Founding President’s Daughter Ginny Lowe Connors to Read at Mishi-Maya-Gat Event

Manchester, Conn. (March 17, 2017) – Ginny Lowe Connors is not just another accomplished poet slated to read as part of the Mishi-Maya-Gat Spoken Word and Music Series. She has a long-time history with MCC – going all the way back to her father, Frederick Lowe, the college’s founding president. Lowe Connors will join poet Pat Hale and classical guitarist Frank Wallace Thursday, March 23, from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Dehn Gallery at MCC On Main, MCC’s Arts and Education Center, 903 Main Street.

“I’m honored to be reading my poetry alongside another great poet and a talented musician,” Lowe Connors said. “As the daughter of the first college president, I hold MCC very close to my heart, and this series is a great way for the greater Manchester area to be able to enjoy the arts. It’s great that the college sponsors it.”

In fact, Lowe Connors and her brothers, Andy and Frederick Lowe III, have continued their support through the next generation, with their own personal involvement in the college’s life. They run the Adolph and Virginia Dehn Foundation, whose name is lent to the gallery where the Mishi-Maya-Gat series is staged each month. The foundation provides scholarships to students and sponsors a visiting artist series, as well.

“The foundation was a way to honor several relatives at once,” Lowe Connors said. “Adolf and Virginia, my aunt and uncle, had a trust so we tried to make the best use of that to help fund scholarships and fund the arts program.”

Lowe Connors has won many awards for her poetry and books. In her spare time she is the co-editor for the Connecticut River Review and she runs a small poetry press in West Hartford called Grayson Books.

Higher education holds an importance in the hearts of this generation of Lowes as it did for President Lowe.

“Community college is so important because you have people coming to seek education from all walks of life,” Lowe Connors said. “Higher education gives opportunities to students through all areas of the community, while also giving opportunities to seek education throughout their entire life. Community colleges do that the best.”

About Mishi-Maya-Gat – Mishi-Maya-Gat is the Algonquian term for “Great Trail System,” a track of foot paths created by the indigenous people of Connecticut. Within this system of trails, a “Great Path” connected one region with another. The site of the MCC campus is along one of these great paths, which led to the naming of Great Path as the street leading into campus. It is in this spirit of historical and cultural significance that the performing arts series, which is now in its 11th season, takes its name.  For more information, contact Stephen Campiglio, series founder, coordinator and host, at scampiglio@manchestercc.edu

Performing at 6:30 p.m. are poets Pat Hale and Ginny Lowe Connors. Pat Hale has been featured in many journals like the Connecticut River Review and Naugatuck River Review. Ginny Lowe Connors is the author of three poetry collections she also published a chapter book Under the Porch won the Sunken Garden Poetry Prize. Performing at 8 p.m. is classical guitarist Frank Wallace. Wallace has works featured in Guitar Review, Soundboard, Fingerstyle Magazine and The LSA.