Message on Gail Conner
John Poma, chief human resources officer, sent the following message to the campus community Feb. 13, 2017 - Ed.
Dear Colleagues:
I write to share the sad news that Gail Conner, Administrative and Graduate Supervisor of the Department of History, passed away at home on Wednesday February 8, 2017 after a long illness. Born in Colorado, Gail was an active student at school, practicing gymnastics, playing the trumpet in the marching band, and working as an arcade games operator at a Denver amusement park. She spent six years in the Navy from 1988 to 1994, serving at the Readiness Training Facility at Dam Neck, Virginia, the NTCC Breezy Point in Norfolk, Virginia, as well as in San Diego, Puerto Rico, Canada, and Italy. She left the service as a Radioman, E-3 Class, having specialized in communications technology. She studied Business at college. She was also a member of Job's Daughters for a short while. Gail was the family genealogist, a talented quilter (a member of the Colonial Piecemakers Quilting Guild), and an amateur runner/walker. She was also an eager player of video games, especially role-playing games, a passion she shared with her young son. Gail worked at the Department of History for 8 years. She was one of the mainstays of the Department, keeping it running efficiently, and solving all manner of difficulties created by the faculty with extraordinary grace and good humor. She was an extremely kind and generous woman, and a person who lived her life with great strength and determination throughout. We were all proud to call her our friend.
Gail is survived by her husband Scott, her mother Ruth Cyrus, her children Tory Conner, Natalie Conner, Kayla Conner, and James Cyrus, her sister Nancy Cyrus Marlatt, and her brother Daniel Cyrus. Gail will be deeply missed by her friends and colleagues among the faculty, graduate students, and staff at the College.
There will be a memorial service in the Wren Chapel on Thursday, February 16, 2017 at noon followed by a reception in the History Library.
To Gail’s friends, to those around campus whose lives she touched, and especially to her family, we extend our deepest sympathy.
Sincerely,
John