Join Sterling Morton Library collections manager Rita Hassert and naturalist Cindy Crosby for a May Theilgaard Watts Tribute Tea.
Watts was The Morton Arboretum’s first educator and the catalyst behind the Illinois Prairie Path. She was a prairie advocate, writer, artist, and activist—an inspiration to conservationists today. Enjoy hearing readings from her books and highlights from her life as you kick off February with refreshments and socializing with friends.
The Sterling Morton Library is the repository for much of Watts’ extensive artwork, which will be on display during the tea.
This program meets in person at the Arboretum.
Instructors: Cindy Crosby, author and naturalist, and Rita Hassert, collections manager, Sterling Morton Library, The Morton Arboretum
Age: 16 and older
Course number: N230
Instructors
Cindy Crosby, author and naturalist
Cindy Crosby is the author, compiler, or contributor to more than 20 books, including The Tallgrass Prairie: An Introduction, co-author of Tallgrass Conversations: In Search of the Prairie Spirit, and author of Chasing Dragonflies: A Natural and Cultural History (Northwestern University Press, 2020). She is a prairie steward at the Arboretum’s Schulenberg Prairie and Nachusa Grasslands, and she coordinates dragonfly monitoring programs at both sites. She earned a master’s degree in natural resources at University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point. She blogs each week at Tuesdays in the Tallgrass, and teaches natural history and trains naturalists in the Chicago region. Learn more on her website.
Rita Hassert, collections manager, Sterling Morton Library, The Morton Arboretum
Holding an MS in library and information science from the University of Illinois, Rita Hassert has been on the staff of the Sterling Morton Library since 1986. An avid gardener and researcher, she is keenly interested and engaged in the intersection of gardens, people, information, community, art, plants, technology, and libraries. Founder of the library’s book discussion group, Leafing Through the Pages, and coordinator of the Arboretum’s Chamber Concerts series, she believes in the profound impact of The Morton Arboretum.
What to Know
This program meets indoors.
Materials for taking notes may be useful.
Program Schedule
Monday, February 2, 2026, 10:00 to 11:30 a.m.
Cudahy Room, Administration and Research Center (parking lot P-1), East Side
