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Friends, naturally

by Sarah Chuby ’03

Plucking a yellow-flowered plant from the ground, JoAnn Hinds holds the tiny leaves in the sunlight. It’s the day before a special dedication ceremony at CMU’s Biological Station on Beaver Island.

“Yes, this is St. John’s Wort,” she says about the herb used in treating mood disorders. “You can tell because it has little holes in the leaves.”

Standing at the edge of Beaver Island’s Miller’s Marsh, Hinds, ’72 MS ’76, also points out an abandoned beaver dam,
a water snake, and a caterpillar on a purple milkweed plant.

“When I was doing my master’s thesis, my botany class got stranded on High Island for almost three days,” she says. High Island is part of the Beaver Island’s island chain. “While there, I ate this.”

Hinds says the class couldn’t take its boats back across the water because of a severe storm. But luckily, one of their professors was a botanist, so he showed them what they could eat.

“We collected milkweed buds. There is a trick to eating milkweed. You have to boil it and empty the water three times or it will be very bitter,” she says. “For those three days, we survived on a jar of peanut butter someone brought and boiling that milkweed.”

After Hinds shares her milkweed recipe, CMUBS Director Jim Gillingham, standing close by, chimes in.

“You can also eat the pod before it is dried up,” says Gillingham, watching the caterpillar crawl up the plant’s stem.

Hinds and Gillingham have been friends for more than a decade, and on this particularly special weekend, Hinds harbors a secret, something Gillingham is about to discover at the dedication of Beaver Island’s new academic center. Looking at Gillingham, she begins to laugh.

“How many friends can share milkweed recipes?” she asks.

Dedicated to the station

Hinds became reacquainted with CMU in the mid-1990s when Gillingham and College of Science and Technology’s Development Director Gail Moore stopped by Hinds’ Clinton Township business – Diamond Tool and Mold Company. They were trying to raise money to buy the 230-acre Miller’s Marsh, the largest and most diverse true marsh found on Beaver Island, for the biological station.

After letting her know of the biological station’s plans, Hinds wrote out a check for Miller’s Marsh then and there.

“I studied at Miller’s Marsh and I know what a wonderful place it is,” Hinds says. “I didn’t want someone else to buy it and put a house on the property.”

But another reason Hinds signed the check was Gillingham, who had been working in the biology department since 1976 and serving as the biological station director since 1985.

“I could see that he really lived and breathed the station,” she says. “I could completely understand that. I think anyone who has been on Beaver Island can.”

That was Hinds’ first contribution. Since then she has given $100,000 to help CMU purchase approximately three acres of land and a three-bedroom house adjoining CMU’s biological station and another $100,000 for the Whiskey Point boathouse, in addition to other contributions.

“She’s our No. 1 flag-bearer for the station,” says Gillingham, not anticipating the big announcement to come at the dedication. “She’s a biologist, and when she comes to the station, she wants to get out in the field. Her enthusiasm touches everyone who meets her.”

The moment of surprise

Gillingham and many other dignitaries and friends of Beaver Island attending the Saturday, July 14, dedication of the new 11,000-square-foot academic center expected the usual announcement – a name honoring the primary donor. Hinds, now the biological station’s largest individual private donor, had been given that opportunity to place her name on the building. She deferred.

“The center has exceeded all of my expectations,” Hinds says. “Without Jim’s passion and efforts, this project would have remained in my dreams … I have chosen to name it for Jim Gillingham, my friend and fellow biologist.”

Pending approval from the Board of Trustees, CMU’s new academic center on Beaver Island will be named the James C. Gillingham Academic Center. The center houses a modern lecture hall that seats 155; a media center with computer facilities; a library; three fully equipped, state-of-the-art laboratories; and a greenhouse, which is attached to one of the laboratories.

“CMU does not ordinarily name facilities in honor of faculty, staff, or other individuals,” says Michael Leto, CMU Vice President of Development and Alumni Relations. “We usually honor donors in this way to recognize their generosity.

“But rather than receive the honor herself, JoAnn chose to recognize Jim Gillingham in this way, with the enthusiastic support of the university.”

A look of surprise spread across Gillingham’s face, followed by tears. With Hinds’ urging, he walked up to the podium.

“I’ve never had anything like this happen to me,” Gillingham said, his voice cracking. “Give me a moment. ” Gillingham’s wife, Mary, and their two daughters, Lorrie and Jill, wiped the tears coming down their cheeks. In front of the crowd’s standing ovation, Gillingham looked over at Hinds.

“I’ve never been so surprised. I don’t know what to say. Thank you.”

Hinds: Passion for biology
rooted on Beaver Island

Although keeping a secret on their trip out to Miller’s Marsh the preceding day for publicity photos had been difficult, Hinds says it was well worth knowing that the center would be named after the man who in so many ways made it possible. Even though her career has taken her away from biology, she says she hasn’t lost her passion for the place that captivated her as a CMU student – the place so close to Gillingham’s heart.

After receiving her undergraduate and graduate degrees from CMU, Hinds taught science at Clifford Smart Junior High School in Walled Lake and at Linden Middle School. When she was laid off, Hinds returned to metro Detroit in 1982 and worked as a purchaser with her father’s Clinton Township company before becoming its leader.

“I continued to stay involved with biology though visiting Beaver Island and traveling,” Hinds says. “I’ve always said, “‘If I can’t work my love, I’ll vacation my love.’”

Hinds and her daughter, Kira Hinds, 26, also set goals for themselves when planning worldwide trips. They’ve seen the majority of the world’s 10 highest waterfalls by traveling to Venezuela, Norway, and Zimbabwe. And they want to see all of the species of penguins in the world.

“So far we’ve seen 11 out of 17 of the species,” Hinds says. “We still need to go to South Africa and the southern part of New Zealand.”

So where exactly did this love of nature come from? Just as her father showed her the ropes of his tool and die company, Hinds says he taught her about nature.

“My dad was a hunter. Starting about age 8, he would take me out and I would watch the ducks. When he’d bring the ducks home, I’d hold the ducks and help him clean them and get them ready to eat,” says Hinds, who grew up in Utica. “I was intrigued by their feathers and anatomy.”

Gillingham: Love for science
born in grade school

Around that same time in Wisconsin, near Lake Winnebago, Gillingham was learning about amphibians from his third grade school teacher, Miss Gransee.

“One lunch hour my teacher took me out to the woods near the school and we caught a tiger salamander and a Gardner snake,” Gillingham says. “We brought it back to the class and she let me tell the class about it. It just went from there. I’ve been catching frogs and snakes ever since.”

Gillingham says he contacted Miss Gransee recently.

“She is still alive and well,” he says. “I wrote her a letter and sent her pictures of the station, and she wrote me the greatest letter back. She also sent me two pictures of the whole class – with all the names. She remembered all our names.”

What about those frogs and snakes? Can you still catch them fast?

“I can catch them faster than about anybody,” Gillingham replies, with a smile. “No one sneaks up on them like I do. I get them when they least expect it.”

And so does Hinds. It’s just another trait these friends share. •

JoAnn Hinds, ’72 MS ’76, and CMU Biological Station Director Jim Gillingham have been friends for more than a decade. In July, they spent time at Miller’s Marsh, which Hinds helped purchase for the biological station.

At the new academic center dedication, Jim Gillingham is surprised that JoAnn Hinds opted to name the new academic center for him. The event attendees give both Hinds and Gillingham a standing ovation.

Biology instructor Dan Benjamin, far right, teaches BIO 100 students about aquatic life in Lake Michigan.

Students find a crawfish.

The new 11,300-square-foot academic center has a state-of-the-art media center, an auditorium, three laboratories, a library, and a greenhouse. It was dedicated July 14.