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Alan Smith Heilman
1927 - 2017
Alan Smith Heilman
1927 - 2017
Obituary
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Alan Heilman Obituary
Maryville, TN
Alan Smith Heilman, Retired Professor of Botany at the University of Tennessee. Born December 23, 1927 in Pittsburgh, PA. Son of Harold and Beulah Heilman. Survived by his brother Richard and nephew David Heilman and niece Deborah Paulick and many grand nieces and nephews.
Alan attended schools in Dormont, PA where he developed a lifelong interest in microscopy and photography. After graduating from the University of Pittsburgh with BS and MS degrees in Botany he attended Ohio State University where he received his PhD. He joined the Botany Dept. at University of Tennessee in 1960 where he taught until his retirement in 1997.
His photographic works have been featured in exhibits at the McClung Museum and other venues and hundreds of his photographs have been archived by the University Library and they can be viewed at The Botanical Photography of Alan S. Heilman at the Library web site.
Alan participated as a speaker at the Great Smoky Mountain Spring Wildflower Pilgrimages over many years.
He recently lived at Shannondale of Maryville.
At Alan's request no visitation or memorial services are planned. Friends and family can leave their condolences at www.highlandmemorialknoxville.com
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
6 Entries
August 16, 2017
Alan Heilman was a great asset to the University of Tennessee, and I'm very glad that I knew him, first when as a teaching assistant in introductory botany courses headed by Alan, and later as a fellow leader at Wildflower Pilgrimages in the Great Smoky Mountains. In great contrast to stereotypical images of a teacher of introductory courses, Alan made this a dynamic and honorable specialty. He entered an introductory botany program that was much in need of revitalizing and updating, and provided exactly that kind of leadership. He rejected the comforts that adhering to the status quo might have offered a person less inclined to think for himself, and brought fresh insight to the introductory courses, incorporating modern methods and generally adapting them for the world of the future in which his the students would live. He provided the students not only with a thorough introduction to the basics of plant biology but also with an understanding of how this knowledge was relevant to world problems. He also superbly connected the plant sciences with fine art, making his audiences vividly aware of the beauty in biodiversity, and through that awareness better able to appreciate it and more concerned with its preservation. For years after my graduation, as long as he ws able to attend the Wildflower Pilgrimages, it was always a pleasure to see and talk with Alan there.
James S. Pringle
Ph.D., UTK Botany, 1963
July 13, 2017
It was a delight to serve on the board of the Great Smoky Mountains Conservation Association with Alan. His beautiful photos of wildflowers are a joy to behold.
Mary Kay Sullivan
Beth Mullin
July 5, 2017
Alan & I were colleagues in the Botany Department at the University of Tennessee for some 34 years. Over these years we had many lively and stimulating conversations and for the most part we agreed on things. Our one major disagreement centered on vegetables. I love vegetables, both raw and cooked; Alan couldn't tolerate them other than as important subjects of botanical inquiry. Over the years my husband and I have collected many of Alan's creative and beautiful botanical photographs that now adorn the walls of our home.
To Alan's family I can attest to the importance you played in his life. He so looked forward to his holiday visits home to Pittsburgh every year. I consider it a privilege to have known Alan both as a colleague and as a friend.
Robert Hutson
July 3, 2017
I knew Allen for many many years dating back to the 1960's. First as a friend of my fathers and later as my friend. I was pleased to be given the opportunity to work with him at the Annual Wildflower Pilgrimage for several years. He will be missed.
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July 3, 2017
David Dale Dickey
Karen Hughes
July 2, 2017
Alan was a friend and colleague for many years. He was also an incredible botanical photographer, capturing flowers in unique and fascinating ways. Some of his work hangs in my house and I am very glad that the library at the University of Tennessee archived his work and honored him a few years ago. We will miss him.
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