Shinners Society Members

Mary P. Barkley and Theodore M. Barkley

Dr. Tony Burgess

Mr. William R. Burk

Ms. Kay Casey

Mrs. Marie Louise Cole

Mr. Carroll W. Collins

Tammie and Calvin Crole

George M. Diggs, Jr.

Karen Marie Foley

Carol and Jerry Hendrix

Sarah D. Hultmark and Gordon Hultmark

Ms. Joann Karges

Dr. Marilyn C. Marynick

Mrs. Ruth Andersson May

Ann and Tim McKinney

Mr. and Mrs. Ray Mercado

Capt. Robert J. O'Kennon

Mary G. Palko

Dr. and Mrs. Edward D. Richardson

Mrs. Jane Romine

Dr. Stella M. Schmittner

Mr. and Mrs. Tim Sear

Sara and Sy Sohmer

Richard D. Steed, Jr.

Dr. and Mrs. George C. Sumner

Miss Janie G. Thannisch

Mr. Vernon L. Wesby

Shinners Society

Leave your own Legacy by joining BRIT's Shinners Society and protecting the future of the Botanical Research Institute of Texas .  This special group of individuals has included the Botanical Research Institute of Texas in their estate plans.

As well as furthering BRIT programs through your estate planning, Shinners Society members also are included in a unique core of BRIT supporters that meets annually at an exclusive fall dinner.  Shinners Society members are also invited on special events throughout the year.

Including the Botanical Research Institute of Texas in your estate plan will not only assist you in reaching and achieving your own philanthropic and charitable giving goals, it will also allow the Botanical Research Institute of Texas to continue its mission of deepening our knowledge of the plant world and achieving public understanding of the value plants bring to life.

BRIT welcomes undesignated bequest. This allows flexibility to meet changing needs of the organization. When including BRIT in your will, we recommend that you consider using the specific bequest language. Please contact Tammie Crole for more details.

If you have BRIT in your estate plan, you are eligible for membership in the Shinners Society.  You may download the Shinners Society form and then mail it to BRIT.  For more information, please contact the Development Department at 817.332.4441.

Shinners Society Dinners

BRIT holds an annual dinner to recognize those individuals who have included BRIT in their estate plans. During this special evening, a distinguished guest speaker is invited to share a brief presentation. 

Shinners Society Trip to London

BRIT 2007 Shinners Society trip to the Chelsea Flower Show and London Gardens in England. This was a one-of-a-kind trip in which they visited the VIP herbarium and toured the Royal Botanic Gardens (Kew), the Chelsea Flower Show, and spent a day at Wakehurst Place–the country garden of Kew and visited many more exciting garden exhibits and tours. 

Lloyd Herbert Shinners

Lloyd H. Shinners, a member of the Southern Methodist University faculty and director of the Herbarium at SMU (now at BRIT) from 1947–1971, was “one of the strongest and most interesting workers in the entire field of systematic botany in the United States.  He championed the cause of Botany, particularly at SMU where as professor for twenty-five years and almost single-handedly developed and maintained the herbarium and systematics library.  read more