plants, including peanuts and soybeans, he worked to improve the life of the southern farmer. Born into slavery near the end of the Civil war, he never knew his father and was separated from his mother as an infant. Raised on a farm by Moses and Susan Carver, he developed his love of plants and the inquiring mind that lead him through many obstacles to Iowa State where he received his masters degree in agriculture. Carver went on to Tuskegee Institute in Alabama where his dedication, profound religious faith and charismatic personality lead to his numerous contributions to agriculture. George Washington Carver will be honored this week with special celebrations on July 18 at the George Washington Carver National Monument in Missouri.
Herman Warren, Virginia VPI and State University, said, "there are two things on my wall office that I cherish, a picture of Carver and a quote. When I need inspiration, I study the face of an intelligent man and read quotes of an inquiring mind." As Carver stated in a 1923 New York City address, "How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in life you will have been all of these."
The 5,000 members of The American Phytopathological Society, America's plant doctors, salute this courageous, dedicated and inspirational man, George Washington Carver, a pioneering plant doctor for all peoples. The American Phytopathological Society is a professional scientific organization dedicated to the study and control of plant disease with more than 5,000 members worldwide. For more information, visit APSnet.
