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Matthew J. Horridge Conservatory Matthew Horridge ’03 died unexpectedly of a heart condition on March 9, 2003, just three months before graduation. A talented horticulturist, Matt had worked and studied with a special group of young men who shared his passion for plants and gardening. So, says Noah Stolmeier, his friends decided to create a conservatory in Matt’s memory. Supported by faculty members Brian Maynard and Susan Gordon and senior gardener Cheryl Tefft, and inspired by Matt and all they had shared with him, his friends created gardens with winding paths, a fish pond, and a meditation bench. Noah hopes visitors will stop in often at the greenhouse conservatory, located near URI’s Learning Landscape Center. “We made a desert bed with cacti,” says Noah, “a tropical bed complete with a fish pond and hanging wall garden planted with ferns and orchids; and an edible food bed with coffee, mangoes, figs, bananas, peppers, lemons, oranges, and passionflower. Matt had started Jalapeno peppers from seed; I saved a few of his plants and planted one in the conservatory. It’s doing well—the plants have all grown so much since our opening last year.”
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