P-G: Obituary: Mary L. Alleman / Leading maize scientist at Duquesne University

NOTE: Dr. Alleman was a Mt. Lebanon resident. The family and friends of Mary Alleman, associate professor of biological sciences at Duquesne University, can only assume the yellow cornfields sprawling across her small Illinois hometown sparked a fascination with the plant.

Ms. Alleman became a leading scientist in the field of maize genetics and a professor who demanded the most from her students and colleagues.

"The first plant that was really studied in any detail was maize," said her colleague David Lampe, an associate professor of biological sciences. "It has a really, really long history of people working on this, and she was really good at it."

Read the full article:

• www.post-gazette.com/stories/local/obituaries/obituary-mary-l-alleman-leading-maize-scientist-at-duquesne-university-640212/ (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Carpe Diem!

A fine man and a wise soul was honored this morning. The soccer pitch in Bird Park will hereafter be known as John Doctor Field, in honor of the coach, parent, and volunteer who was remembered with characteristic affection and humor by friends, colleagues, and family.

The calling of any and every teacher is to change the lives of students, wherever those students are found: in classrooms, families, community organizations, congregations, even companies. Many teachers inspire in this generation but are forgotten in the next. The naming of the field assures that along with the other gifts that he gave to the world, John Doctor will touch the lives of generations to come. All of us who give our time to families and communities other than our own do so because we want to change the world in large and small ways. For all of the tragedy of his passing, John was the uncommon wit who succeeded. This morning's testimony was and is evidence of that, if any were needed.

To the rest of us: Carpe Diem! Seize the day! Few of us will be so fortunate ever to witness another event like we saw this morning, let alone to be the subject of one. But we can hope, and if we needed encouragement to push ourselves in that direction, we got some: Of the many remarkable stories shared this morning, the most inspirational may have been the least original, precisely because it captured so much of what John Doctor meant to so many people. It was a brief poem read by Alan Russell, Executive Director of the Pittsburgh Tissue Engineering Initiative. (Alone among all those in attendance, he and his family wore Doctor-appropriate dress: soccer jerseys!) The poem consists of what have come to be called the Paradoxical Commandments, sometimes attributed to Mother Teresa but attributed at this website to one Kent Keith. The Mother Teresa version begins this way:

People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you. Be honest and sincere anyway.
What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight. Create anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, will often be forgotten. Do good anyway.

Thanks to Lee Adams for his hard work in assembling this morning's program and for collaborating with Brian Luchini, Boy Scout Troop 284, who led volunteers in installing the memorial landscape and hardscape as part of Brian's Eagle Scout service project. Lee is also producing a documentary film memorial on John's life. Look for it in the months ahead on Mt. Lebanon public access television.

Below, I've reproduced the program from the ceremony, so that you can see the breadth of the communities that John touched and the depth of the commitment that he inspired. Click on each image for an enlarged version.

Soccer Community, Conservationists Honor John Doctor

Mt. Lebanon officials Saturday will dedicate a soccer field they renamed for a Duquesne University professor who fought to preserve a nature park while promoting the playing of soccer there.

It is a fitting tribute to a man who could bring together groups as diverse as soccer fans and conservationists, those who knew John Doctor said.

"John was the bridge between these two interests," said Lee Adams, his friend of about eight years.

Link: www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/southwest/s_586048.html

John Doctor Field Dedication Coming Up

The official dedication of the John Doctor Field at Bird Park is set for 10 a.m. Sept. 6. The soccer field, located off Beadling Road directly across from Markham School, has been renamed in honor of Mr. Doctor, who died suddenly of heart disease at age 49 in 2005 .

Mr. Doctor volunteered in many community organizations, but he gave much of his time to the Mt. Lebanon Soccer Association and the Mt. Lebanon Nature Conservancy -- two groups that hold Bird Park dear.

The ceremony will include a number of town leaders, including Commission President Dale Colby, state Sen. John Pippy, R-Moon, and state Rep. Matt Smith, D-Mt. Lebanon.

The event will be filmed for cable television, and the public is invited to share memories of Mr. Doctor for a film crew after the dedication.

From the Post-Gazette

John was one of the very first people I met when our family moved to Mt. Lebanon in 1998, and I can still picture him standing alone, quietly, on the other side of the soccer field as his daughter AJ tore up the pitch for the Lebo Cup soccer team that I coached. I've had this date circled in red for a long time. It will be a bittersweet celebration.