Poetorium Too Poetry Reading & Open Mic Featuring Sarah Penna & Aliveah McElroy (aka A.) Stoddard 

Please join us for another Wednesday double feature edition of our monthly open mic and featured poetry reading series Poetorium Too at TidePool Bookshop (located at 372 Chandler Street in Worcester, MA) on April 29th from 5 pm to 7 pm hosted by Paul Szlosek and (hopefully) Ron Whittle. It will be a full two hours of poetry and spoken word featuring 20 minute readings each by poets Sarah Ruth Penna and Aliveah McElroy aka Aliveah Stoddard & Ali Mac (Author of Sound Resilience: The Collected Works of A. Stoddard) followed by a 10-minute dead poet tribute to the first Poet Laureate of Worcester, Gertrude Halstead, by Eve Rifkah, a short intermission, and then an open mic with 5-minute slots for each reader if time allows (in order to fit everything planned into our allotted time, if the event runs too long, readers may be restricted to one poem).

Sarah Ruth Penna synergizes her love of Nature, Art, and Community in all corners of her life. She is a hobbyist poet, photographer, collage artist, musician, & outdoorswoman. Beginning her career as a music teacher, she experienced a unique professional trajectory. After leaving school teaching in 2022, Sarah worked as a park ranger for the Vermont State Parks and agricultural educator on syrup and produce farms. From there, she moved back to her beloved Massachusetts to begin working for Girl Scouts of Central and Western Massachusetts and start her small business, Hyacinth House. Throughout the journey, writing has remained a grounding constant. Her poetry is deeply influenced by the New England Transcendentalists, Mary Oliver, levi the poet, mythology, nature, chronic illness, & her Italian-American heritage. She resides in Sturbridge, MA and looks forward to releasing a collection in the near future.

Aliveah McElroy (aka Aliveah Stoddard & Ali Mac) is a self-published poet, author, promoter, and small business consultant residing in central Massachusetts, whose poetry is known for exploring themes of resilience, emotional healing, and personal growth. Her self-published poetry collections, Sound Resilience: The Collected Works of A. Stoddard, and Chasing Roses, center on overcoming life’s struggles and finding one’s own voice. Aliveah also runs Ali Mac Marketing, a Connecticut-based firm providing full-service marketing, business restructuring, and growth strategy for small businesses. She describes poetry as a form of therapy and encourages other young creators to believe in their work and continue writing.