Verna Dunbar
October 23rd, 1962 – July 19th, 2025
Over 35 years, Verna Dunbar, our beloved employee, was woven into the fabric of Archbold. Starting with Archbold on June 11th, 1990, Verna always took pride in her contributions to the organization. Throughout the decades she remained forever loyal, reliable, dependable, hard-working, discreet, steady, kind, and caring. Always unassuming, Verna would prefer to merge into the background, not drawing any attention to herself. However, when you spoke with Verna, and said a friendly hello, there was a lovely flash of a smile, happy recognition, and an eagerness to talk for a few minutes.
Intensely private, Verna knew so much more about all of us than we knew about her. She quietly observed. She knew our hours, our moods, how tidy or messy we were, and what was going on in our lives and in the lives of our families. Board members always expressed deep gratitude for Verna and how nicely she prepared their accommodations and made sure everything was ‘just right’ for them. She watched and followed the rhythm of Archbold and its people. She took time to reach out personally to those facing hard times or sadness. Sometimes we would get a glimpse of Verna’s private life – a photo on the kitchen wall of her all dressed up for an event, at church, and her fabulous outfits at Archbold Christmas parties. If we were lucky, she would share some details of her family, whom we largely knew from her nicknames such as Pooh Bear, Boogaloo, and Pokey. Her ever-dazzling, impressive hair styles were one window into her life, and always a big fashion lift to the bright, colorful yet sensible, comfy scrubs that were her distinctive everyday wear at Archbold.
Verna went through many transitions at Archbold and some of them were hard for her. In the 1990s she was part of a big crew of cooks and housekeepers, cooking three meals a day, bustling with hymn-singing, with happy chatter floating out of the kitchen. We remember them attending a vegetarian cooking class on the east coast, and coming back in stitches of laughter, with tales of how they learned to cook tofu. Later there were years with the inseparable team of Judy Maynard and Verna: they drove together to and from Sebring, always arriving at 6AM and leaving at 2PM. She was so sad when Judy retired, and we were very grateful that Verna continued and stayed with Archbold.
Verna never described herself as ‘the cook’, but boy could she cook! We will all hold onto fond taste and smell memories of Verna’s treats, like her pineapple upside-down cake, brownies, and banana bread. She was among the best, if not the best, at putting the devil in devilled eggs. Her vegetarian lasagna is legendary, although to our amazement she never ate it. In the kitchen Verna was an anchor for generations of Archbold interns who appreciated her kind and friendly presence, giving them something of a feeling of home.
Despite working so hard to keep us biologists clean and presentable, forever sweeping behind us as we trailed in sand on our boots, our studies caused considerable concern for Verna. Although she loved nature, she had an intense dislike of lots of the creatures we work on, among them snakes, lizards, and bugs. Despite scary creatures as a source of anxiety, she always managed to hold it together. Goodness knows what stories she told about Archbold at home! One of our fondest memories of Verna is when she joined Judy Maynard with Joe Guthrie to observe a black bear capture. The photos at the capture, bear anaesthetized in the background, show her as wary, yet brave, delighted, and proud to have been invited.
We held a small celebration at Archbold on June 20th, 2025, to honor Verna’s thirty-five years at Archbold. She wasn’t someone who liked any fuss, but it was important for us to share our memories and how much she meant to us. We hope she felt the deep love for her in the room.
Verna’s sudden passing on July 19th, 2025, was a colossal shock to our community. We will plant a tree here at Archbold in her honor. She made a huge difference in the lives of hundreds of people at Archbold. She was always here for our community, an integral part of the fabric of Archbold, and now that she is not, we are all going to miss her so very much.
Hilary Swain
Executive Director
July 24, 2025