Dr. Susan (Sue) Scott Martin, age 83, of Fort Collins, CO and Santa Fe, NM passed away peacefully on May 11, 2022 at Centre Avenue Health and Rehab in Fort Collins, CO. She was born in Paducah, KY to John Hudson Martin and Effie Hughes Martin on May 18, 1938. She is preceded in death by her parents, her longtime partner, Dr. Myrna P. Steinkamp of Fort Collins, CO, and her sister Margaret M. Stiffler of Tacoma, WA. Sue is survived by her brother John H. Martin, Jr. (Fay) of Harvard, MA, two nephews, Zack and Jared Martin, and partner Mary Anne Stein of Amarillo TX.
As a young woman, Sue (nicknamed Skip) participated in Girl Scouts and activities such as boating and ham radio. But it was through scouting that she joined several archaeological digs in New Mexico with a select Girl Scout group headed by Dr. Bertha P. Dutton, an anthropologist who specialized in the American Southwest at the Museum of New Mexico. This group of life-long scouting friends called themselves “Dutton’s Dirty Diggers.”
Sue went on to receive a B.A. in Chemistry from the University of Colorado-Boulder and an M.S. in Plant Biochemistry from Utah State University. In 1973 she earned a Ph.D. in Biology, specializing in plant biochemistry and chemical ecology, from the University of California-Santa Cruz under Dr. Jean Langenheim. For 28 years Sue was a scientist with the Agricultural Research Service in Fort Collins, Colorado focusing on the biochemistry, ecology, and physiology of sugar beets until her retirement in 2002. She was active in and served as president for the American Society of Sugar Beet Technologists, and was an instructor for the Beet Sugar Agriculture School of the Beet Sugar Development Foundation.
Sue loved botany and birding. For many years she was an eagle nest observer for the Colorado Department of Wildlife and an observer for the North American Breeding Bird Survey. Sue was a founding member of the Colorado Native Plant Society, served as President, and participated in the production of two editions of Rare Plants of Colorado. In 1988 the Society awarded her an Honorary Life Membership in recognition of her contributions to the knowledge and conservation of Colorado native plants. She was also a lifelong member of the California Native Plant Society and maintained memberships with the National Audubon Society, the American Birding Association, The Nature Conservancy, and the Museum Foundation of New Mexico.
Sue and Myrna maintained a second home in Santa Fe and looked forward to the Santa Fe Opera and Indian Market each year. They loved to travel and visited many parts of the world to pursue their shared interest in plants, birds, and archaeology. In her later years Sue continued to pursue her interests in southwestern archaeology and American Indian culture with Mary Anne. They also enjoyed Southwestern cooking and watching sports, especially college football and women’s college softball and basketball. Sue will be missed by her family and many friends.
Suggestions for donations in her memory are to the Colorado Native Plant Society, the Fort Collins Audubon Society, and the Museum Foundation of New Mexico.
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