Kyra Finner
Staff Writer
Tim Magnuson was found dead on Oct. 5 in Yellowstone National Park near the Idaho and Wyoming Border. It was discovered that the microbiology professor from ISU suffered cardiac arrest while doing research on microbes that live in the hot springs.
Magnuson was only 57 years old when he passed away. Two backpackers, a paramedic and a nurse, found him in the Bechler Meadows area around 2 p.m. After trying to notify an emergency helicopter with a mirror and failing, they waited for hours to eventually be found by park rangers who then carried them out on horseback.
Magnuson had an impressive career, provided by his Idaho State University biography, with a B.S. in Biochemistry from the University of Minnesota, and both an M.S. and Ph. D in Bacteriology from the University of Idaho. He had been part of the ISU faculty since 2001 and worked with many different universities on collaborative projects. According to friends, Magnuson was a passionate naturalist who had an impressive knowledge of the Yellowstone ecosystem
Although Magnuson has a legacy for his scientific research, his wife, Rhesa Ledbetter, hopes that he will be remembered for more than just his life in the classroom and the research lab.
Mike Thomas, the chair of Biology at ISU, said that Magnuson brought a unique perspective to departmental conversations and will be remembered as a grounded and creative individual who enriched the institution.
“Tim was one of a kind. He was a valued and productive member of our biosciences family and will be sorely missed as a friend, teacher, and mentor,” said Thomas.
According to Rhesa Ledbetter, Ph.D., Tim Magnuson’s wife, and Assistant Professor in Microbiology & Biochemistry at ISU, Tim had a passion for discovery and learning new things. Always wearing a tye-dye lab coat and funky lab glasses, his students would always find Tim at his lab bench doing experiments.
“It wasn’t grades, homework, or a detailed syllabus he most cared about,” said Ledbetter. “Rather, it was getting students out in the field exploring nature and providing opportunities for them to do scientific research—in fact, just this semester, he had students cultivating microbes that degrade plastic.”
The ISU professor always kept up-to-date on the most current science and it was his “insatiable drive that overflowed into his classroom,” according to Ledbetter.
Magnuson was a joy to his family, friends, and students.
“Tim offered some of the most authentic opportunities to his students and he will be missed by everyone that has the pleasure of experiencing his engaging hands-on approach,” said Ledbetter.
