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Otis Douglas Brown Hyde ’33

Otis Douglas Brown Hyde 鈥�33, March 19, 2009, in Tacoma, Washington. Otis was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and grew up in Idaho and Oregon. She attended Reed for a year and received a bachelor's degree, summa cum laude, from the University of Washington. A birder, horticulturalist, and master gardener, Otis founded the Native Species Garden at Point Defiance Park in Tacoma and the Otis Douglas Hyde Herbarium at the University of Washington. She supported the arts in the Pacific Northwest, including the Tacoma Art Museum, the Joffrey Ballet, the Seattle Symphony, and the Seattle Opera. She was a lifelong learner, who made a thorough study of the culture, flora, and fauna of a particular region before traveling there. 鈥淎unt Otie,鈥� as she was affectionately called, shared her vast knowledge and extensive collections of furniture, porcelain, and native and ornamental plants with family and friends. She and her husband, Charles Henry Hyde, to whom she was married for 52 years, enjoyed taking horticultural and birding classes at the University of Washington and traveled abroad extensively. Survivors include two daughters, one son, seven grandchildren, and her brother.

Appeared in Reed magazine: August 2009