Etheridge Knight

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Etheridge Knight Univ. of Pittsburgh Press

Etheridge Knight, photo credit: Univ. of Pittsburgh Press

Behind the Beat Look is a Sweet
Tongue and a Boogie Foot
(for those who see me as a tragic figure)

There is glee in my teeth, and mirth in my mouth.
My birth under the Mississippi sun so a boast,
A toast to my Black Daddy, Gandy-dancer, Master of the
Buck and Wing.  The Skin and Grin.

But what you see might not be what you get.

Etheridge Knight, The Worcester Review, XIX, 1998, p. 131

 

A brief biography of Etheridge Knight (1931-1991), including his ties to Worcester, was written and published by David Shaw as part of an interactive student project. The biography is available here.

A more comprehensive look at Etheridge Knight is featured in The Worcester Review, Vol XIX 1&2 (1998) including his years in Worcester.  The introduction by Editor Rodger Martin also lays out how his military record can not answer the question of Korean War service one way or another because a Vietnam War protest fire set at the Army Record Center in St. Louis destroyed significant portions of Knight’s military record.

In September 2018, the WCPA honored Knight by renaming the performance portion of the WCPA’s Annual College Poetry Contest. The “Etheridge Knight Performance Prize” is awarded to a single individual each year and includes a cash prize. College and universities in central Massachusetts chose a participant to represent the school at the event. Craig Blais of Anna Maria College is chairing the contest again this year.

Visit the Poetry Foundation page for Etheridge Knight

Worcester Telegram article regarding a local reading of Knight’s work.

Stanley Kunitz

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Stanley Kunitz in his Provincetown garden. Photo by James Laughlin

 

The Testing Tree

1

On my way home from school
  up tribal Providence Hill
     past the Academy ballpark
where I could never hope to play
  I scuffed in the drainage ditch
     among the sodden seethe of leaves
hunting for perfect stones
  rolled out of glacial time
     into my pitcher’s hand;
then sprinted lickety-
  split on my magic Keds
     from a crouching start,
scarcely touching the ground
  with my flying skin
     as I poured it on
for the prize of the mastery
  over that stretch of road,
     with no one no where to deny
when I flung myself down
  that on the given course
     I was the world’s fastest human.  
     
       2

Around the bend
  that tried to loop me home
     dawdling came natural
across a nettled field
  riddled with rabbit-life
     where the bees sank sugar-wells
in the trunks of the maples
  and a stringy old lilac
     more than two stories tall
blazing with mildew
  remembered a door in the
     long teeth of the woods.
All of it happened slow:
  brushing the stickseed off,
     wading through jewelweed
strangled by angel’s hair,
  spotting the print of the deer
     and the red fox’s scats.
Once I owned the key
  to an umbrageous trail
     thickened with mosses
where flickering presences
  gave me right of passage
     as I followed in the steps
of straight-backed Massassoit
  soundlessly heel-and-toe
     practicing my Indian walk.
     
       3

Past the abandoned quarry
  where the pale sun bobbed
     in the sump of the granite,
past copperhead ledge,
  where the ferns gave foothold,
     I walked, deliberate,
on to the clearing,
  with the stones in my pocket
     changing to oracles
and my coiled ear tuned
  to the slightest leaf-stir.
     I had kept my appointment.
There I stood int he shadow,
  at fifty measured paces,
     of the inexhaustible oak,
tyrant and target,
  Jehovah of acorns,
     watchtower of the thunders,
that locked King Philip’s War
  in its annulated core
     under the cut of my name.
Father wherever you are
   I have only three throws
      bless my good right arm.
In the haze of afternoon,
  while the air flowed saffron,
     I played my game for keeps—
for love, for poetry,
  and for eternal life—
     after the trials of summer.
     
     4

In the recurring dream
  my mother stands
     in her bridal gown
under the burning lilac,
  with Bernard Shaw and Bertie
     Russell kissing her hands;
the house behind her is in ruins;
  she is wearing an owl’s face
     and makes barking noises.
Her minatory finger points.
  I pass through the cardboard doorway
     askew in the field
and peer down a well
  where an albino walrus huffs.
     He has the gentlest eyes.
If the dirt keeps sifting in,
  staining the water yellow,
     why should I be blamed?
Never try to explain.
  That single Model A
     sputtering up the grade
unfurled a highway behind
  where the tanks maneuver,
     revolving their turrets.
In a murderous time
  the heart breaks and breaks
     and lives by breaking.
It is necessary to go
  through dark and deeper dark
     and not to turn.
I am looking for the trail.
  Where is my testing-tree?
     Give me back my stones!

by Stanley Kunitz, read at The Higgins House, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, 1972

 

 

Stanley Kunitz (1905-2006), twice named Poet Laureate of The United States, was born in Worcester in 1905 and has become one of the most celebrated poets in the United States.  He once said, “Worcester provoked me into poetry.”  Regardless, we can savor the brilliant work those provocations created.   His childhood home is a poetry mecca for poetry lovers over the world.     

He has been featured numerous times in The Worcester Review and the WCPA has honored him first as one of the initial poets invited to read at its founding in 1971 and with many celebrations since.

 

 

Learn more about Stanley Kunitz by visiting the following sites:

Stanley Kunitz Boyhood Home

The Poetry Foundation Stanley Kunitz Page

Stanley Kunitz on Wikipedia

Literary Landmark: Boyhood Home of Stanley Kunitz

the Paris Review interview with Stanley Kunitz

Stanley Kunitz Obituary in the New York Times

Poetry Everywhere with Garrison Keillor on PBS “Touch Me” by Stanley Kunitz

Charles Olson

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Charles Olson and his major work.

That’s all. I said. I promise to witness.
Charles Olson, Interview, 1970

To build out of sound the walls of the city
And display in one flower the wunderworld so that
By such means the unique stand forth
Clear itself shall be made known.
Charles Olson, Unpublished Fragment

Excerpt from The Charles Olson Sympsium:

Charles Olson’s inventiveness as a poet and scholar, as well as his engagement in community and national politics, have rendered him an American poet who continues to be an originating influence in our times.
Please join us as we mark the centenary with a challenging few days of poetics, friendship, and exploration.

We welcome the participation of poets, presenters, scholars and participants. Contact the WCPA or Olson Centenary Chair Mark Wagner at markgwagner@charter.net for additional information.

COMMUNITY EVENTS & OLSON SYMPOSIUM
SCHEDULE & ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Charles Olson photo courtesy of Charles Olson Papers,
Archives & Special Collections, Thomas J. Dodd Research Center.

A Brief Biography

Charles Olson was born in Worcester, December 27, 1910, the son of working-class parents, a Swedish immigrant father and an Irish Catholic mother. They lived on Mitchell Street, moving in 1912 to 6 Norman Avenue. In 1914 his family settled in a third-floor apartment at 4 Norman Avenue, where he was raised. Throughout his youth and into his years at Classical High School Olson struggled to overcome his consciousness of his size and height. He went to Wesleyan College in 1928.

Olson has strong association with two places other than Worcester: Black Mountain College, North Carolina, where in the 1950s Olson was a teacher, rector, advancing alternative ways of thought and verse; and Gloucester, Massachusetts, a north shore fishing community where he spent his childhood summers and a place that would provide the major background for his epic work, The Maximus Poems, which are rich in myth, full of geography, history, architecture, and personal reflections. Though his poetry may not be focused heavily on Worcester, in 1965 at a public reading in Berkeley, California, after reading a poem titled “An Ode on Nativity,” a poem set in Worcester, Olson blurted out, “Gee, I’m moved. Wow, I never write about Gloucester like this. Do you think? I’ve been wrong all this time… My subject is Worcester.” Though these words may have been spoken in jest, some of Olson’s finest moments are Worcester ones. Three stories about his boyhood in Worcester are “Stocking Cap,” “Mr. Meyer” and “The Post Office,” each a loving tribute to a father who took his young son berrying in the summer, gathering walnuts and wild grapes in the fall, and fishing through the ice on Worcester’s lakes in the winter. In “The Post Office,” Olson describes his father’s mail route in Worcester:

It stretched along the lake which bounds the city on the east.
Originally the route ran on both sides of the lake south from the
bridge which carried the road to Boston. The bridge alone, and the
other wooded side (where nothing much was but the city’s amusement
park and some summer camps) were enough to make the route what
my father would like. Just to cross the bridge a winter morning…
or to be a part of the boating around in the summer and the fall,
gave his workday a freedom…

Before Olson left Worcester in 1928 to attend Wesleyan, as Classical High School’s star speaker he had won a summer-long trip to Europe, top prize in a national oratory contest. He received a BA at Wesleyan and stayed on to earn an MA in 1933, writing his thesis on Herman Melville. Olson returned to Worcester to teach at Clark University. He was a favorite among the freshmen students he taught and proctored. He received two Guggenheim fellowships and a grant from the Gren Foundation to study Mayan hieroglyphics.

During WWII, Olson worked in the Office of War Information, then in Roosevelt’s 1944 re-election campaign. Finding no place for an artist in such pursuits, Olson left politics and began writing poetry seriously in the period during which he served as informal secretary to Ezra Pound at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Washington, DC. In 1950 he stepped out of the footsteps of Pound and began the development of post-modern free-verse with Robert Creeley.

In 1957, Olson retreated to Gloucester to concentrate on his own poetry, emerging occasionally, the leader of anew poetic counterculture. He taught briefly in Buffalo and at the University of Connecticut, Storrs. He died in 1970 at the New York Hospital and is buried in Beechwood Cemetery, West Gloucester. Charles Olson was an extremely influential poet. His stature did not lie merely in his physical size but in the mythic dimension of his work.

2017 Gregory Stockmal Reading (9th Annual)

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Thank you to those who attended the 9th Annual Gregory Stockmal Reading which was held on Wednesday, October 18 at Clark University and featured Pam Bernard.

The annual Gregory Stockmal Reading continues the efforts of Greg Stockmal to honor American poet Stanley Kunitz and his legacy in Worcester.

The event was co-sponsored by the Friends of the Goddard Library, Clark University, the Gregory Stockmal Fund and the Worcester County Poetry Association.

2018 Gregory Stockmal Reading (10th Annual)

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Wednesday, October 24
7:30 – 9:00 pm

featuring Eleanor Wilner

Assumption College, Curtis Hall Auditorium,
Tsotsis Family Academic Center,
500 Salisbury Street, Worcester

Co-sponsored by the Assumption College Department of English, the Gregory Stockmal Fund and the Worcester County Poetry Association.

2019 Gregory Stockmal Reading (11th Annual)

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Wednesday, October 16, 2019 – 7:30pm
Anna Maria College, Zecco Performing Arts Center
50 Sunset Lane, Paxton

Each year the Worcester County Poetry Association partners with a local college or university to present a poet who had a connection to poet Stanley Kunitz. This year we welcomed Patrick Donnelly as our reader at the 11th Annual Gregory Stockmal Reading on Wednesday, October 16th. The reading was hosted by Anna Maria College in Paxton and started at 7:30pm.

Stockmal Reading Original FlyerDownload

Frank O’Hara

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A True Account Of Talking To The Sun On Fire Island

 

The Sun woke me this morning loud
and clear, saying “Hey! I’ve been
trying to wake you up for fifteen
minutes. Don’t be so rude, you are
only the second poet I’ve ever chosen
to speak to personally

so why
aren’t you more attentive? If I could
burn you through the window I would
to wake you up. I can’t hang around
here all day.”

“Sorry, Sun, I stayed
up late last night talking to Hal.”

“When I woke up Mayakovsky he was
a lot more prompt” the Sun said
petulantly. “Most people are up
already waiting to see if I’m going
to put in an appearance.”

I tried
to apologize “I missed you yesterday.”
“That’s better” he said. “I didn’t
know you’d come out.” “You may be
wondering why I’ve come so close?”
“Yes” I said beginning to feel hot
wondering if maybe he wasn’t burning me
anyway.

“Frankly I wanted to tell you
I like your poetry. I see a lot
on my rounds and you’re okay. You may
not be the greatest thing on earth, but
you’re different. Now, I’ve heard some
say you’re crazy, they being excessively
calm themselves to my mind, and other
crazy poets think that you’re a boring
reactionary. Not me.

Just keep on
like I do and pay no attention. You’ll
find that people always will complain
about the atmosphere, either too hot
or too cold too bright or too dark, days
too short or too long.

If you don’t appear
at all one day they think you’re lazy
or dead. Just keep right on, I like it.

And don’t worry about your lineage
poetic or natural. The Sun shines on
the jungle, you know, on the tundra
the sea, the ghetto. Wherever you were
I knew it and saw you moving. I was waiting
for you to get to work.

And now that you
are making your own days, so to speak,
even if no one reads you but me
you won’t be depressed. Not
everyone can look up, even at me. It
hurts their eyes.”
“Oh Sun, I’m so grateful to you!”

“Thanks and remember I’m watching. It’s
easier for me to speak to you out
here. I don’t have to slide down
between buildings to get your ear.
I know you love Manhattan, but
you ought to look up more often.

And
always embrace things, people earth
sky stars, as I do, freely and with
the appropriate sense of space. That
is your inclination, known in the heavens
and you should follow it to hell, if
necessary, which I doubt.

Maybe we’ll
speak again in Africa, of which I too
am specially fond. Go back to sleep now
Frank, and I may leave a tiny poem
in that brain of yours as my farewell.”

“Sun, don’t go!” I was awake
at last. “No, go I must, they’re calling
me.”
“Who are they?”

Rising he said “Some
day you’ll know. They’re calling to you
too.” Darkly he rose, and then I slept.

Frank O’Hara

 

Frank O’Hara’s early life hinted at American themes of mobility, touches of the rural upbringing, and a first rate education. Born to Russell O’Hara and Katherine Broderick in Baltimore, Maryland, on June 27, 1926, Frank and family returned to 12 North Street in Grafton where he grew in the embraces of his parents, brother John (Phil) and sister Maureen. O’Hara’s father and his Uncle Leonard ran a family business comprised of a dairy farm, a John Deere agency, livestock dealership, and a small hardware store for farmers. The family also owned many farms, a lumber mill in Northbrook, and a 1,200 tree apple orchard in Milford.

Photo: Fred McDarragh

The O’Hara household was lively, with artistic parents. Russell was a pianist, and both parents were involved with community activities. A great part of their lives included love of music, books, art, theater, movies, and politics. (Members of the family still claim to be Democrats.)The welcomed lively discussions and differences. As a teenager Frank talked about returning when older and raising dogs on Tower Hill Farm on Sibley Street, one of the three farms the family owned. Though time crafted other plans, O’Hara spent many summer days at Kitville, a town beach on Route 140 East toward Upton. During later summers, Frank virtually lived at the Red Barn Summer Stock Theater in Westborough, a bit to the east of Grafton. Other influences shaping Frank’s aesthetic sensibilities included livestock and apples, St. John’s High School in Worcester, the colorful, mellow, seven hills on which Worcester and the surrounding towns stand.

O’Hara’s travels began with his studies of piano at the New England Conservator of Music between 1941-1944. Then the wider world and its complicities landed him on the USS Nicholas, where he worked as a sonar man in the pacific Theatre during World War II. He returned to attend Harvard on the G.I. Bill, meeting up in Cambridge with John Ashbery, a poetic kinship that will anchor, along with Barbara Guest, Kenneth Koch, and James Schuyler, the New York School of Poetry. But first came the University of Michigan, where he earned an MA in English Literature.

While the restless world called him, Grafton and family life are found in Frank’s short, surrealistic plays such as Try! Try! and Change Your Bedding. And where O’Hara’s poetry is not confessional in the way of Kunitz, where he does not catalogue his places and thoughts like Olson, nor revisit key events in childhood like Bishop’s strong work, childhood is there in “Poem (There I Could Not Be a Boy),” “Memorial Day, 1950,” and an early poem he wrote for his sister, “The Spoils of Grafton”:
Oh piano! Hire a moving van!
Put down the Mendelssohn and run!

The tension between what shaped him, and the need for distance from what shaped him, also turns up in “Autobiographia Literaria,” Here, O’Hara speaks of the alienation he felt in schoolyards as a boy, and yet,
And here I am, the
center of all beauty!
writing these poems!
Imagine!

O’Hara’s love of the place and the people of New York defined his mature life. His work a MOMA, criticism for Artnews, and the poems – sometimes scribbled at lunchtime – cemented his place in the pantheon of New York artists during the turbulent late 1950s and early 1960s. In 1960, O’Hara was named Curator of Painting and Sculpture Exhibitions. He curated and wrote the catalogues for four major shows at MOMA. Yet for all his love of the visual arts, O’Hara’s poetry is what summons us.

With the publication of Meditations in an Emergency (Grove, 1957) he began to share with a wider public the brilliance and spontaneity of his thought and writing. He called his method Personism, which he defined as writing that addresses a poem to one person, creating a tone that involves a powerful inclusivity and love. In poems such as “Having a Coke with You” and “The Day Lady Died,” we enter a living world at times comic, burlesque, political, full of anxiety, difficult to summarize. The poem “A True Account of Talking to the Sun at Fire Island” (dated July 10, 1958) captures both the guises:
always embrace things, people earth
sky stars, as I do, freely and with
the appropriate sense of space. That
is your inclination, known in the heavens
and you should follow it to hell, if
necessary, which I doubt.

O’Hara died on Fire Island in 1966.

Celebrating Frank O’Hara Thursday, November 19, 2009

A talk for the Worcester Country Poetry Association at the Worcester Art Museum, November 19, 2009

Submissions open for the 2020 WCPA Annual Contest: The Frank O’Hara Prize

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JUDGING & AWARDS:
First Place: $100 – Second Place: $50 – Third Place: $25
Winning poems will be published in The Worcester Review, after which all rights revert to the poet.
Contest winners will be announced in June 2020.
Winners’ Reading & Award Reception to be held September 2020.
Submissions will not be returned. Entrants who wish to be notified of contest results must enclose a self-addressed, stamped envelope with their entry.
Contest Judge:  Doug Holder
2020 Contest Chairs:  Bob Gill and Chris Reilley

submit

For full contest information, including rules, eligibility, and guidelines, please visit the WCPA Annual Contest: The Frank O’Hara Prize page.

About the Judge: Doug Holder is the founder of the Ibbetson Street Press of Somerville, MA. He teaches creative writing at Endicott College, and College Writing at Bunker Hill Community College. Holder’s work, both poetry and prose, have appeared in Rattle, Sahara, Cafe Review, Woven Tale Press, The Boston Globe, Poetry Quarterly, Toronto Quarterly, Boston Literary Magazine, and many other publications. He is also the winner of the Allen Ginsberg Award from Newton Writing and Publishing Center in 2015.

Bloomsday 2015

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The Worcester County Poetry Association celebrated with our annual Worcester Ramble, which took place from 8:00 a.m. to 9: 30 p.m. on June 16th.

Bloomsday is open to the public and anyone is welcome to read during the event. Of course, listening is just fine as well.

The schedule

TimeLocationEpisodeChapter
8:00 – 9:30 amBancroft TowerTelemachus#1
10:00 – 11:30 amPrivate home followed by Institute ParkNestor#2
Noon – 1:30 pmArmsby Abbey *Wandering Rocks#10
2:00 – 3:30 pmWorcester Public LibrarySirens#11
4:00 – 5:30 pmBurnside Fountain (aka the Turtle Boy Statue) **Aeolus#7
6:00 – 7:30 pmBoynton Restaurant *Cyclops#12
8:00 – 9:30 pmEspress Yourself Cafe *Ithaca#17

Gallery

Bloomsday 2016

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The Worcester County Poetry Association celebrated with our annual Worcester Ramble, which took place from 8:00 a.m. to 9: 30 p.m. on June 16th.

Bloomsday is always open to the public and anyone is welcome to read during the event. Of course, listening is just fine as well.

The schedule

TimeLocationEpisodeChapter
8:00 – 9:30 amBancroft Tower
Salisbury Park, Bancroft Tower Road, Worcester		Telemachus and Nestor#1 & 2
10:00 – 11:30 amWorcester Public Library
3 Salem Square, Worcester		Cyclops#12
Noon – 1:30 pmTatnuck Grille *
638 Chandler Street, Worcester		Lestrygonians#8
2:00 – 3:30 pmCascading Waters
135 Oleans Street, Worcester		Wandering Rocks#10
4:00 – 5:30 pmAnnie’s Book Stop
65 James Street, Worcester		Oxen of the Sun#14
6:00 – 7:30 pmBoynton Restaurant *
117 Highland Street, Worcester		Scylla and Charybdis#9
8:00 – 9:30 pmEspress Yourself Cafe *
2 Richmond Avenue, Worcester		Penelope#18

Gallery

Bloomsday 2017

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The Worcester County Poetry Association celebrated with our annual Worcester Ramble, which took place from 8:00 a.m. to 9: 30 p.m. on June 16th. Bloomsday is always open to the public and anyone is welcome to read during the event. Of course, listening is just fine as well.

The schedule for the day

TimeLocationEpisode
8:00 – 9:30 amBancroft Tower
Salisbury Park, Bancroft Tower Road, Worcester		Telemachus and Nestor
10:00 – 11:30 amIrish Breakfast at First Unitarian Church
90 Main Street, Worcester		Wandering Rocks
Noon – 1:30 pmFigs & Pigs Kitchen and Pantry *
50 Foster Street, Worcester		Aeolus
2:00 – 3:30 pmWorcester Historical Museum
30 Elm Street, Worcester Seating Limited. Registration required. 		Scylla and Charybdis
4:00 – 5:30 pmOutdoors at The Oaks, the Daughters of the American Revolution Worcester Chapter
140 Lincoln Street, Worcester		Oxen of the Sun
6:00 – 7:30 pmThe Church Pews at Nick’s Bar*
124 Millbury Street, Worcester		Sirens
8:00 – 9:30 pmEspress Yourself Cafe*
2 Richmond Avenue, Worcester		Cyclops

Gallery

Bloomsday 2018

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The Worcester County Poetry Association celebrated Bloomsday with our annual Worcester Ramble, which took place from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. on June 16th.  Bloomsday is always open to the public, and all are welcome to read during the event. Of course, listening is welcomed as well. For 2018 we did things a little different, using 6 locations instead of 8, because we always seem to lack time in actually finishing a full episode.

Thanks to our talented organizers, Kristina England and Jay Lavelle, for putting together a great event.  Special thanks to our guest facilitators, Sharon Legasey and Robert Steele, who stepped in while one of the regular organizers took care of some personal business.

Thanks to the Pulse Magazine and the Worcester Telegram & Gazette for writing articles about our 23rd Annual Ramble.  Let them know you appreciate the coverage of poetry by leaving a comment on the articles or sharing them on social media.

2018 Schedule

TimeLocationsEpisodeChapter
8:00 – 9:30 amBancroft Tower
Salisbury Park, Bancroft Tower Road, Worcester
Please bring folding chairs or a blanket.
Telemachus, Nestor#1 & 2
10:00 – noonInstitute Park
82 Salisbury Street, Worcester
Scylla and Charybdis, Wandering Rocks#9 & 10
12:30 – 2:00 pmThe Wonder Bar *
121 Shrewsbury Street, Worcester
Aeolus, Lestrygonians#7 & 8
2:30 – 4:30 pmWorcester Public Library
3 Salem Square, Worcester
Circe#15
5:00 – 7:00 pmO’Connor’s Restaurant *
1160 W Boylston Street, Worcester
Sirens, Cyclops#11 & 12
7:30 – 9:00 pmThe Old Stone Church
180 Beaman Street (Rt. 140), West Boylston
Please bring lanterns for after sunset and folding chairs.
Lotus Eaters, Hades#5 & 6

Gallery

Photos courtesy of Robert Steele

The WCPA is thankful to the following locations that allowed us to read on their property or at their establishments…

City of Worcester
  Bancroft Tower
  Institute Park
  Worcester Public Library, Salem Sq.

The Wonder Bar

O’Connor’s Restuarant

The Old Stone Church

2019 WCPA Annual Poetry Contest: The Frank O’Hara Prize

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The WCPA is excited to announce the winners of the 2019 Annual Poetry Contest: the Frank O’Hara Prize. Contest judge Rachel McKibbens has selected the following poets for recognition.

First prize has been award to Worcester poet Carolyn Oliver for her poem “Rhododendrons.” Carolyn’s poetry has appeared or is forthcoming in FIELD, Indiana Review, The Shallow Ends, The Greensboro Review, Booth, Glass, Southern Indiana Review, and elsewhere. She is the winner of the Writer’s Block Prize in Poetry, selected by Maggie Smith.

Additional prizes are being awards as follows:

Second prize – Jacqueline Morrill – “Unhinged”
Third prize – Jennifer Freed – “RIPTIDE”
Honorable Mention – bg Thurston – “Gladiolas”

A Winners’ Reading took place on Sunday, September 29, 2019, at the First Unitarian Church (Main Street, Worcester) at 3:00 pm. The contest winners read their work followed by a reception and a featured performance by our contest judge, Rachel McKibbens.

Congratulations to all of the winners!

2015 Archive

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The year needs a nice summary paragraph before going directly into the events. Content needed.

WCPA Annual Meeting and Board Elections

Worcester Poetry Pop-Up

College Poetry Competition

National Poetry Month Highlights!

Bloomsday 2015

The 2015 Stanley Kunitz Award was presented to Michael D. True, PhD

WCPA Annual Poetry Contest: The Frank O’Hara Prize

7th Annual Gregory Stockmal Reading

2016 Archive

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WCPA Annual Meeting and Board Elections

Second Annual Judith O’Connell Hoyer Poetry Reading

9th Annual College Poetry Contest

Free People’s Workshop: A Reunion Reading

April Flyers and posters

21th Annual Bloomsday Ramble

2016 Stanley Kunitz Medal Award Winner Dan Lewis

2016 WCPA Poetry Contest: the Frank O’Hara Prize

Eigth Annual Gregory Stockmal Reading

2017 Archive

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Requires a nice yearly summary before launching into the complete archives.

WCPA Annual Meeting and Board Elections

Congratulations to the winners of the 2017 WCPA College Poetry Contest

22nd Annual Bloomsday Ramble

2017 Presentation of the Stanley Kunitz Medal to Carle Johnson

Congratulations to the winners of the WCPA Annual Poetry Contest: The Frank O’Hara Prize

9th Annual Gregory Stockmal Reading

Library Update

2018 Archive

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Requires a nice yearly summary to be drafted before launching into the archives folders.

WCPA Annual Meeting and Board Elections

Congratulations to the winners of the 2018 College Poetry Contest Reading

April was once again National Poetry Month

Bloomsday 2018

Congratulations to Judith Ferrara Winner of the 2018 Stanley Kunitz Medal

WCPA Annual Poetry Contest Winners’ Reading: The Frank O’Hara Prize

A Tale of Two Cities, Worcester – USA & UK

10th Annual Gregory Stockmal Reading

A Recitation from Memory of T.S. Eliot’s Four Quartets

2019 Archive

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A summary of the year. Content needed.

WCPA Annual Meeting and Board Elections

12th Annual College Poetry Competition Finalists’ Reading

Congratulations to Fran Quinn, Winner of the 2019 Stanley Kunitz Medal

Winners’ Reading for the WCPA’s Annual Poetry Contest The Frank O’Hara Prize

A Reading of the Epic of Gilgamesh

A Tribute to Elizabeth Bishop

11th Annual Gregory Stockmal Reading featuring Patrick Donnelly

Love Unknown: The Life and Worlds of Elizabeth Bishop.

For all the Tea in Zhōngguó – a Dual Language Reading

2018 WCPA Annual Poetry Contest: The Frank O’Hara Prize

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Congratulations to the Winners

Contest judge Regie Gibson selected three additional poems to honor.

The WCPA is pleased to announce that Jeff Walt of San Diego, CA, has won First Place in this year’s WCPA Poetry Contest: The Frank O’Hara Prize for his poem “The World is Ending on the East Coast.”

Second Place – Nicole DiCello of Worcester, MA for “Electra 101”
Third Place – Malt Schlitzman of Worcester, MA for “This Rage Dies with Me”
Honorable Mention – Michael Morlock of Berlin, MA for “Speak of the Moment”

A Winners’ Reading was held on Sunday, September 23. The winners, along with the contest judge, shared their work.   

2017 WCPA Annual Poetry Contest: The Frank O’Hara Prize

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Congratulations to the winners of the WCPA Annual Poetry Contest: The Frank O’Hara Prize!

First Place – Richard Fox
Skating on the Edge of Flesh

Second Place – Jeff Walt
Each Morning I Rise Like a Sleepwalker and Rot a Little More

Third Place – Jennifer Freed
On Their Anniversary She Whispers His Name

Honorable Mention – Marsha Kunin
In the Garden of the Blind Barbarian

The Winners’ Reading was held on Sunday, September 24 where we heard from the winners and the contest judge, Lori Desrosiers.

Thanks to the First Unitarian Church, 90 Main St, Worcester, for hosting us once again and to all the volunteers who made the event possible.

2016 WCPA Annual Poetry Contest: The Frank O’Hara Prize

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Congratulations to the winners of the 2016
WCPA Poetry Contest: the Frank O’Hara Prize!!!

First place – Heather Treseler for Voyeur in June

Second place – Janet Shainheit for Harvey Atkins
Third Place – Barbara Ungar for Global Weirding

Honorable Mentions
Judith Robbins for Worcester, Mass. June 9, 1953
Leone Scanlon for My Seventy-Sixth Year
Rhett Watts for Summer’s End
John Garton for Istanbul Mosaic

Contest Judge:  Henry Walters
2016 Contest Chair:  Robert Steele

The Winners’ Reading was held on Sunday, September 25, 2016 at 2:00pm in the Bancroft Room at the First Unitarian Church (90 Main Street, Worcester).

Contest winners, and contest judge, Henry Walters, read their work.  Refreshments, provided by the
community were enjoyed along with a chance to mingle with the winners and fellow poets.

2015 WCPA Annual Poetry Contest: the Frank O’Hara Prize

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Congratulations to the winners:

Jennifer Freed – Honorable Mention
“The Thing With(out) Feathers”

John Eisner – Third Prize
“Bullets in Water”

Anne Marie Lucci – Second Prize
“Rules for Happiness”

Emily Ferrara – First Prize
“On the Morning of the Third Supermoon”

Contest Judge:  Dawn Potter
2015 Contest Chair:  Robert Steele

The Winner’s Reading was held on Sunday, September 27th
at the First Unitarian Church, Main Street, Worcester. 

Poems from the winners and contest judge appear in
The Worcester Review Volume XXXVI.

2015 College Poetry Competition

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8th Annual College Poetry Competition Finalists’ Reading
Saturday, April 11, 2015      Worcester Public Library, Saxe Room

The Worcester County Poetry Association inaugurated the College Poetry Competition in 2008 to encourage and recognize the next generation of poets.  The finalists are nominated by faculty and administrators at colleges in Worcester County.

Submissions are judged for the Manuscript Prize and finalists are asked to perform one submitted poem for the Performance Prize.

Students compete for a cash award and a one-year WCPA membership in each category. The winning entry for the Manuscript Prize will be Fall 2015WCPA literary journal, The Worcester Review. 

Congratuations to Allison Indyk of WPI on winning the 2015 Manuscript and Performance Prizes.  The judges also recognized Sarah Leidhold of Worcester State University as runner-up in the Performance Prize.

Finalists:

Anna Maria College: Andrew Scott Farrar

Assumption College: Sam Hutchings

Clark University: Levi Byrne

College of the Holy Cross: Marianne Muro

Fitchburg State University: Jonathan M. Berglind

MCPHS University: Nora Elghazzawi

WPI: Allison Indyk

Worcester State University: Sarah Leidhold

Judges
Liz Heath
Cheryl Savageau

Contest Chair
Jim Cocola

Finalist Bios

Anna Maria College: Andrew Scott Farrar, Paxton, MA
I grew up in Paxton, Massachusetts, and moved away after high school to work and travel. After spending a couple of years in Boston, I moved back to Central Mass to return to my education. Reading and writing have always been definitive hobbies of mine, that along with traveling.

Assumption College: Sam Hutchings
Sam Hutchings is a Junior English Major, and has had several poems published in The Worcester Journal and Boston Review.

Clark University: Levi Byrne, Reading, PA
I was born in Reading, Pennsylvania and lived in several different states before coming to Massachusetts for college. Books and poetry have always been a huge part of my life, and I’ve experimented with writing various forms of poetry, short stories, and two novels.

College of the Holy Cross: Marianne Muro, Bolton, CT
Marianne Muro hails from Bolton, Connecticut. She is currently a senior at the College of the Holy Cross and will be graduating this spring with a B.A. in English and a minor in Education. Marianne plans to attend law school next year in pursuit of a degree in education law.

Fitchburg State University: Jonathan M. Berglind, Leominster, MA
Jonathan Berglind resides in Leominster Massachusetts. He is the production editor of Detour, an online zine run by students of Fitchburg State University. He is a Film/Video major with a minor in professional writing and wants to write screenplays and fiction professionally. Jonathan was unable to attend the finalist reading.

MCPHS University: Nora Elghazzawi, Newton, MA
I am a second year PharmD Student at MCPHS. I am studying to become a clinical Pharmacist with a specialty in Pediatrics. I am from Newton, Massachusetts, and went to Newton North High School.

WPI: Allison Indyk, Wappingers Falls, NY
Allison Indyk is a senior biomedical engineering student at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and plans to pursue a career as a physician in medicine. She uses writing as a way to stay connected to her values and creativity and uses it as a means to explore the human experience through such self expression.

Worcester State University: Sarah Leidhold, Acushnet, MA
Sarah Leidhold is a senior in the honors program at Worcester State University from Acushnet, Massachusetts. She is the winner of the Barbara Pilon Poetry Contest (2014) and third place in the Commonwealth Honors Project Competition for a chapbook of poems, “Superfluous Sincerity” (2014). An English and Education double major, Sarah is currently completing her teaching internship in Worcester while writing poems and book reviews.

Contest Judges

Liz Heath has been writing poetry for 17 years and performing for almost 10. She’s participated in slams, workshops, demo slams and school performances. She is an organizer for 7 Hills Slam, Worcester’s poetry slam venue. She’s self publicized 2 books of poetry (Re-arranging the Alphabet and This Is My Therapy). Her poetry talks about life, love, redefining beauty and raccoon men. She was a finalist in the first WCPA college poetry contest in 2008.

Of Abenaki and French Canadian heritage, Cheryl Savageau was born in central Massachusetts. She graduated from Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts, and studied writing at the People’s Poets and Writers Workshop in Worcester. She is the author of the poetry collections Home Country (1992), Dirt Road Home: Poems (1995) nominated for the Pulitzer Prize, and Mother/Land (2006).

Contest Chair

Jim Cocola is an Assistant Professor of Literature, Film, and Media in the Department of Humanities and Arts at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and has also served on the faculty of the Language and Thinking Program at Bard College. His essays and poems have appeared in publications including the minnesota review, n+1, Polis, VIA: Voices in Italian Americana, and The Worcester Review.

2016 College Poetry Competition

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9th Annual College Poetry Competition Finalists’ Reading
Sunday, April 10, 2016      Worcester Public Library, Saxe Room

Congratulations to the Winners

Manuscript Prize
Andrew Scott Farrar
Marissa Dakin (runner-up)
Travis Norris (runner-up)

Performance Prize Marissa Dakin

Finalists
Anna Maria College: Andrew Scott Farrar

Assumption College: Marissa Dakin

Clark University: Sarah Wells

College of the Holy Cross: Dani Burford

Fitchburg State University: Roxxanna Kurtz

MCPHS University: Allison McFarland

WPI: Travis Norris

Worcester State University: Melissa Dognazzi

Judges
Polly Brown and Tony Brown

Contest Chair
Jim Cocola

About the Competition

The Worcester County Poetry Association inaugurated the College Poetry Competition in 2008 to encourage and recognize the next generation of poets. The finalists are nominated by faculty and administrators at colleges in Worcester County.

Submissions are judged for the Manuscript Prize and finalists are asked to perform one submitted poem for the Performance Prize.

Students compete for a cash award and a one-year WCPA membership in each category. The winning entry for the Manuscript Prize will be Fall 2015 WCPA literary journal, The Worcester Review.

Finalist Bios

Anna Maria College: Andrew Scott Farrar, Paxton, Massachusetts
Andrew Scott Farrar grew up in Paxton, Massachusetts, and moved away after high school to work and travel. After spending a couple of years in Boston, he moved back to Central Mass to return to his education. Reading and writing have always been definitive hobbies of his, that along with traveling.

Assumption College: Marissa Dakin, Pembroke, Massachusetts
Marissa Dakin is a sophomore at Assumption College originally from Pembroke, Massachusetts. She is a English Literature and Political Science double major with minors in Spanish and philosophy. Her hobbies include dyeing her hair and forgetting every interesting thing about her when people ask what she does for fun.

Clark University: Sarah Wells, Montpelier, VT
As an English Major (with double minors in Physics and Computer Science) writing has always been an important part of my life. I started writing poetry when I was very young and simply never grew tired of it. With my different areas of study I often find myself writing poetry that involves aspects of science as a way to connect all the subjects I love so much!

College of the Holy Cross: Dani Burford, La Crescenta, California
Dani Burford is a senior English major at the College of the Holy Cross, where she is writing a collection of poems entitled Voice Box for her honors thesis. She is a California native whose hometown of La Crescenta
is nestled just outside the city of Los Angeles. Besides using her writing to chronicle her life adventures, Dani also collects rocks from every place she has ever visited.

Fitchburg State University: Roxxanna Kurtz, Fitchburg, Massachusetts
Roxxanna Kurtz is from Fitchburg, Massachusetts where she currently lives with a tall British man and two cats (one’s a bit odd while the other is secretly a dragon). I have been writing since the fourth grade, with well over a thousand pieces to my name. Some of my published works can be found in an edition of the Marble Collection and three volumes of Route 2.

MCPHS University: Allison McFarland, Plainville, Massachusetts
Allie McFarland is in her third year at MCPHS University, majoring in Health Psychology. Originally from Plainville, MA, Allie’s creative interests include poetry, sketch comedy, and playwriting.

WPI: Travis Norris, Austin, Texas
Travis Norris is a sophomore at WPI double majoring in Robotics Engineering and Writing. He is originally from Austin, Texas, but is involved at WPI in improv comedy, the admissions office, and various clubs. Travis views writing as an opportunity to express stories that otherwise wouldn’t be shared.

Worcester State University: Melissa Dognazzi, Worcester, Massachusetts
Melissa Dognazzi is a practicing writer with a focused passion in the arts community. Although she initially wanted to chase the life of a performer, she has discovered her place among literary artists in her work as a poet, grant writer, and arts reviewer.

Contest Judges

A member of Boston’s long-standing Every Other Thursday Poets, Polly Brown has two chapbooks, Blue Heron Stone, and Each Thing Torn From Any of Us. She taught for 25 years at Touchstone Community School in Grafton, and blogs about the daily texture of progressive education at ayeartothinkitover.com. She won the Worcester County Poetry Award about a million years ago. Recent poems have appeared in The Worcester Review, Clade Song, and Soundings East.

Tony Brown is a Worcester based poet who has read at, performed at, and run poetry events all over the US for the last thirty years. A four time Pushcart Prize nominee whose work has been published in many anthologies and journals, he has also had a long-standing association with the national poetry slam community. Currently, he also fronts the poetry and music ensemble The Duende Project, who are in the process of recording their sixth album. A new chapbook, The Embers, will be published by Tired Hearts Press this year.

Contest Chair

Jim Cocola is an Associate Professor of Literature, Film, and Media in the Department of Humanities and Arts at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and has also served on the faculty of the Language and Thinking Program at Bard College. His essays and poems have appeared in publications including the minnesota review, n+1, Polis, VIA: Voices in Italian Americana, and The Worcester Review.

2017 College Poetry Competition

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10th Annual College Poetry Competition Finalists’ Reading
Sunday, April 2, 2017       Worcester Public Library, Saxe Room

Congratulations to the winners of the 2017 WCPA College Poetry Contest

Manuscript Prize
Julie de Oliveira – winner
Carmellite Chamblin – honorable mention

Performance Prize
Rheannon Swire – winner
Morgan DeAngelis – honorable mention

The Nominees

Maria Gurriere, of Anna Maria College and Dudley, MA
Rheannon Swire, of Assumption College and Stoughton, MA
Faith Chesbrough of Fitchburg State University and Leominster, MA
Ryan Kingsley, of Holy Cross and North Attleboro, MA
Carmellite Chamblin, of MCPHS University and Malden, MA
Julie de Oliveira, of Quinsigamond Community College and Worcester, MA
Morgan DeAngelis, of WPI and Mountain View, CA
Isaac Church, of Worcester State University and Java Center, NY

The reading was held on Sunday, April 2, 2017 in the Saxe Room at Worcester Public Library (3 Salem Square, Worcester)

Student Bios

Maria Gurriere (age 21) is an English major at Anna Maria College. Her deep passion for music, as a clarinetist, guitarist, and vocalist, inspired the poem “The Life of Music.” A lifelong condition called Sound-Color Synesthesia inspired “The Rainbow of Life,” and a lifetime of many chronic illnesses inspired “The Many Pieces of Me.” Maria is from Dudley, Massachusetts.

Rheannon Swire is a senior at Assumption College majoring in Human Services with a double minor in English and Psychology. She has been writing poetry since middle school and since she talks about poetry every chance she gets, the entire Assumption community believes that she is an English major. Rheannon lives in Stoughton, Massachusetts.

Faith Chesbrough is a Professional Writing major at Fitchburg State University. She grew up in the Leominster-Fitchburg area and still resides there. She has always had a passion for all things art including reading, writing, theatre, and speech giving.

Raised in North Attleboro, Massachusetts, Ryan Kingsley is a senior English major at the College of the Holy Cross, where he is completing an honors thesis, a collection of poems titled “Bird on the Horizon.” In his writing, Ryan explores the relationship between the human and “natural” realms as he seeks to understand the out of sight worlds they share. He loves four sisters, two turtles, a canoe, and a superfluous collection of pens.

My name is Carmellite Chamblin; I am 20 years old and an avid reader of Haruki Murakami. I reside in Malden MA and currently attend MCPHS University, studying premedical and health studies and minoring in women’s studies.

Julie de Oliveira is a first generation born Brazilian-American who grew up living in Worcester, Massachusetts. She has taken Creative Writing and Poetry courses at Quinsigamond Community College. She hopes to pursue a degree in Latino Studies. Her short stories and poetry bring light to silenced voices of Brazilian immigrants and the fairly recent phenomena of the Brazilian diaspora in America and finding their identity within the U.S. Latino community. Her poem “Saudade” appears in 2106 online issue of The Acentos Review.

My name is Morgan DeAngelis. I am a Sophomore studying Environmental Engineering at WPI. I am a San Francisco Bay Area native who loves hiking, art, and working with my residents as an RA. My friends would tell you that I have a lot of love to give for such a small person and that I can often be found hugging trees for fun.

Isaac Church is a Junior studying English at Worcester State University. He is from Java Center, NY, a little town just south of Buffalo. He enjoys reading, writing, and drawing.

Judges Bios

Jenith Charpentier is the author of three chapbooks, Bending the Water Between Us (2011), Bad at Gravity (2013), and 5 Poems by Jenith Charpentier (Damfino Press, 2015). She represented Worcester’s Poets Asylum at the 2012 Individual World Poetry Slam and as a member of the 2013 National Poetry Slam Team. Jenith’s poetry appears in several publications including OVS, Mas Tequila Review, Wicked Banshee Press, The Orange Room Review, Worcester Magazine, Tipton Poetry Journal, and the anthology Knocking at the Door. She is currently one of the organizers of Worcester’s 7 Hills Slam (http://7hillsslam.wordpress.com/). More information about her work can be found at https://www.facebook.com/jenithcharpentierpoet.

Michael Fisher is the author of The Wolf Spider (Plan B Press), Five Poems by Michael Fisher (Damfino Press) and Libretto for the Exhausted World (Spuyten Duvil Press). His poetry has appeared in numerous journals. He holds an MFA in Poetry from New England College and is an MA candidate in English at Clark University. Currently, he works as an adjunct professor and home/hospital tutor. He lives in Barre, MA.

Contest Chair Bio

Jim Cocola is an Associate Professor of Literature, Film, and Media in the Department of Humanities and Arts at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and has also served on the faculty of the Language and Thinking Program at Bard College. His essays and poems have appeared in publications including the minnesota review, n+1, Polis, VIA: Voices in Italian Americana, and The Worcester Review.

2018 College Poetry Competition

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11th Annual College Poetry Competition Finalists’ Reading
Sunday, April 8, 2018 Worcester Public Library, Banx Room

Congratulations to the winners of the 2018 College Poetry Contest Reading

Runner-up Manuscript Prize
Jessica Hoops

Winner Manuscript Prize and Performance Prize
Jess Locke

The Nominees
Rachel Del Río, of Anna Maria College and Chelsea, MA

Isabella Camasura, of Assumption College and Bristol, CT

Alexandra Larkin, of College of the Holy Cross and Riverside, CT

Jessica Hoops, of Clark University and East Hampton, CT

Mia Pare, of Fitchburg State University and Leominster, MA

Jess Locke, of WPI and Georgetown, MA

Judges
Rushelle Frazier
Heather Macpherson

Contest Chair
Craig Blais
Anna Maria College

Student Bios

Rachel Del Río is a first-generation college student ready to make an example for her siblings and the people growing up in the same city as her. No matter where you come from or what you have been through, there is always a way. She is proud to say she comes from Chelsea, MA.

Born in Orange, CA and raised in Bristol, CT, Isabella Camasura (endearingly Izzy) is the wandering mind that Sir Isaac Newton would have made a spectacle: her thoughts remain in motion unless compelled by an outside force. Like her upbringing, Izzy likes her poetry to explore “coast-to-coast” topics that leave no stone unturned: mental health, science, and social justice to name a few. She enjoys living and loving life flexibly, and writing about what she witnesses even more so.

Jess Hoops is a senior English and Philosophy major, hailing from East Hampton, CT. She is Editor-in-Chief of the Clark Writes blog, President of Clark’s English Honor Society, a writing consultant at Clark’s Writing Center, and an editorial consultant for a literary agency in New York City.

Alexandra Larkin is a senior at College of the Holy Cross from Riverside, Connecticut. She is an English major and Religious Studies minor and enjoys skiing, rock climbing, and reading fantasy novels.

Mia Pare is a graduating English major at Fitchburg State University. Originally from Leominster, MA, Mia hopes to teach English overseas while continuing to write poetry recreationally.

Jess Locke is a junior studying Environmental Engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Their writing tends to focus on topics of social justice, feminism, LGBTQ+ experiences, mental health, and terrible puns. You will most often find Jess perusing the aisles of Walmart at 10PM or filling their time with an excessive number of activities to avoid thinking about The Void™.

Judges Bios

Rushelle Frazier is a spoken word and visual artist based in Worcester, MA. She has been involved with poetry since 2001, hosting poetry readings, workshops, and other cultural events throughout the East coast. Rushelle is a member of the 2002 and 2015 Worcester Adult Slam Team. She has been published most recently in Radius Magazine and Nailed Magazine. Frazier is a past president of the Worcester County Poetry Association and a poetry editor for The Worcester Review. Her latest chapbook, Breakup Sauce, was published by Doublebunny Press.

Heather J. Macpherson writes poetry and essay. Her work has appeared in Blueline, Spillway, The Broken Plate, Gravel, Niche, and other fine places. She has work forthcoming in The Bennington Review and Muriel Rukeyser: A Living Archive. Heather is a PhD candidate in Literature at the University of Rhode Island.

Contest Chair’s Bio

Craig Blais is the author of About Crows (University of Wisconsin Press, 2013), winner of the Felix Pollak Prize in Poetry, and the Florida Book Award. His poems have appeared in Best New Poets, Denver Quarterly, Hotel Amerika, The Southern Review, Western Humanities Review, Yale Review, and elsewhere. Craig’s work has been finalist for the Walt Whitman Award and the National Poetry Series. He earned his MFA from Wichita State University and PhD from Florida State University, and he is Assistant Professor of English at Anna Maria College in Paxton, Massachusetts.

2019 Bishop/Knight Poetry Competition

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12th Annual College Poetry Competition Finalists’ Reading
Saturday, April 6, 2019    
Worcester Popup, 20 Franklin Street, Worcester

Congratulations to the winners of the 2019 College Poetry Contest Reading

Etheridge Knight Performance Prize
Kate Brice of Assumption College
Amber John of the College of the Holy Cross (runner-up)

Elizabeth Bishop Manuscript Prize
Dani Black of Clark University
Ariele Lee of Fitchburg State University (runner-up)

The Nominees
Paula Kneeland, of Anna Maria College and Worcester, MA

Kate Brice, of Assumption College and Colchester, CT

Dani Black, of Clark University and Middleboro, MA

Amber John, of the College of Holy Cross and Austin, TX

Ariele Lee, of Fitchburg State University and Beverly, MA

Jesse Madore, of MCPHS and Salem, NH

Erica Gilman, of Worcester State University and North Brookfield, MA

Michael Clements, of WPI and Exeter, NH

Judges
Susan Roney-O’Brien
Ashley Wonder

Contest Chair
Craig Blais, Anna Maria College

Photos courtesy of Robert Steele and Bob Gill

Student Bios

Paula Kneeland is a resident of Worcester, MA and an advanced standing graduate student in Anna Maria College’s Masters of Social Work Program. She is President of the MSW Student Forum and student representative of the MSW Social Work Advisory Board. After graduation, Paula would like to pursue a clinical career in forensic social work with a concentration in social justice and substance use. Writing random poetry is part of her self-care routine.

Poetry has long been a source of therapy and healing for Kate Brice. She is currently a senior chemistry major at Assumption College, and has only ever taken two creative writing courses. She is from Colchester, Connecticut, and she plans to pursue writing on the side, however informally that may be.

Dani Black is from Middleboro, Massachusetts. She is currently a sophomore at Clark University and studies Creative Writing, Psychology, Women and Gender studies, and Comparative Race and Ethnic studies.

Amber John is a sophomore English and History major at Holy Cross, a member of The Purple literary magazine, and a pre-law student. She comes all the way from Austin, Texas, and hopes to write professionally.

Ariele Lee was born and raised in Beverly, MA. She is a Communications Major/English Minor at Fitchburg State University. She spends most of her time in the car commuting from school because she decided to go to school that was two hours away!

Jesse Madore was born and raised in Salem, NH and is a lover of writing, reading, and dog petting. Jesse attends Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS University) .

Erica Gilman is finishing up her undergraduate studies in Sociology and English at Worcester State State and heading to Rhode Island for a graduate degree in married and family therapy at the University of Rhode Island. She enjoys cycling through small towns, doing hot yoga, and traveling to different coffee shops.

Michael Clements was born and raised around Exeter, New Hampshire. He is currently seeking a degree in Computer Science and a minor in English. In addition to writing and reading poetry, he enjoys participating in the marching band.

Judge bios

Susan Roney-O’Brien lives in Princeton, MA, works with international students and young writers, curates a monthly poetry venue, and is part of 4 X 4, a group of visual artists and poets. She is the Summer Writing Series Coordinator for The Stanley Kunitz Boyhood Home. Her poetry has been published widely and translated into Braille and Mandarin and been nominated for seven Pushcart Prizes. Publications include two chapbooks: Farmwife, the winner of the William and Kingman Page Poetry Book Award, and Earth published by Cat Rock Press. WordTech published Legacy of the Last World in 2016. Aldrich Press, an imprint of Kelsay Books, published Bone Circle, in December 2018. Kelsay Books will publish Thira, a new collection based on ancient Minoan culture, in March, 2020.

Ashley Wonder has been writing for over ten years. Performing professionally for the past five with dynamic passion to give hope to her audiences. She became apart of the Slam Community in 2014. Repping Worcester her hometown, in Oakland 2015, Decatur, GA 2016. Earned Iron Poet Champion held in Worcester, MA at Ralph’s Diner. Performed 2019 Women Of Consequence City Hall in Worcester. She has featured in Troy, New York at Poetic Vibe, all around MA, Boston (Hard Rock Cafe), RI including many colleges and universities such as Holy Cross, Wheelock among others. She enjoys teaching poetry workshops to youth of all ages to show how fun and interactive Spoken Word can be. She also believes in the power of tea and naps.

Contest Chair Bio

Craig Blais is the author of About Crows (University of Wisconsin Press, 2013), winner of the Felix Pollak Prize in Poetry, and the Florida Book Award. His poems have appeared in Best New Poets, Denver Quarterly, Hotel Amerika, The Southern Review, Western Humanities Review, Yale Review, and elsewhere. Craig’s work has been finalist for the Walt Whitman Award and the National Poetry Series. He earned his MFA from Wichita State University and PhD from Florida State University, and he is Assistant Professor of English at Anna Maria College in Paxton, Massachusetts.

Elizabeth Bishop

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All the untidy activity continues,
awful but cheerful.
“The Bight”

In 2011, WCPA ran a year long Centenary Celebration for Elizabeth Bishop (1911-1979).

Other Elizabeth Bishop Thoughts and Events

Inscribing the Stone: Notes from Worcester’s Hope Cemetary

Saturday, May 10, 2008 – 12 Crane/Riverrun

 

Ernest Lawrence Thayer

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One of America’s favorite poems was written within a few yards from the old WCPA office on Chatham Street. Ernest Lawrence Thayer had just returned from California, via Washington, D.C. He had worked for the San Francisco Examiner and had one more comic piece to write for the Sunday edition. At his home on Chatham Street he wrote “Casey at the Bat” to complete his obligation to William Randolph Hearst, owner of the Examiner. It was published first on June 3, 1888, and was soon copied by paper after paper across the country. He then went into helping the Thayer family run their mill in Cherry Valley and did no further writing for publication.

Oh, somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright;
The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light.
And somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children shout;
But there is no joy in Mudville – mighty Casey had stuck out.

Perhaps Thayer was inspired by the June 12, 1880, game when J.Lee Richmond for Worcester, against Cleveland, pitched the first perfect game in professional baseball, facing 27 hitters without any of them getting on base. The site of the old Worcester Agricultural Fairgrounds is now the Becker College quad, where a small monument on Sever Street commemorates the event.

First perfect Game monument