Dental Lab Named for Dr. Robert Fish
On October 5, 2023, the Manchester campus came together for a dedication ceremony celebrating the newly named Dr. Robert Fish Dental Laboratory. Dr. Robert Fish is a U.S. Navy veteran who served the Greater Manchester community as a dentist for over forty years. He was a longtime Rotarian and a volunteer in humanitarian missions both here and abroad.
Dr. Fish’s philanthropic leadership at CT State Manchester includes the establishment of the Dr. Robert Fish Endowed Scholarship Fund and the Dr. Robert Fish Dental Assistant Program Endowed Fund. His contributions have significantly enhanced the campus's ability to fulfill its mission.
The ceremony signified more than the attachment of a name to an important program space – it was a public acknowledgement of the role philanthropy plays in public higher education. Rosemary Ryan, the coordinator for the dental assisting program at Manchester, told the crowd about the impact Dr. Fish’s leadership by example has had on dental assisting students at Manchester:
“My first memory of meeting Dr. Fish was in the wee hours of a chilly March Saturday morning, at the Mission of Mercy. The Mission of Mercy is a dental clinic where the dentally underserved receive free dentistry. Arriving early, we were all moved by the number of individuals already there, waiting in long lines for several hours in hopes of being treated. Many of those individuals had not seen a dentist in several years, and some never!
Dr. Fish inspired me and the dental assisting students to carry on in the tradition of giving as our program participates with the MOM every year. He immediately took the students under his wing and went over the steps of procedural dental care. He demonstrated compassion and comfort to individual patients’ needs, while simultaneously sharing with the students their importance and the professional role the Dental Assistant has in the delivery of excellent dental care.”
MCC Foundation is deeply grateful for all that Dr. Robert Fish has done to change lives here at Manchester.
