Southern Appalachian Botanical Society
RICHARD AND MINNIE WINDLER AWARD

The Richard and Minnie Windler Award was established in 1990 at the annual meeting of the SABS by Dr. Donald R. Windler of Towson University as a memorial to his parents.  The award is presented annually to the author or authors of the best systematic botany paper published in Castanea during the previous year.  The eligible papers may fall into the broad area of plant systematics, including floristic, experimental, revisionary, and nomenclatural studies.  Each year the recipients of the award receive a framed certificate and a monetary prize.  The monies are provided by an endowment managed by the society.  The papers receiving the award are chosen by a committee comprised of  Castanea systematic botany editors after they have completed their terms as editors.

Richard  H. W.  Windler (1907-1985) and  Minnie Hanenberger  (1913-1989) were born and raised on farms near the small town of New Minden, Washington County, Illinois.  They were baptized, confirmed and married in St. Johns Lutheran Church in that town.  In his late teens,  Richard  worked for the Caterpillar Tractor Company  in Peoria, Illinois and later  worked  as a foreman in the construction of highways in Illinois.    Minnie worked as a domestic in  St. Louis, Missouri during  the depression.  After they married  in 1938, Richard opened a dealership for Gambles-Skogmo, a store that sold auto parts, appliances and an array of  tools and hardware in Nashville, Illinois.  The couple had five children: Donald in 1940, Janet in 1943, Audrey in 1946, Sharon in 1949, and Cindy in 1953.  Richard and Minnie were raised in an agricultural setting and after moving to Nashville continued an interest in plants, gardening every year until they were physically unable to do so.

Richard and Minne Windler Award Winners

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Southern Appalachian Botanical Society