CHEYENNE — The Cheyenne Botanic Gardens is still on the lookout for a new director after the passing of Scott Aker, the director of the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens since fall 2022.
Aker died at his home in Cheyenne on Oct. 13 due to complications from treatment for melanoma recurrence, according to the obituary provided by Kincade Funeral Chapel in Sturgis, South Dakota, which is near his hometown in Whitewood.
Before coming to Cheyenne, Aker, who had earned a master’s degree in horticulture from the University of Maryland, had previously worked as the head of the public gardens at the United States National Arboretum in Washington, D.C. The service was held in Whitewood on Oct. 25.
One of the biggest projects he worked on as director of the Botanic Gardens was an overhaul of the gardens’ master plan and the integration of the Smith Family EAT (Education, Agriculture and Trial) Garden.
The EAT garden’s main goal is to make gardening accessible for people of all experience levels through education. It’ll act as a space for people to “observe, explore and learn” how to maximize their home garden space. It’ll be located on the hill behind the production greenhouse, where the old community garden used to be.
Although Aker was spearheading the project, current interim director Aaron Sommers is adamant that the project and everything else have been “business as usual” while they look for Aker’s replacement.
Aaron Sommers is the Paul Smith Children’s Village manager and temporary interim director of the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens.
Cheyenne Botanic Gardens/courtesy
Sommers told the Wyoming Tribune Eagle that the construction documents for the EAT Garden are being submitted for final edit, and then they’ll be able to move forward with a bid through the city of Cheyenne’s bidding process in the next two weeks. He estimated that the construction bid will go out in January or early February, and the actual construction will take place next summer.
“During Scott’s three years with us, the work he did with the city and the (Friends of the Botanic Gardens) foundation was creating a master plan for the gardens, including incorporating the EAT Garden, and that’ll be the main focus for the new manager who gets hired by the city,” said Sommers. “The bid process really becomes a function of the city’s purchasing director and Jason Sanchez.”
Sanchez, who’s the head of Community Recreation and Events for the city of Cheyenne, is leading the hiring process for the new Botanic Gardens director, and estimates they’ll be interviewing people in the next couple of weeks. Sanchez, with the help of gardens staff and people from the foundation, is hoping to hire someone before Christmas.
“We opened the position a couple of weeks after Scott’s passing, so it’s been open for a couple of weeks now, and we’ve received quite a few applications and resumés. We’re just being very methodical in our process,” Sanchez said. “The (gardens) staff has continued to carry on the mission, and everyone’s working hard, and it’s a hard position to be in, but we’re trying to pick the right candidate to lead us in the future.”
Right now, Sommers is collaborating with Isiah Smith, the horticulture and operations supervisor, and Lanna Don, the office manager at the gardens, to divvy up responsibilities and roles that would otherwise default to the director. Once Aker’s replacement takes over, Sommers will return to his full-time position as the Paul Smith Children’s Village manager, where he’s been for 16 years.
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