Tiffany, Lois Hattery 1924-2009

TIFFANY, HATTERY, BROWN, DAY, ROBERTS-DAY

Posted By: Volunteer Transcriber
Date: 4/4/2014 at 16:18:37

Lois Hattery Tiffany, 85, of Ames, died Sunday, Sept. 6, 2009. A memorial service and celebration of her life will be at 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 19, at the Iowa Arboretum in Luther. This will include a potluck dinner, with the main course of lasagna provided, to be served starting at 5 p.m. The program will begin at 6:30 p.m. People are welcome to come just for the program, if they prefer. For questions concerning the service, please contact Lynn Clark at lgclark@iastate.edu or Jean Day at jeantday@gmail.com .

Lois Hattery Tiffany was born March 8, 1924, on a farm near Collins, to Charles and Blanche (Brown) Hattery. She married F. H. (Hank) Tiffany May 16, 1945.

Held in high regard by the public as “Iowa’s Mushroom Lady,” and known by many students, colleagues and friends as “Dr. T,” she was the matriarch of the Botany (and more recently, Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology) Department at Iowa State University. She joined the faculty of the Botany Department in 1950, served as department chair from 1990 to 1996, and was named as distinguished professor in 1994.

Dr. Tiffany’s degrees were all from Iowa State University: Bachelor of Science in 1945, Master of Science in 1947, and Ph.D. in 1950.

Dr. Tiffany taught mycology and field botany courses, both at ISU and Iowa Lakeside Laboratory. She advised many hundreds of undergraduate students and was the major professor or committee member for numerous graduate students. Many of the graduate students she mentored have added greatly to the field of mycology in teaching and research.

Her research, although mainly focused in Iowa, was broad in scope, and included studies of fungal diseases of native prairie plants in Iowa, a 10-year survey of Iowa’s morels, and a study of the fungus flora of Big Bend National Park, to name just a few of her projects.

She served in numerous capacities in leadership and service within and beyond ISU, including leadership in various ISU committees at all levels, the Iowa Academy of Science, the Mycological Society of America, the American Phytopathological Society, the Iowa Natural History Association, and other organizations.

Survivors include two sons, Ray Tiffany, of Ames, and David Tiffany, of Cheney, Wash.; one daughter, Jean (Steve) Day, of New Providence; grandchildren, Chelsea Tiffany, Colin (Jennifer) Day, Brian (Sarah) Day, Owen (Natalie) Roberts-Day and Andrea Tiffany; and one great-granddaughter, Isabelle Day.

She was preceded in death by her parents, husband, and one grandson, Glenn Day.

Memorials may be made to the Lois H. Tiffany Scholarship Fund, in care of the Iowa State University Foundation, 2505 University Blvd., Ames, IA, 50010. ~ THE AMES TRIBUNE, Ames, Story County, Iowa, Friday, September 11, 2009.