The Magnolia Society International members recently toured the Polly Hill Arboretum and held a special dinner to honor the arboretum’s director emeritus, Stephen A. Spongberg. He was presented the Todd D. Gresham award by the board of the society. The award was established in 1981 to recognize individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to the development, improved culture, increased knowledge and promotion of magnolias, or who have contributed outstanding service to the Magnolia Society.

Dr. Spongberg received his PhD in botany from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In 1970 he began his 28-year tenure at the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University. He was the editor of the prestigious Journal of the Arnold Arboretum for the final 12 years of its publication and he also authored a number of books, including A Reunion of Trees. In 1998 he joined the Polly Hill Arboretum as first director, serving for six years. He continues as an honorary board member, director emeritus and volunteer at the arboretum, where the Stephen A. Spongberg library was established in his honor in 2010.