It is a great honor to accept the Harrel L. Strimple Award from the Paleontological Society. Paleontology is a science that by its very nature, attracts the interest of nonprofessionals, and this award is the pinnacle of recognition of the achievement of those who choose to learn, and conduct research on their own initiative. I feel very privileged and appreciative, and I am proud to be able to hang it on the wall of my study.
There are several people I need to thank for getting me to the point of even being considered for such a prestigious award. My parents, Gordon and Bernice, always wholeheartedly supported and encouraged my interest in fossils and paleontology. I have the utmost gratitude to my siblings, Kette Jex, Dee Roach, Eric Bylund, and Duane Bylund, their spouses, and my extended family, who continue their support and encouragement.
Ken Stadtman, who was curator at the BYU Earth Science Museum (now called the BYU Museum of Paleontology), allowed me to volunteer at the museum and accompany him and his staff and students to dinosaur quarries they were working, thus giving me a foothold into the world of paleontology. Dee Hall, who was the preparator at the museum, convinced me that I had something to offer. I met Rod Scheetz and Brooks Britt on these dinosaur digs (both are now at BYU), they continue to help and guide me. Spending time in the museum allowed me to meet Lehi Hintze and Keith Rigby, two great paleontologists and geologists who had offices next door, they were always there with suggestions, literature, and answers to almost every question I had. Working in these quarries also introduced me to Jim Kirkland, now the Utah State Paleontologist, who continues to push me forward. I donated my collection of Utah cephalopods to the BYU Museum of Paleontology in 2019 (Fig. 1).
Figure 1. Some of the fossil cephalopods, mostly ammonites, that I donated to the BYU Museum of Paleontology.
Alan Titus, paleontologist at Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, has helped me with Carboniferous ammonoids in western Utah. He, along with Dieter Korn from the Museum of Natural History in Berlin, named a Carboniferous ammonoid species after me in 2011, Kazakhoceras bylundi Korn and Titus, Reference Korn and Titus2011. My time spent in the field with them will always be fondly remembered.
Dan Stephen, of Utah Valley University, contacted me one day asking if I would help on a research project working with Triassic ammonoids from the Confusion Range. During the research for this project I contacted Jim Jenks, a renowned Triassic ammonoid worker. This association led to a project with Arnaud Brayard from the University of Burgundy in Dijon, France (Jim and Arnaud named a Triassic ammonoid species after me in 2018, Meekoceras bylundi Jenks and Brayard, Reference Jenks and Brayard2018). Working together for the last two decades with these three gentlemen has been an honor as they have been great friends and very influential in my learning.
In addition, I am grateful to the many other professional workers from France, Switzerland, Germany, and Japan who have helped me during this time; these include Hugo Bucher, Richard Hofmann, Romain Jattiot, Emmanuelle Vennin, Nicholas Olivier, Gilles Escarguel, Emmanuel Fara, Nicolas Goudemand, Carlo Romano, David Ware, Christopher Smith, Yasunari Shigeta, and Takumi Maekawa; I have learned something from each of them. L.J. Krumenacker, with the Idaho Museum of Natural History, introduced us to the fossils of the Paris Biota, which continues to teach us new things whenever we make new collections. Noreen Kittrick is helping me learn more as she advances her own knowledge of geology and paleontology.
Finally, to those who nominated me and wrote letters of support, and to anyone I may have unintentionally omitted – Thank you.
