Steven Mclaughlin

MCLAUGHLIN, Steven

71, died at home in Santa Fe, NM, on December 29, 2019. He had lived with prostate cancer since 2003 and with metastatic prostate cancer since 2014.In 2007 Steve and his wife retired to Owens Valley, CA, where they lived southwest of the small town of Big Pine until 2019. In retirement, Steve finally had time to direct his long-standing interest in conservation into practical activity. He served on the board of directors of Friends of the Inyo, as president of the Bristlecone Chapter of the California Native Plant Society, and as a member of the Owens Lake Planning Committee. He gladly shared his knowledge of local flora and fauna and was a popular leader of botanical and birding field trips in Owens Valley and Mono Basin.Steve earned his Bachelor of Science at the University of Washington in Seattle and his Doctor of Philosophy in Botany at the University of Arizona. He spent his entire career at the University of Arizona, where he taught courses in crop ecology, economic botany, and plant systematics. He also served as curator of the herbarium. His main areas of research were drug discovery and new-crop development, particularly fiber crops that could be used in making specialty papers. On the side, he compiled a number of local floras. Alone or with others, he authored more than a hundred scientific publications and presentations.Steve is survived by his wife, Janice Bowers; his mother and father, Gloria and Winfred McLaughlin; his brothers, Gary and Scott McLaughlin; his stepdaughter, Heather Urry, and her husband, Bryan Clapper; his step-grandson, Kyle Clapper; his sisters-in law, Vici McLaughlin and Judy Bowers; his brother-in-law, Stan Book; his nephews, Bryan McLaughlin and Vaughn Book and his nieces, Kelsey McLaughlin and Jennifer Hudson; as well as four great-nieces and four great-nephews.