By Ashley Martens
As I sit here writing this, the golden aspen leaves outside my window are quaking in the breeze in that magical way that captivates the eyes. Lynn would tell us not to focus on her, but to keep observing, keep appreciating Nature. So I continue to pause, look up and out at the autumn splendor, and think of her and her inspirational life of learning and service.
I knew Lynn as a student in my SAS birding classes and as a fellow naturalist, but I knew her first as a family friend. She and her husband John moved to Bozeman about a decade ago to be close to and support their son Aaron Mugaas, his wife Julie Kleine, and their growing family, all who happen to be our friends. We celebrated the Solstices as well as Thanksgiving together every year. Lynn never hesitated to share her gratitude for life during circle. She rarely drew attention to herself, but instead highlighted Nature and her grandchildren – the taste of a sweet cicely seed pod, a proud hike with her grandson, the sound of Sandhill Cranes calling, her granddaughter’s discovery of fairy slipper orchids, the sight of a chipmunk peering out from behind a rock.
Lynn Mugaas and Sherry Staub volunteer with the IAWP Busy Beavers (left to right)
Photo credit: Heather Priest
Lynn not only honored the natural world through sharing her observations, she also worked to conserve and restore it. Heather Priest, Education and Outreach Coordinator at the Gallatin Watershed Council, recently shared with me that Lynn, at age 80, was the most dedicated of volunteers in the Indreland Audubon Wetland Preserve (IAWP) Busy Beavers volunteer program. In fact, Heather reported, “This year she won the Name it and I’ll Be There award.” Over the past year and a half Heather watched Lynn attend every single event that was held. “Name it, and she was there. She pulled weeds in the hot sun.She traipsed through the wetland to collect groundwater data. She planted trees and lugged 5-gallon buckets full of water to nourish newly planted trees. She waded through streams to install beaver dams and kept our watershed clean through a variety of cleanup events.” Lynn offered service with a smile and Heather will always remember her welcoming, friendly face that eased her nerves when she spoke during events. “She showed up at every event with a great attitude, and with a big hug. She was a dedicated volunteer, a reliable friend. Lynn was a vertebrae in the backbone of our community, and although we will carry her spirit and dedication with us, she will be greatly missed.”
Lynn’s study and service to Nature did not begin in Bozeman. She was the first person in West Virginia, where she lived for 33 years, to become a fully certified Master Naturalist in 2005. She participated annually in Christmas Bird Counts, helped conduct state-wide dragonfly and damselfly surveys, assisted in conducting mammal surveys in the Cranberry Glades Wilderness, and for several years monitored a set of twelve Saw-whet Owl nest boxes. She carried her dedication with her to the Montana conservation community.
Lynn passed on the Autumnal Equinox, September 22, 2022. Her husband John wrote, “Today as the sun reached its zenith over the equator and transitioned into the southern hemisphere, changing our season, so also did Lynn reach the zenith of her life and transition into death, leaving in her wake a tidal wave of love and fond memories. In her niece Dee Dee’s yard, a plant that had been growing in her garden all summer, bloomed for the first time, and the evening primroses in our garden opened an exceptionally large number of blossoms; both fitting hurrahs for a life well lived.” Those were not the only plants that burst forth in Lynn’s honor. Within days of her death, Lynn’s friend, Hilary Johnson, shared with me “This spring she gave me starts and I was afraid they had not taken but yesterday I saw that they had come up. They will be a reminder of this friend of birds, people and the environment.” Hilary also reflected on the fun she had with Lynn driving to birding field trips and the Sacajawea Audubon Society’s Book Club meetings and her “gentle humor which was most often directed at herself or life’s foibles.”
Lynn was buried at Mountain View Cemetery in Dillon, MT, not far from her hometown of Wise River, on a beautiful autumn day. Unsurprisingly, it was important to her to have a green burial. She was the first person to be buried in the green burial section. Her gravesite has a great view of the southern end of the Pioneer Mountains where she adventured with her family and husband-to-be and the peaks that she has climbed: Baldy Mountain, Torry Mountain, and Tweedy Mountain. That section of the cemetery is not landscaped, but instead remains covered with native grass that were shining in autumn browns. John chuckled that he was “sure everyone found a few spear-grass seeds in their socks” after the service.
The wind continues to dance with the aspens outside my window, and leaves are fluttering softly to the ground. The cycle of death and rebirth continues, and Lynn’s choice of burial honors that cycle in her final offering of gratitude to the Earth.
Memorial donations can be made to Sacajawea Audubon Society and Gallatin Watershed Council.
