Frank B. Feather

FEATHER-Frank B. Feather passed away on June 5, 2009 doing what he liked best: gardening, potting plants, and teaching a young gardener the techniques of irrigating the yard from the acequia bordering his home in the northwest valley. His health had been failing since his retirement from the University of New Mexico in 1989 where he was horticulturalist at the Physical Plant Department for twenty-five years. He was born in Mesilla Park on Oct. 28, 1927 to Ilka Howells Feather and George Adlai Feather. He attended Tulane University for one year and then returned to his family's Mesilla Park Plant Farm and nursery. Eight years later, he moved up river to Socorro to assist in the development of the grounds at New Mexico Institute of Technology. In 1959, he returned to Las Cruces and completed his BS degree in Biology at New Mexico State University while he served as superintendent of grounds on campus. In 1964, he came to Albuquerque with his wife, Virginia Feather, and son, Tolbert V. Feather. From 1968-70, he was on loan to North Carolina State University's mission to Lima, Peru where he worked as an advisor to set up a Physical Plant Department on campus at the Universidad de Agricultura. He retired from consulting in 2008. He was active in Rotary for many years, served as trustee for Los Ranchos Village, and served on the board of the American Society of Consulting Arborists. He shared with others his love for gardening by teaching evening gardening classes for Continuing Education, and remained on call for the Los Ranchos Village as a horticultural consultant. He was musically inclined as a young man playing the oboe and English horn with the El Paso Symphony Orchestra. Always interested in the best of foods, he pickled his cucumbers and hot peppers and shared his products and floral abundance with friends and the public. He was preceded in death by his parents, his older sister, Ilka Minter, and his younger sister, Mary Campbell. He is survived by his middle sister, Gertrude Anderson who lives in England. He is also survived by his wife of fifty-eight years, Virginia Lyon Feather, his son, Tolbert V. Feather, his daughter-in-law, Maria Barbosa, and his granddaughters, Claudia Nogueira and Cristina Feather. Private services were held on Tuesday at the Daniels Family Funeral Home at Cedar and Coal Avenues with plans for a memorial in the near future. If desired, donations may be sent in Frank's name to the Red Cross for whom he spent many years volunteering as a first aid teacher. Services have been entrusted to: Daniels Family Funeral Services 1100 Coal Ave SE Albuquerque, NM 87106 505-842-8800