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BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – Hilda White got the birthday present of a lifetime– a plant named after her.
The 95-year-old has been volunteering at the University of Vermont Herbarium for close to 30 years.
A few years ago, UVM Professor Wes Testo came upon a fern in Colombia that he had never seen. After more research, UVM determined it was new to science. It’s also a Christmas fern.
They decided to honor White with the name Polystichum hildae.
“Oh, ah, absolutely blown away. You can imagine, I cried all afternoon,” White said. “Nobody else gets a birthday present like that.”
Hear more about White’s story on Friday on Channel 3. She’s this week’s Super Senior.
Usually our Super Seniors air on Thursday, but because of Christmas, you can see her story on Friday morning and evening.
And WCAX has something super special planned for the holiday– the annual Super Senior Special. Catch that at 11 p.m. on Christmas Eve and again at 5:30 p.m. on Christmas.
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