University of Denver Autumn 2024

NONPROFIT ORG US POSTAGE PAID DENVER CO 80226 PERMIT NO 321

2199 S. University Blvd. Denver, CO 80210-4711

ODDS & ENDS

A Jewel of Greenery

On Sept. 10, 1965, Lady Bird Johnson helped dedicate DU’s Mary Reece Harper Humanities Garden by planting a pin oak tree. Accompanying Johnson were her daughter, Lynda, then-University Chancellor Chester Alter and Heber Harper, a former DU chancellor who earlier that year had donated $100,000 for the creation of the garden, to be named for his mother, Mary Reece Harper. “And I am glad to know that the American student of tomorrow is not doomed to cement campuses,” Johnson said, “but will have always this jewel of greenery, flowing water and fountains set in the center of things.” The pin oak tree is located by Evans Chapel and is identified by a plaque on the ground at its base.