Philanthropy: A Young Role Model Under the Big Top

J. Barton Lowther & the Circus Arts Conservatory

By Laura Shoemaker | Photo by Nancy Guth

J. Barton Lowther spent his teenage years growing up in Sarasota and singing in the choir at Riverview High School. After attending his grandfather’s alma mater, Tulane University, and earning a degree in finance in 2010, he returned to Sarasota to start his “dream job,” working with his father as a financial advisor at Merrill Lynch. 

Now in his early 30s, Lowther is leading a successful career in wealth management and already building a strong record of giving back. He says his parents instilled in him the value of philanthropy, and it was his partner at Merrill Lynch, Brian Mariash, who encouraged him to get involved with a uniquely Sarasota arts organization: the Circus Arts Conservatory. The nonprofit’s focus is circus arts training and performance with dedicated programs for community education and outreach. It is also home to the longest-running youth circus in the United States, the Sailor Circus Academy. 

Talking to Lowther about the Circus Arts Conservatory, or CAC for short, he’s quick to emphasize how the conservatory is home to the artistic legacy of the circus, as found in such acts as aerial arts like trapeze, silks, and straps; acrobatics; clowning; and magic. Using these performing arts, CAC packages arts-integrated education opportunities for children and entertaining therapeutic programs for the elderly and those in care facilities, in addition to training youth performers and hosting national and international circus performances.

He began his tenure with CAC by serving on a couple of committees before joining the board four years ago. His enthusiasm and leadership propelled him into the position of board chair in 2018. It excites Lowther to be a part of CAC “because the organization is firing on all cylinders, Circus Arts does it all.” What he means is how wide a net CAC casts, helping young kids, youth, and adults, how the circus arts organization “really is for ‘children of all ages’.” 

Lowther comes across as a warm, capable person, and it’s easy to imagine how he contributes in many ways to the organization—his financial savvy, his understanding of the importance of having a digital presence, and his ease when talking about CAC, its mission, and programs. He’s friendly, ready to engage, and enthusiastic. 

He’s also pragmatic, ready to roll up his sleeves and “do whatever is needed” to ensure the organization’s success and stability. He’s gracious with his time, extending his term on the board when COVID had slowed programming and operations. That, and his sales chops come in handy, he adds, when it’s time to encourage gala guests and donors to “raise the paddle.”   

PERFORMANCE-DRIVEN 

Though he’s never walked a tightrope, Lowther’s no stranger to performing himself. In addition to singing in the choir as a teenager, he sang in an acapella group called Green Envy during college, and he has been a member of  symphonic chorale group Key Chorale. He says these experiences help him appreciate what it takes to be a performer of the circus arts. 

The youth performers of Sailor Circus Academy receive not only education and training in circus arts, but support, guidance, and a welcoming environment, describes Lowther. So welcoming, in fact, that they can often be found at the arena, even when they aren’t practicing, he explains, doing homework and just hanging out with one another. “They want to be there. It’s a family.”

Watching as “Queen of the Air” Dolly Jacobs, Founder and Vice President of CAC and a world-renowned circus aerialist, teach a group of Sailor Circus performers one of her acts, Lowther is cognizant that he’s witnessing the circus’s legacy being passed on, right before his eyes. Lowther feels strongly that the legacy and tradition of the circus arts are worth carrying forward, that they are a “wonderful implement to teach kids life lessons.” 

Lowther explains what some of those lessons are. Being a circus performer demands a high degree of teamwork, skill, and perhaps most importantly, trust. Those Sailor Circus alums who aspire to work as professional circus artists might audition for the Cirque du Soleil, but the skills learned can be applied to many different jobs outside of the Big Top.

“These kids are professionals,” he explains. To further this point, Lowther recalls a statement that former board chair Jack Brown was fond of repeating. It was made by an alumni who grew up to become a high stakes criminal attorney: “I learned how to perform in Sailor Circus, and I’m still performing today.”

Tucked beside Sarasota High School on Bahia Vista Street, it’s hard to miss the red and yellow entrance and blue and white domed arena of CAC and the Sailor Circus Academy. Major renovations were completed in 2019, featuring a host of improvements, like state of-the-art retractable stadium seating and full ADA-compliant bathrooms, though Lowther jokes the one addition most everyone is talking about is the air-conditioning. “It took many years and many campaigns to finally renovate the CAC Arena,” he says, and he lists his part in seeing the renovations through as one of his proudest accomplishments. 

Lowther is proud of the way CAC serves area school children in arts-integrated education, creatively using the circus arts to teach physics and math. Some of the proven benefits, he explains, are better scores on standardized tests and increased engagement and interest in STEM. He’s excited about the circus arts magnet programs that CAC began in partnerships with Sarasota High and Booker Middle Schools . And he’s happy about the joy that is brought to people in assisted living through the organization’s Humor Therapy Program. 

In light of these community programs, Lowther is considered when asked about what people might be surprised to know about CAC. “We need support. It may be easy to think the organization can thrive without you, but we need your help.”

ROLE MODEL

Reflecting on his job as a financial advisor, Lowther says he enjoys learning and helping people. “There is always something new to learn and things are always changing, it really keeps you on your toes. The best part is being able to watch your clients achieve their financial goals, whether that is buying their dream second home or funding college education for their grandchildren.” 

There’s a distinct parallel between the role Lowther plays in his work helping people with their finances and his charitable endeavors.

“I love being able to make a difference, and being a part of changing the world for the better. It makes me feel good to donate and volunteer—I think a lot of people would agree that there is something within our brains (or hearts) that rewards us for helping others.” 

A big part of what makes him feel fortunate is tied to living in Sarasota. “A lot of my friends in high school went to ‘bigger and better’ cities to live and work, I just knew I wanted to be here. I can go to NYC or Denver for the weekend any time, but Sarasota is where I want to live. If you think about it, there is no other city with a small-town, laid-back attitude with big-city, high-level arts and culture.”

Lowther’s committed to supporting the arts and culture in the hometown that he loves, and looking ahead, he envisions the American circus performing arts legacy continuing to grow, with CAC and Sarasota at the epicenter.