Dorothy Blanchard

Dorothy has attended many events I have been a part of over the years. She read one of her beautiful poems on our bus tour last year. We all enjoyed her sense of humor and sensitivity.

Dorothy Blanchard was a dedicated lover of nature, an ardent environmentalist, an accomplished poet and a truly gentle person. I enjoyed teaming with her to present "Night of the Amphibians" at the Gerald E. Eddy Discovery Center. I will remember her each time I hear the frogs call in spring. She will be missed.

Tom Hodgson, (Chelsea, MI)

I had the privilege of knowing Dorothy and helping her with the family genealogy. This allowed me to learn about a very interesting family. The death of her father, Frank Nelson Blanchard in 1937 changed the family structure and as the oldest child, Dorothy was extremely helpful to her Mother Freida Cobb Blanchard. sister and brother. Her interest in nature was a direct result of living with scientific parents. She will be remembered as a Science guide through the Ann Arbor Public schools for many years. She was especially interested in the Botanical Gardens as she was raised near them, but she was equally adept in the Waterloo nature preserve. Her own backyard was a natural habitat with native plants and animals. I will miss our talks and sharing.

I met with Dorothy in October. She had an old camera that she wanted to pass along to me. When I stopped by to pick it up she told me she bought it in the 1950s to take nature photos. Her enthusiasm for nature was clear from all the articles, photos and notes she had saved. She was very proud that Blanchard's cricket frog was named to honor her father Frank, a herpetologist.

A couple weeks later I returned with film loaded into her old Exakta. As I was photographing her looking out of the living room window she began reciting a poem from memory. The poem was about nature and the delicacy and beauty of snowflakes. On November 23, Dorothy's home town of Dexter MI got its first snowfall of the season.