As both a colleague and friend, I had the privilege of witnessing Aaron’s remarkable contributions to our field over more than two decades. Many of you knew Aaron and his uplifting, positive presence. He was kind and encouraging – a joy to be around – and a tremendous runner. He ran the Kentucky Bourbon Chase with the AST/PRI team on multiple occasions, and the team’s performance was notably better on those occasions!
Aaron had been associated with environmental restoration and remediation in various roles for over 20 years. He envisioned and pioneered the use of molecular biology tools in environmental remediation long before techniques like fatty acid charact
erization, quantitative PCR, and Next-Generation sequencing were available as services. He encouraged us to pursue and integrate insights gained from these techniques in development and field application. His advocacy for molecular biology in remediation was not uniquely shared with us at RPI; Aaron was a consistent advocate throughout the industry.
While there was more to Aaron’s life than work, over the years, Aaron was a great supporter of RPI and our technologies. His insights improved our remediation efforts, and those insights contributed to the restoration of thousands of acres in the U.S. and around the world. Aaron’s deep personal faith permeated his approach to both life and work, and even in his final days, he found hope in his belief that meaningful work continues beyond this life.
Aaron’s legacy lives on not only in his technical contributions to our industry but also in the countless people he mentore
d along the way. His combination of technical excellence, generous spirit, and unwavering optimism made our industry-and our world-better.
