What a brave and wonderful lady, an astute scientist and leader, and a great friend. My real association with Veronica began after P. K. Maitra came to ARI and urged me visit DBS. I did so immediately and Veronica was most kind in arranging meetings with the faculty throughout the day. Since then, she has been a great source of inspiration for me. She was very supportive of my research and always encouraged me in my endeavors at a small place like ARI. Earlier this year, she examined the doctoral thesis of one of my students who worked on hydra. She had a few good things to say about the work which, inevitably were accompanied by some valid criticism-- that was Vintage Veronica. Saroj and I had the opportunity to host her for some typically Saraswat-style fish dinners at home, which she enjoyed immensely.