In 2021, when the world threatened to take community away, the Gertrude Castellow Ford Center for the Performing Arts re-opened its doors following an 18-month hiatus.

Audiences comprised of University of Mississippi students, local families, supporters and beyond packed the 1,250-seat auditorium for celebrated events such as the multimedia experience “Voices of Mississippi” and a rapturous concert by Grammy winner Reneé Fleming.

While serving as a systematic return, the 2021-22 performance season ignited a newfound energy that the Ford Center staff has sought to both match and expound upon in its now-20th season.

“It presented a silver lining, because during our downtime … we did some real work to keep the facilities pristine and keep toward our strategic plan and goals moving forward,” Julia Aubrey, director of the Ford Center, said.

These plans will culminate in the organization’s “20th Anniversary Gala,” taking place March 25 and featuring Morgan Freeman, Christine Baranski and Bruce Levingston, among many others.

The event will be headlined by eight-time Grammy Award winners Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. of the 5th Dimension, celebrating all the Ford Center has offered over the past two decades and will continue to offer for many more years.

Since its ceremonious inception in 2003, the Ford Center has become one of Oxford’s most invaluable artistic institutions.

“It is the centerpiece of the university’s cultural and scholarly mission to present the finest in the performing arts and visiting lecturers,” Towne Square Publications said.

The Ford Center’s mission, which has both remained true to its origins and gracefully evolved over the course of 20 years, seeks to represent a rich tapestry of artistry and academia — a tapestry as varied as the inspiring woman the institution is named after.

Gertrude Castellow Ford was born in 1913 in Cuthbert, Ga., the daughter of Bryant and Ethel Castellow. Her father was a U.S. congressman, educator and attorney, while her mother worked as a publisher for the Agnes Scott Alumnae quarterly magazine. 

While these tenets of leadership and philanthropy inherently coursed through Gertrude — her family regularly donated to the Andrew Female College Building Fund in Randolph County, Ga. — the budding ingénue also maintained a steady passion for the arts. 

Ford’s (then Castellow) artistic and cultural mastery spanned a wide array of subjects, from her scholarly dissections of Shakespeare’s plays to her prodigious musical talents, with the ability to play flute, violin and piano from a very early age. Additionally, she became fluent in three other languages: French, Latin and Spanish.

By the time she married Aaron L. Ford, an attorney and U.S. congressman for the state of Mississippi, in 1936, her renaissance woman status preceded her. Yet, Gertrude consistently sought to expand her horizons in every sense of the phrase, as well as the horizons of those around her. 

“Uncle B.T. (Castellow) told one story about when he and Gertrude were delegates at the Democratic National Convention, and Gertrude stood on the table to give a speech,” Kay Castellow McKnight, Gertrude’s cousin, said. “He said she took the hall down.”

In many ways, Ford manifested her own destiny, seeking to transform her impassioned, childlike energy into as wide and accessible a canvas as possible.

After permanently relocating to Jackson, Ford made the early steps in establishing the Gertrude C. Ford Foundation, a non-profit founded for the purpose of supporting and nurturing the arts and humanities in whatever form possible.

While primarily associated with the University of Mississippi, from the Performing Arts Center to the student union, the foundation’s outreach extends far beyond Oxford, affording institutions and opportunities throughout the state of Mississippi.

“Gertrude C. Ford valued anything and everything about education and young people,” Stephen Sims, president of the Gertrude C. Ford Foundation, said.

Always at the root of Ford’s efforts was a sincere love for the arts and academia. 

Following her death in 1996, the Ford Foundation officially began in 1998, led by directors Leon Lewis, Cheryle Sims and Anthony Papa, continuing and honoring her legacy of philanthropy and generosity.

In the same year as its founding, the Ford Foundation awarded the University of Mississippi $20 million to design and build the Gertrude Castellow Ford Center for the Performing Arts.

A manifestation of everything Ford lived for, the center, completed in December 2002, sits at six stories tall and 88,000 total square feet, annually housing more than 150 events.

The first of these events occurred on March 24, 2003, with an inaugural gala hosted by Robert C. Khayat, former chancellor of the University of Mississippi. Academy-Award winning actor Morgan Freeman served as master of ceremonies and will be returning to the same role for the “20th Anniversary Gala.”

University alumni, staff and students gathered to commemorate both the start of a new chapter and the passing of a torch.

While fulfilling Gertrude C. Ford’s artistic ambitions, the institution also honors her longing for communion and philanthropy.

While the Ford Foundation remains crucial in the Performing Arts Center’s development, others have assisted in paving the way for the financial stability of the organization, namely Kay Castellow McKnight, who has established a planned contribution fund to the institution.

“I want my gifting to be for the Ford Center’s continuation of the Castellow family’s legacy from my family and me,” McKnight said.

Above all else, the Ford Center and its contributors aim to create a better tomorrow for the visitors of today.

“Ford Center performances invite audiences to share someone else’s story for a brief period of time,” Aubrey said. “Whether the story is told through music, drama or dance, audience members are able to share visceral or intellectual experiences, helping them to become more empathetic human beings.”

The Ford Center operates year-round. Information and tickets for upcoming events, including the “20th Anniversary Gala” can be found on the center’s website. 

The history of Gertrude C. Ford and the organization will also be detailed in an upcoming book,  “20 Years of History, Stories, and Performances: The Gertrude Castellow Ford Center for the Performing Arts” available for purchase at the gala event.

“Stories of the Past” is the first part of a three part series covering the past, present and future of the Gertrude C. Ford Center. This series will continue in the following two editions, releasing Mar. 9 and Mar. 23.