“I cannot overstate just how excited I am about our new team and what the future has in store for Rowe.” – Ben Werner, Executive Director
As we continue to grow and fulfill the mission of The Rowe Center we welcome three new members to our team and celebrate a new role for an established member. We hope you will join us in congratulating and welcoming our new staff as they begin their journey at The Rowe Center.
Max McBride, Program Director
With thankful hearts we announce the upcoming retirement of Arthur Samuelson. Over the last ten years, Arthur helped us welcome world-renowned authors, healers and thought leaders to Rowe. Continuing in that tradition, we are pleased to announce that Max McBride (she/they) will be joining us at the end of January to begin transitioning into the role of Director of Online & Conference Programming full-time in June 2023.
Max joins Rowe with a wide range of experiences and skills, having worked for the last three decades in venue and production management, theatre design, performance, pedagogy, arts education, curation and activism.
Max has been active in both the USA and UK – engaging with those experiencing mental distress (managing and curating for an arts-based day center in London), asylum and refugee seekers (London), Arts and Activism BA, MA and MFA students (New College in San Francisco), children and youth (running summer and after school programs in San Francisco, Marin County, and London), current and former seminarians of an interfaith seminary (London), and in the technical and production management of queer-centered and marginalized community spaces, performances and workshops (San Francisco).
Max is passionate about the patterns and potentials of holding, beholding, tenderness and tending; co-creating and supporting learning with and within ecologies of intimacy, collaboration, deep listening, contact, vulnerability, ritual, reciprocity and play.
Max earned an MA in Advanced Theatre Practice (Distinction), exploring devised theatre and ecological performance pedagogies, from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London.
Anna Connelly, Executive Chef
Anna Connelly (she/her) has joined the team as our new Executive Chef. She brings years of fine-dining experience from her wildly successful restaurant in Portland, ME, Abilene, and many years working in restaurants across the U.S. from New Orleans to Sierra Nevada. Anna credits her scratch-cooking expertise to the 8 years of seasonal work in a Seward, Alaska fishing lodge. Learning to make do with supplies at hand was a requirement of living in a remote area with limited supply shipments, which led to many creative dishes. She also credits her years at a high-end seafood restaurant in an Alaskan cruise port for her knack of creating seafood dishes that are appealing for all. Her breaded haddock has a light and crispy crust with perfectly cooked flaky fish.
Anna looks forward to nourishing you with new seasonal menus. She has invested many years into creating soups and stews that are unique and ever evolving that explore new interesting flavors. She enjoys making slow cooked meats and appreciates the fine art of bread and baking.
Specializing in custom menus to accommodate all food sensitivities, Anna has found joy in exploring vegan cuisine over the last few years resulting in a mouth-watering crispy tofu. Her signature dish of carrot cake with cream cheese icing will make you swoon and the gluten-free cookies will melt in your mouth.
Stay tuned! We plan to begin sharing her recipes with you soon on social media and our blog.
Alana Calhoun, Marketing Manager
Alana Calhoun (she/her) is our new Marketing Manager and leads the newly created Marketing Department. She brings over 12 years online marketing experience to her new role as Marketing Manager. Alana is trained in search engine optimization, Google Analytics, social media marketing, as well as branding, product design, e-commerce and ux design. With an extensive portfolio of web development, small business consulting and hospitatlity marketing, all her experience culminates to perfectly position Rowe for the next stage of growth.
Alana and her family made the voyage from Dallas, Texas and reside on-site in the Joffe House by the Brook. She and her spouse Andrew have 5 children, 2 adults (still living in Dallas), and 3 here with them at Rowe, ages 17, 14 and 9. You may run into her family at meal times, please do say “Hello!”
Maggie Hazlett, Guest Experience Manager
Maggie Hazlett (she/her) takes on a newly established role as Guest Experience Manager. This role encompasses the management of all grounds, furnishings, comfort and overall guest experience.
Maggie has co-owned a housekeeping business, and worked many years as a licensed CNA. With her extensive knowledge of comfort care and a keen intuitive talent to provide, clean, comfortable spaces we are looking forward to seeing what she has in store for you. Her latest joy is revamping the farmhouse and guest rooms. She has updated the linens, established housekeeping practices to accommodate a post covid world, and most recently updated the farmhouse bathroom and Gathering Room.
Maggie sees the best of Rowe, and loves to share it with visitors. Growing up and living in Western Mass makes her uniquely qualified to share all the best spots to visit and activities to enjoy when staying at The Rowe Center.
Maggie is most excited to find new ways for guests to interact with the property and is focused on reintroducing guests to our facilities and amenities. Maggie plans to offer experiential support to disparate activities around Rowe, to include bird watching kits, animal tracking kits, scavenger hunts, and more. Be on the watch for repairs to trails and other areas too. Congratulations, Maggie, we are eager to experience Rowe through your eyes.
