Listen Here
By Jake Miller
@jakeufmiller
College students often fall into a frame of mind that their professors have no lives outside of academia or off campus at all. In the next few issues of the Pulse, there will be a new feature on a University of Findlay faculty member that proves that assumption to be false. Each feature story has an accompanying video that can be viewed at UFTV.findlay.edu.
Most students know Linda Peck, PhD, as an anatomy and physiology professor on campus as well as an adviser to many of the pre-vet students. Observing Peck lecturing in front of an anatomy class, it is easy for one to see that she is passionate about her work. She takes pride in pushing students to achieve excellence and helping them attain critical knowledge in order to work in their desired field.
According to Peck, she has a couple unique hobbies that helped to mold her to be the woman we all know her as today.
“My real passion are my horses,” Peck said.
Since she was young, Peck has been around the farming lifestyle and can remember jumping the neighbor’s fence to go and ride the pony they had in their pasture. In a lot of ways, this lifelong interest drove her to pursuing a career as a veterinarian.
Peck became the first female veterinarian in the Findlay area and took her interest in horses from her childhood to begin practicing veterinary medicine with large animals, equine, and small animal practices. Peck now has two horses: a 12-year-old quarter horse named Cassidy and a 17-year-old paint named Stormy whom she rode English.
“Thank heavens I have a husband who tolerates it because it takes a lot of work. Horses are my expensive passion,” Peck said.
It is a therapeutic hobby as well. Peck said that on a bad day, even if she can just get into the barn and brush her horses or sweep the barn floor, she is happy.
“On Thursdays I don’t have any class so I try not to get anything scheduled on Thursday,” Peck said, “so usually Thursday is my day to go ahead and to work with my horses or to flower garden.”
Flower gardening has become one of Peck’s favorite activities. When she and her husband moved into their current home in 1979 there was no landscaping.
“Since then I have put in large numbers of flower beds,” Peck said. “Am I an expert? Heck no. But on the other hand, I have a great time.”
In the biology conference room near all the biology offices on the second floor of the Davis Street Building, Peck has displayed an entire line of African Violets to help spruce things up.
“I just really like flowers. I love color. I like to see what I can produce,” Peck said.
With Peck’s areas of interest being in veterinary sciences, teaching, mentoring, horses, and gardening, one might say that nurturing is just in her nature.
Her sons said that her children extend to include all the students she has at UF because she is just as invested in them and their success.
Peck said she stays quite busy with these passions but if she gets any downtime, one would likely find her singing or reading books.
She has even applied her singing talents at UF, too.
“I had been here, maybe five years, and I took voice lessons from Dr. Anders. I was in several musicals here at the University,” Peck said. “It was always funny for me to be a 40 and 50-year-old amongst college kids. That was always ironic.”
Peck has been a part of the Findlay Light Opera and has cantered for Saint Michael’s church in Findlay as well.
“Singing has always been something I really enjoy doing. I don’t do as much of it now as I used to but I always really liked it,” Peck said.
When it comes to books, Peck invests in murder mysteries the most.
“I love forensics and those are the types of books that I just devour,” Peck said.
Peck shares this particular interest with Michael Anders, professor of music.
“We kid, Mike Anders and I, that we know where the skeletons are buried,” Peck said.
