Our Mushroom Maven is honored

Vera and her dedicated assistant, Karen Schoen

Passion. Commitment. Dedication. Love. All these words and more describe the relationship Vera Evenson, Curator of Denver Botanic Garden’s fungal herbarium, has with the most elusive of kingdoms. And yet, few know quite how remarkable this woman is. Vera recently received a distinguished award from the North American Mycological Association in honor of her 30+ years of dedication and expertise in the field.  As the manager of one of the largest and best curated collection of Rocky Mountain fungi in existence and author of the definitive guide, Mushrooms of Colorado, Vera is widely known for her service and her expertise that has developed since she began working at the Gardens as a volunteer. A farm girl, raised in a valley outside of Bozeman, Montana, Vera Stucky attended a one-room school house where few thought of going to college. And yet, encouraged by teachers and mother (who was also a school teacher), Vera earned both a bachelor’s degree in Botany and Bacteriology and a Masters Degree in Microbiology, even being awarded a Fulbright scholarship to study in Germany.

And yet, when asked about her greatest accomplishment, she names raising her children first. She jokes, “Kenny (her husband) used to say that I had a doctorate in Macrobiology [with the babies]!” Vera still lives in the house they built together on 5 acres in the Poorman area near Boulder, Colorado. 

Interestingly, it is her children who unknowingly led her to the field of mycology through specimens they brought to her from the forest. She showed them to the mushroom expert at Denver Botanic Gardens, Dr. Sam Mitchel, who made the smart move of recruiting her to be a volunteer one day a week–a position she held at the Gardens for 13 years. When Sam was forced to retire in 1990 due to declining health, he recommended Vera as his replacement. Sadly, Sam passed three years later, but left a legacy of his collection at the Gardens and in his prodigy, Vera. Since that time she has been the president of the Colorado Mycological Society, has authored two books on mushrooms, and published several scientific papers with collaborators.  

Today, Vera is a highly respected member both of her mountain and mycological communities. In the Poorman area in Colorado, Vera is the “Communications Diva” of the volunteer fire department, dispatching the units when emergency calls and helping to organize the various annual social events put on by the department. 

Within the world of mycology, Vera is considered one of the foremost experts on Rocky Mountain fungi and gave one of the main addresses at the North American Mycological Association (NAMA) national meeting in Idaho, a “foray” (mushroom collecting trip) dedicated to her mentor, the highly acclaimed mycologist Orson Miller who passed on in June 2006. Dr. Miller said of Vera, “She (exemplifies) the outstanding type of interaction with both amateur mycologists and the public in general which a teacher can exhibit.”  Vera was surprised to be honored at this event.

The title of her presentation was “The little herbarium that could: Sam Mitchel’s Colorado dream lives on.” And certainly it could and does, thanks to the tireless and talented efforts of its devoted curator, Vera Evenson.  

Denver Botanic Gardens’ Mycological Herbarium is open to the public by appointment. Contact information can be found on our Web site.