How do I submit a grant proposal?

"Ask Carmen."

Do all proposals go to the Office of Research first?

"Ask Carmen."

How many different documents do I prepare for a purchase order?

"Ask Carmen."

Soon nobody can ask Carmen. After a UC Davis career spanning nearly 32 1/2 years — all in the Department of Entomology — grants specialist Carmen Peterson Johnson is set to retire today. Johnson, who joined the staff on Sept. 19, 1974, as a "secretary II," will be traveling, playing golf and spending more time with her family.

"I can't picture this department without her," said department Chair Robert Washino, who worked with her during her entire career. "Carmen is conscientious and dependable and always there for us."

Johnson served seven department chairs. She said she remembers many faculty members as undergraduates, graduates or postdoctorates, including Lynn and Bob Kimsey, Diane Ullman, Frank Zalom and Gregory Lanzaro.

"Carmen helped me on countless occasions, first when I was a student at UC Davis and then later when I joined the faculty," said Ullman, a former department chair. "She helped me celebrate my marriage, the birth of my daughter and every little success along the way. More times than I count, Carmen solved a problem, got my grant cover page and budget ready in a New York minute and just took the time to help me understand the UC Davis system. I will really miss her."

Zalom echoed the praise. "I've known Carmen since I came to Davis as a doctorate student in 1975, and I can say that I was probably as big of a pain for Carmen then as I am now. The only difference was that I was trying to figure out how I could spend my major professor's money instead of my own. I always appreciated the way Carmen figured out how I could get things done instead of just saying that what I wanted to do was impossible. This made it possible to do my job the last 30-plus years, and I will miss her a lot."

The entomology department also will miss the "Carmenisms" that she coined: They include:

• "UC Davis doesn't issue parking permits; it issues hunting permits."
• "When you finish one problem, another comes in to fill the void."

Before the age of computers, Johnson typed the faculty's correspondence, manuscripts, course materials and exams. She said she remembers typing course materials on wax stencils, and then "running them off on a mimeograph machine. Then we hand-collated all the copies for large classes — usually with last-minute deadlines."

"That (a last-minute deadline)," Johnson quipped, "hasn't changed much."

A resident of Davis since 1965, Carmen moved here with husband David Peterson, now deceased, from the Imperial Valley. Many still know her as "Carmen Peterson."

Why did you decide to work at UC Davis?

"We had two young children to support and a new house to pay for, so it was very important to find a better paying job with great benefits."

What is the biggest change you've seen?

"The transition from typewriters to computers. With computers, we're busier now than ever because the expectation is that we can do more with this wonderful tool. The reality is that it's added a considerable amount of work for everyone."

What will you remember most about UC Davis?

"The pride I felt working here. In some small way, I always felt I contributed to the research and teaching of the university by providing a service that supported the work of the department. That might sound sort of lofty or corny, but it's true."

Carmen and husband Richard, a United Airlines retiree, love to play golf. "I think golf is going to be a lifelong learning process but I think that's part of the fun," she said. "We'll also spend more time with our two grandchildren."

Then they can "ask Carmen."

Kathy Keatley Garvey is a writer, photographer and Web developer for the UC's statewide Mosquito Research Program, based on the Davis campus.