I was pleasantly surprised at the Christmas potluck to see a sea of unknown faces. I never imagined the Bakersfield Club could be so successful. My lack of optimism stems from experience. As Herb Thorne expressed it in a recent election appeal in the Fresno Club:

I'm always happy to be needed, but it is also great when things carry on.

But, to go back to the beginning, after BHS and BC, I finished a BA in field biology at UCSB and married Polly in 1964. In 1965 we joined the Peace Corps and served 3 1/2 years in Malawi. We returned to Bakersfield in May of 1969 and our older son John was born in June.

Then it was off to Chapel Hill, No. Carolina where I received an MSPH in parasitology from UNC in 1970. Next was New York City where I got a PhD in parasitology from NYU (Thesis on Malaria) in 1974.

I taught at the University of Malawi (1976-1981) and National Univ. of Lesotho (1983-1989). James was born in Malawi and started school in Lesotho. I served as head of Natural History at the Botswana National Museum from 1989 to 1996.

In 1996 we returned to Bakersfield and a new Cactus Club was started. I taught at San Joaquin Valley College and Taft College. Then in 2001 I returned to the museum in Botswana and will probably be there for another 1 1/2 years.

Why do I write letters? Ego? To keep in contact? [Please feel free to comment on what I write.] To help explain where some of these weird succulents come from? To inspire future workers? Just because! It's a bit of all of the above.