In Memoriam: Art Haines
Our friend and fellow member Art Haines passed away on April 17, 2004. Art was active until the last day of his life. He died of a heart attack in Long Beach while attending a jazz festival.
Art was born in the Yakima Valley in central Washington and grew up in Zillah. He attended Washington State University in Pullman and then Oregon State and became a science teacher of botany and biology. He was also a track coach and his Bellevue (Washington) High School track team won the State Championship in 1959, a very proud event in his life. He went on to teach at the newly started Bellevue Community College. He married Mabel, a friend and neighbor since childhood, in 1947 and they were married 51 years before her death in 1998.
Art was a long-time member of the Seattle Rhododendron Society and the Cascade Chapter. He loved gardening and many outdoors activities. He was also a member of the Arboretum Foundation, the Rhododendron Species Foundation, the Native Plant Society, and several other organizations.
His love for plants and the outdoors took him to Mt. Rainier many times for recreation and avocation. He was a ranger naturalist at the Sunrise Visitors Center for many summers, and his children inherited the love for the mountain and the outdoors as they spent their summers living on the mountain. Many of his students were inspired to continue on in science, teaching and environmental careers. Art didn't just teach in the classroom. He took his students on trips throughout the Northwest, British Columbia, and even Hawaii.
Art loved to propagate rhododendrons, especially species, in his garden overlooking Lake Sammamish. He participated in the plant sale at the 1999 Bellevue ARS Convention.
Art was survived by his brother Clyde, a son and two daughters, and eight grandchildren. He will be missed by family and many friends and former students. Remembrances may be made to The Rhododendron Species Foundation, The Cascade Chapter, and to The Mt. Rainier National Park, Art Haines Memorial for Education and Interpretation Fund, Ashford, WA.