Connie R Meester (born Connie Rae Fouch, September 2, 1946, Perry, Iowa, U.S.A.), educator in early and adult education, special ed, and lay ministry. Widely published in journals and anthologies and recognized in local, national, and international competitions. Tsugigami, a collection of linked verse with Valorie Woerdehoff, was shortlisted for the Touchstone Distinguished Book Awards and received First Place in Haiku Canada’s Marianne Bluger Book and Chapbook Awards from Haiku Canada. Resides in Des Moines, Iowa.