You may have seen him walking around campus and the Orono area. Edward Grew has amassed somewhat of a reputation as ‘the walking man’ due to his (weather permitting) daily walks.
“I used to walk everyday — a fairly substantial walk. I usually walked in the morning. I started regular walks before I came to Maine, since the early 80s and even late 70s, I did a daily walk,” Grew said.
He talked about how the walk was primarily for exercise, but also was encouraged by natural beauty. Part of his motivation for walking early in the morning is that it is the best time of day to watch and listen to the birds.
At his age, Grew has developed Parkinson’s Disease which has “slowed him up,” in his own words.
When asked if he still enjoyed the walking he said, “not as much because I go very slowly, and also it’s a lot more effort.”
But regardless, he keeps with his tradition. He continues to walk daily. Even in the winter when it is dangerous for him to walk, he stays at the Black Bear Inn and walks indoors instead.
This is where most people’s perceptions of Grew end: he is a friendly face seen around campus, a nice consistency in people’s daily routines and a testament to the value of exercise and movement. However, there is a lot more to Grew.
“When I first came, I did mostly research. Then, beginning in the early 2000s, I started to take up students and had one or two in the Masters Program doing research on my material,” he said.
Grew’s research and involvement in the field of geology has been historic. He has travelled to Antarctica nine times, beginning in 1972. One of his expeditions was over a year long.
“I helped the department financially in various ways. I set up a fund which provided support for students to attend field camp.”
In the Earth and Climate Sciences, students are required to take a field course somewhere. Many students cannot afford this expensive endeavor and Grew set up a fund which gave a few students every year support in their education.
This past Wednesday, a student from the class of 2019 was back at the university and thanked Ed for what his support had allowed him to do,
“[He] told me how much the scholarship he had gotten for field camp had paved the way for a career in a state government office tending to environmental issues,” said Grew.
Grew’s support goes beyond just the administration of the School of Earth and Climate Sciences; it extends to the undergraduates involved.
He has not only left impacts on previous students whom he mentored or supported, but on other researchers in his field. A Russian couple, both geologists, who had a relationship with Grew, decided to name a mineral after him; Edgrewite. Despite this incredible fact, I asked Grew if he was still happy to be known as “the walking guy.”
“Yes,” he replied, “it’s very important.”
“I am on the board of three different journals, so I review their work.” In the next couple of weeks, for his 80th birthday, a volume of the British journal: Mineralogical Magazine will publish a piece of work which he has co-authored, appearing in the volume with another 15-20 papers. Grew and I agreed that this will be a nice birthday gift.
“That work receives more recognition abroad, whereas the people and faculty here would see less of the contributions I make to reviewing and processing manuscripts.” Grew makes both recommendations and edits to the works of other authors abroad. He has learned to read in multiple other languages and to speak conversationally in Russian in order to help other scholars and engage in the literature. He has been at the University of Maine for over 40 years, so his contributions to it and the wider scientific community are difficult to to capture.
Grew is a very humble person. In speaking with him, he would refer to his accomplishments in a very matter-of-fact way and would not dwell on them for very long. You may not know it by seeing him walking on the side of the road, but he is a truly incredible person. He has changed the university’s Earth and Climate Sciences program and the field itself through his work, dedication and support for others.
