Terry Beveridge Poster Competition Award

Terry Beveridge was a Professor of Microbiology at the University of Guelph for 29 years where he developed many approaches using electron microscopy to understand bacterial structure. Terry’s focus on microbes began at the University of Toronto where he completed both B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees, his M.Sc in the lab of Dr. M. Goldner working on anaerobes associated with periodontal disease. In 1974 he began his PhD at the University of Western Ontario under the supervision of R. G. E. (Bob) Murray. Terry’s interest in the application of electron microscopy was sparked in Dr Murray’s lab and developed into a lifetime passion. Terry’s time at Western and his work with Dr Murray and his colleagues in the Murray lab resulted in 8 publications in his first 4 years and several more in subsequent years as Terry was getting established at the University of Guelph. Using electron microscopy as his foundation, Terry developed a wide range of collaborations including chemists, physicists, and microbiologists, thereby exposing his own students to a breadth of approaches that could serve as a definition of multidisciplinary research. A large number of undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral fellows were mentored by Terry, always with a guiding patience (well, almost always patient) that encouraged independent thought and innovative approaches.

Terry published extensively during his career, producing over 260 peer-reviewed journal articles, more than 60 books, book chapters and reviews, and gave numerous guest lectures, travelling worldwide. He also held several visiting professorships, carried out consulting work and was active on many scientific committees. In addition to contributing to the scientific literature, he was also instrumental in maintaining its quality, serving as editor of the Journal of Bacteriology for several years and as a contributing editor to a wide range of scientific journals. Terry was the recipient of many awards including the Canadian Council’s Killam Prize, Fellowship in the Royal Society of Canada, Fellowship in the American Academy of Microbiology, a Culling Medal from the U.S. National Society of Histology for unraveling the chemistry of the Gram stain and was the first microbiologist to win the prestigious Steacie Prize, awarded by the National Research Council to outstanding scientists under 40 years old. Terry was awarded the Roche Diagnostic CSM Award for career achievement in 1994. In 2002, he received a Canada Research Chair in the Structure of Microorganisms. As his research evolved, Terry became a leading figure in the science of Geomicrobiology and in specialized applications of electron microscopy that brought us amazing images. In 2009 a newly discovered bacterium was named in honour of Terry. The isolation and characterization of Bacillus beveridgei is first described in Extremophiles (2009) 13:695–707. Terry contributed enormously to the Canadian microbiology scene and the CSM is grateful for the opportunity to honour his achievements via the Beveridge Poster Competition.