BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//Worcester County Poetry Association - ECPv6.16.3//NONSGML v1.0//EN
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
METHOD:PUBLISH
X-WR-CALNAME:Worcester County Poetry Association
X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org
X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Worcester County Poetry Association
REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H
X-Robots-Tag:noindex
X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H
BEGIN:VTIMEZONE
TZID:America/New_York
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20250309T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20251102T060000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20260308T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20261101T060000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20270314T070000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20271107T060000
END:STANDARD
END:VTIMEZONE
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260301T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260301T160000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20251226T195342Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260109T194239Z
UID:12531-1772373600-1772380800@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:WCPA 2026 Annual Meeting
DESCRIPTION:The annual meeting of the Worcester County Poetry Association will be held in the ball room of The Salisbury House\, followed by a reading by new Worcester Poet Laureate Nicole “Nic” Jean Turner! \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nNicole Jean Turner is the poet laureate of Worcester\, Massachusetts for 2026-2028; a hand-patched\, sticker-smattered\, snagged-lace-layered writer. She writes in cursive to hide butchered spelling that mightotherwise raise suspicion about her master’s degree in writing. \n\n\n\nThat sleight-of-hand humor reflects Turner’s lyrical\, relatable style. Formally described as drawing fromminimalist traditions in a post-confessional mode\, her work intersects fragmented\, voice-driven burnt tongue with layered metaphor across both poetry and prose\, spanning a wide range of audiences\, from inspirational children’s poetry to award-winning formal verse. Turner prefers to be described as just another one of the writers you might find in the dive bar that Worcester’s longest-running weekly poetry event\, the Dirty Gerund Poetry Show\, calls home. A regular reader for more than a decade\, she coaches the slam team and organizes a traveling arm of the show\, repackaging its late-night literary ruckus for museums\, cafés\, and other all-ages audiences. Turner first emerged from the spoken word poetry scene of Syracuse\, New York\, in 2012 under the stage name Nic Jean. Since then\, she has strung literary heartstrings from the Pacific Northwest to New England\, connecting stages\, pages\, and workshop spaces with those drawn to subversive\, DIY\, community-centric work. \n\n\n\nTurner’s authenticity reflects her deep commitment to accessibility\, prioritizing art that meets people where they are. Whether working within more traditional literary spaces or mentoring emerging writers outside a dive bar\, she consistently encourages others to shed their preconceived ideas of what a writer should look or sound like and to claim their own distinct voices and stage presence. \n\n\n\nEducation: Turner holds a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy\, Fine Art\, and Creative Writing from Le Moyne College\, and a Master of Arts in Professional Writing from Regis College. \n\n\n\nBooks: to Unfurl (2023) – Limited copies available through TurnerWith Only Which She Could Carry (UWA\, 2020) – Available to booksellers through Ingram \n\n\n\nMedia Kit: www.pw.org/directory/writers/nicole_jean_turnerOfficial Website: www.NicoleJeanTurner.comContact: Hello@poetry-journal.com
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/wcpa-2026-annual-meeting/
LOCATION:Preservation Worcester Board Room\, 61 Harvard St.\, Worcester\, MA\, 01609\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260302T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260302T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20251124T180422Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251124T180425Z
UID:12457-1772478000-1772485200@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poetry Writing with Catherine Martin
DESCRIPTION:Spend five weeks writing and reading in the dreamy\, sharp\, upside-down\, carefully organized world of poetry! Whether you’re fine tuning your latest epic poem or wrestling with the blank page\, this class is an encouraging and open environment for poets of all levels and backgrounds. Each week you’ll receive a prompt\, two fascinating poems to read\, and thoughtful\, constructive feedback on the poem you’ve brought to share with the class. You’ll have the opportunity to be workshopped by your peers at least twice\, and you’ll receive written feedback from the class every week. \n\n\n\nWe’ll dive into imagery\, form\, repetition\, sound\, and poetic voice. By the end of this session\, you’ll have five poems\, either new or more polished; writing prompts to carry you forward; and a deeper understanding of the building blocks of poetry. \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nInstructor: Catherine Martin  is a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet with work published in Pleiades\, Nimrod International Journal of Prose and Poetry\, Superstition Review\, and others. She loves writing\, reading\, and workshopping with fellow writers and artists. Catherine is currently writing her first manuscript of poetry. She lives in Hopkinton with her family. \n\n\n\nAge: AdultDates: 5 Mondays\, March 2 to 30\, 2026Time: 7 to 9 p.m. \n\n\n\nHCA Policies: Please review our website’s HCA Student Policies and Procedures here. \n\n\n\n\nInjury Waiver: You must agree to the HCA injury waiver to register for classes. \n\n\n\nPhoto Release Agreement: You can agree to the HCA’s Photo Release Agreement during registration.\n\n\n\nWaiting List: If this class is sold out\, it will say so below and will not allow you to register. If so\, please add your name to our waitlist here. \n\n\n\n\nScholarships: The HCA believes the arts are for everyone. Thanks to the generosity of the Dora Kishibay Garabedian Scholarship Fund and individual donations to our scholarship fund\, we can assist children\, teens\, and adults who might not otherwise be able to afford classes. Assistance is awarded based on demonstrated need\, motivation\, and potential benefit to the student. Apply for a scholarship here. \n\n\n\nMEMBERS SAVE ON CLASSES: Your membership helps the HCA change the lives of artists and art lovers through its nurturing faculty\, state-of-the-art facility\, and need-based scholarship program. We are pleased to offer 5% off class costs to HCA Members from the Insider–Plus LEVEL and up.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poetry-writing-with-catherine-martin/
LOCATION:Hopkinton Arts Center\, 98 Hayden Rowe St.\, Hopkinton\, Massachusetts\, 01748\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260303T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260303T200000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260218T162126Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260218T162130Z
UID:12790-1772557200-1772568000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:The Openest Mic Featuring Brian Mosher & Fred Gerhard
DESCRIPTION:The poet\, Fred Gerhard\, recently published his mother’s poetry and will be reading from her works as well as his own. \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nIn 2026\, Fred Gerhard\, author of Drifting to “Hello” (Khotso\, 2023) and Lilacs Still Bloom in Ashburnham (Local Gems\, 2023)\, will be reading his poems and poems from the recently published posthumous collection from his mother\, Rena Gerhard\, The Loving: Selected Poems (Petronella Press\, 2026). \n\n\n\nRena\, who died in 2014 wrote poetry for over five decades in Pennsylvania. Her work is well-crafted and insightful whether writing about love\, family\, God\, or surviving brain cancer. \n\n\n\nFred is widely published in magazines and anthologies. He is a winner of the Art on the Trails competition (2024) and the Poetry in the Pines competition (2023). He is also an editor at Quabbin Quills and Smoky Quartz. \n\n\n\nPraise for Fred’s and Rena’s poetry: \n\n\n\n“The poems in this welcome collection of Fred Gerhard’s work range considerably: from Victorian rooms to the Pennsylvania and New England landscapes he knows intimately; from the psychology of inner experience to the dance of interpersonal relationships; from the noise of the trains that run through all of our lives (and occasionally crash into walls) to the quiet of the ‘dark grape taste of twilight.’  Likewise\, Gerhard’s diverse poetic techniques run the gamut from lucid and conversational free verse to skillful and musical rhyme.  Throughout\, he crafts memorable lines and indelible images\, giving (as he puts it in his tribute to Edgar Allan Poe) ‘consonant to forlorn sound’—and to the sound of joy.” \n\n\n\n—Simon Hunt\, author of Lesser Magi and Endlings \n\n\n\n“As the middle of the Twentieth Century approached\, a young woman near Reading\, Pennsylvania\, took up poetry keenly aware of the thick\, heavy glass ceiling hovering over every line she wrote… \n\n\n\nThe silence seems too tense.One fears to breathe in case one mightThus doing\, cause offense.     \n\n\n\n…she quietly kept at it\, quietly riding that horse\, as she notes in ‘Strange Steed’: \n\n\n\nWhen the wise had gone to bedTo receive their well-earned rest\,Then I watched him as he fed\,And I sat his back\, a guestInstead.” \n\n\n\n—Rodger Martin\, author of The Sleeping Dogs of Lubec\, The Nemo Poems: A Martian Perspective\, The Blue Moon Series\, and For All the Tea in Zhōngguó \n\n\n\n“It is an honor to read Rena Gerhard’s poems\, to touch in after decades with her precision of imagination and her encounters with daily life\, laced with the generosity and intimacy of a ‘trembling heart.’ I love how Gerhard envisions herself standing ‘at the door of a dark night’ and whistling as ‘the beautiful words come running.’ Yet she also wrote herself through suffering. She recognized that she would have to ‘look through the hollows between the words.’  This memorial volume edited by her son\, the poet Fred Gerhard\, will stand as an enduring achievement.” \n\n\n\n—Heather H. Thomas\, author of Vortex Street (FutureCycle Press\, 2018)and former editor of Musings\, poetry column\, Reading Eagle newspaper
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/the-openest-mic-featuring-brian-mosher-fred-gerhard/
LOCATION:Canvas by Coff33 Corp.\, 326 Main Street\, Fitchburg\, Massachusetts\, 01420\, United States
ORGANIZER;CN="Laura DiCaronimo":MAILTO:laura.optician@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260307T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260307T160000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260215T201340Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260305T182006Z
UID:12751-1772892000-1772899200@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Elizabeth Bishop's Motley Menagerie
DESCRIPTION:Due to February’s extreme cold and snow\, Mapping Worcester in Poetry had to put off the annual birthday celebration at Bishop’s grave in Hope Cemetery for a few weeks. Now\, come join us to hear local poets read her poems about cats\, roosters\, armadillos\, horses\, giant toads\, sandpipers\, dogs\, lions\, loons\, moose\, and more.  \n\n\n\nReaders include Elizabeth Bacon\, Rob Baker\, Lisa Connelly Cook\, Judith Ferrara\, the Rev. Daniel Gregoire\, Kate Gregoire\, John Hodgen\, Ann Lewis\, Evan Plante\, Susan Elizabeth Sweeney\, and of course Bishop herself. Animal costumes\, tiger stripes\, leopard spots\, kitten heels\, pigtails\, cowbells and plush toys are all welcome! \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nPhoto of Bishop’s cat Minnow\, courtesy of The Art Part blog\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSign up to read a poem here\, first come\, first served. \n\n\n\nDirections to Bishop’s grave in Hope Cemetery\, 119 Webster Street\,Worcester: Enter the main gate of Hope Cemetery and drive along Curtis Avenue. Take your fourth left onto Beech Avenue (after Elm\, Larch\, and Bush Avenues). Proceed for one short block until you see two trees next to each other on the left side of the road; Bishop’s grave lies behind the first tree (Fig. 7). There is ample space to park close to the gravestone\, and you won’t be able to miss us! \n\n\n\nFor more information\, check out the Mapping Worcester in Poetry webpage\, which includes a downloadable virtual\, driving\, and walking tour that ends at Bishop’s grave.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/elizabeths-motley-menagerie/
LOCATION:E.Bishop Grave at Hope Cemetary\, 119 Webster St.\, Worcester\, MA\, 01603\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260308T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260308T150000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260218T202211Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260218T202215Z
UID:12793-1772974800-1772982000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poets @ Large: Women's Day Spoken Word/Poetry Rading
DESCRIPTION:The public is invited to a spoken word/poetry reading to celebrate International Women’s Day on Sunday\, March 8 th organized by Poets at Large. The free event will be held at The Rose Room\, 4 E. Main St.\, Webster\, MA from 1-3 p.m. Featured readers will be Fred Gerhard\, Meg Smith and Karen Warinsky. There will be an open mic as well. Donations are welcome. \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nFred Gerhard is the author of Drifting to “Hello” (Khotso Publishing\, 2023)\, and Lilacs Still Bloom in Ashburnham (Local Gems Poetry Press\, 2023). His poems have been published in Amethyst Review\, BlazeVOX\, Entropy Magazine\, Friends Journal\, Pif Magazine\, POETiCA REViEW\, and other magazines and anthologies. He is one of the 2023 winners of Poetry in the Pines in New Hampshire\, is the 2024 poetry winner for Art on the Trails in Massachusetts and serves as an editor for Quabbin Quills and for Smoky Quartz. Gerhard is one of the founders of the New Dawn Writers’ Group in Ashburnham where he runs poetry workshops and open mics. Gerhard will also read some poems written by his mother\, Rena Gerhard. Mrs. Gerhard was a published poet who wrote for much of her life\, composed hymns and counterpoint musical pieces and taught Logic at the Penn State Campus in Altoona\, PA. \n\n\n\nMeg Smith is a first-generation Irish-American poet living in Lowell\, Mass. Her poetry has been published widely including in The Cafe Review\, Muddy River Review\, and Lowell Review. She currently serves as content editor for Worcester Magazine\, and as science columnist for the Telegram & Gazette. She is producer of Poe in Lowell\, celebrating Edgar Allan Poe’s visits to Lowell. She welcomes visits to megsmithwriter.com. \n\n\n\nKaren Warinsky is the author of: Gold in Autumn (2020) and Sunrise Ruby (2022)\, both from Human Error Publishing\, Dining with War (2023 Alien Buddha Press)\, and her new release Beauty & Ashes (Kelsay Books 2025)\, and she has published widely in numerous journals and lit magazines. Her poem “Mirage” won first place in the 2024 Ekphrastic Poetry Trust\, she is a Best of the Net nominee and a former finalist of the Montreal International Poetry Contest. Warinsky coordinates spoken word events in MA and CT under the name Poets at Large\, in various venues\, including The Vanilla Bean Café in Pomfret\, CT. She is retired from careers in media and teaching. \n\n\n\nWoodstock based Poets at Large is a project of Windham Arts. All events are ADA compliant and are recommended for ages 16 and up. Contact karen.warinsky@gmail.com to sign up for the open mic; 5-minute max as time allows.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poets-large-womens-day-spoken-word-poetry-rading/
LOCATION:The Rose Room Cafe\, 4 East Main Street\, Webster\, MA\, 01570\, United States
ORGANIZER;CN="Karen Warinsky%2C Poets At Large":MAILTO:karen.warinsky@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260309T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260309T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20251124T181347Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251124T181423Z
UID:12460-1773082800-1773090000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poetry Writing with Catherine Martin
DESCRIPTION:Spend five weeks writing and reading in the dreamy\, sharp\, upside-down\, carefully organized world of poetry! Whether you’re fine tuning your latest epic poem or wrestling with the blank page\, this class is an encouraging and open environment for poets of all levels and backgrounds. Each week you’ll receive a prompt\, two fascinating poems to read\, and thoughtful\, constructive feedback on the poem you’ve brought to share with the class. You’ll have the opportunity to be workshopped by your peers at least twice\, and you’ll receive written feedback from the class every week. \n\n\n\nWe’ll dive into imagery\, form\, repetition\, sound\, and poetic voice. By the end of this session\, you’ll have five poems\, either new or more polished; writing prompts to carry you forward; and a deeper understanding of the building blocks of poetry. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nInstructor: Catherine Martin  is a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet with work published in Pleiades\, Nimrod International Journal of Prose and Poetry\, Superstition Review\, and others. She loves writing\, reading\, and workshopping with fellow writers and artists. Catherine is currently writing her first manuscript of poetry. She lives in Hopkinton with her family. \n\n\n\nAge: AdultDates: 5 Mondays\, March 2 to 30\, 2026Time: 7 to 9 p.m. \n\n\n\nHCA Policies: Please review our website’s HCA Student Policies and Procedures here. \n\n\n\n\nInjury Waiver: You must agree to the HCA injury waiver to register for classes. \n\n\n\nPhoto Release Agreement: You can agree to the HCA’s Photo Release Agreement during registration.\n\n\n\nWaiting List: If this class is sold out\, it will say so below and will not allow you to register. If so\, please add your name to our waitlist here. \n\n\n\n\nScholarships: The HCA believes the arts are for everyone. Thanks to the generosity of the Dora Kishibay Garabedian Scholarship Fund and individual donations to our scholarship fund\, we can assist children\, teens\, and adults who might not otherwise be able to afford classes. Assistance is awarded based on demonstrated need\, motivation\, and potential benefit to the student. Apply for a scholarship here. \n\n\n\nMEMBERS SAVE ON CLASSES: Your membership helps the HCA change the lives of artists and art lovers through its nurturing faculty\, state-of-the-art facility\, and need-based scholarship program. We are pleased to offer 5% off class costs to HCA Members from the Insider–Plus LEVEL and up.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poetry-writing-with-catherine-martin-2/
LOCATION:Hopkinton Arts Center\, 98 Hayden Rowe St.\, Hopkinton\, Massachusetts\, 01748\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260311T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260311T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260224T170959Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260311T001856Z
UID:12818-1773255600-1773262800@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:10th Annual Women's Reading!
DESCRIPTION:On March 11th\, 2025\, the WCPA is proud to host its annual Women’s Zoom Reading. If you would like to attend\, please CLICK HERE. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nHere is the reading list & order of readers: \n\n\n\n1.        Catherine Zebrowski grew up in Worcester County. Worcester has been an inspiration for hertwo novels Sleepwalking Backwards and Through a Bakery Window\, along with poetry\, songsand most recently a memoir\, Me\, Fran and the shadow man\, due to be published in April. \n\n\n\n2.        Rhett Watts has poems in The Worcester Review\, Spoon River Poetry Review\, Naugatuck RiverReview\, The Ekphrastic Review\, One Art\, and other journals. She facilitates writing workshops.Her poems are included in the anthologies: The Mud Chronicles: A New England Anthology\,Knitting into the Mystery\, The Black River: Death Poems\, and The Best Spiritual Writing 2000.Rhett’s books are: Willing Suspension\, The Braiding\, and The Double Nest. She lives with herhusband and Siberian cat twenty-five feet from a brook in MA. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n3.        Linda Warren has worked as a teacher\, Romance novelist and software analyst.  She has published a dozen novels and had poems published in in The Worcester Review\, Diner\, Whiskey Island Magazine\, Naugatuck River Review\, Writing the Land\, and other books and journals.  She fishes the trout and salmon rivers of New England and New Brunswick as often as she can\, and this collection is inspired by those rivers and the hours she has spent standing in them\, casting for fish and for words.  Her first chapbook of fishing poems\, They Say\, has recently been published by Finishing Line Press. \n\n\n\n4.       Susan Elizabeth (Beth) Sweeney’s poems have appeared in Diner\, Worcester Review\, Journal of Irish Literature\, and elsewhere\, and have won an Academy of Poets Prize\, a Frank O’Hara Poetry Prize\, and other awards. Her chapbook\, Hand Me Down\, was a semifinalist in the 2012 New Women’s Voices Competition. Close and Apart\, a sequence of nine poems\, was adapted by composer Matthew Jaskot and performed by a dozen musicians at a world premiere in 2023. A past president of the Worcester County Poetry Association\, Beth now directs Mapping Worcester in Poetry\, an initiative supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation; she guest-curated the exhibit “The Poem Next Door” at the Museum of Worcester in 2024 and recently established the Worcester Poetry Archive there. She holds the postion of Distinguished Professor of Arts and Humanities at the College of the Holy Cross. \n\n\n\n5.        NANCY BAILLIE STRONG lives in Manchester\, NH.  She has workshopped with Jim Beschta  at the Worcester Art Museum and participates in Susan Roney-O’Brien’s virtual workshop. Her work has been published in TOUCHSTONE (PSNH) and SMOKY QUARTZ (Monadnock Writers’ Group)\, and she is featured in OFF THE MARGINS (offthemargins.com). \n\n\n\n6.        Cindy Snow’s writing has appeared online and in the Massachusetts Review\, Peace Review\, Worcester Review\, Crannóg\, and Maria Sibylla Merian: Changing the Nature of Art and Science.  Her poetry has been nominated for a Pushcart\, and her chapbook\, Small Ceremonies\, was published by Slate Roof Press.  Cindy served as a Platte Clove Artist in Residence and was a writing fellow at Cill Rialaig\, Ireland.  She holds an MFA in Poetry from Drew University\, works at Greenfield Community College\, and lives in Shelburne Falls\, MA\, with her family. \n\n\n\n7.         Karen Elizabeth Sharpe lives in Rutland\, Massachusetts with her partner and two rescue dogs. She is the author of Prayer Can Be Anything and This Late Afternoon. A poetry editor for The Worcester Review and executive committee member of the National Baseball Poetry Festival\, her poems appear in SWWIM\, Whale Road Review\, The MacGuffin\, and others. \n\n\n\n8.       Eve Rifkah: was co-founder of Poetry Oasis\, Inc. (1998-2012)\, a non-profit poetry association dedicated to education and promoting local poets. Founder\, and editor DINER\, a literary magazine.She is the 2021 recipient of the Stanley Kunitz award. She lives in Worcester\, MA. The play\, Outcasts the Lepers of Penikese Island\, was based on her first book. She has 6 published books\, none self-published. \n\n\n\n9.        Rev. Dr. Catherine Reed is a graduate of Clark University\,  Kaleo School of Ministry\, Hartford Seminary BMCP\,  Brigham and Women’s Chaplaincy Program\, and attended Boston University School of Theology.    She served as the associate pastor of John Street Baptist Church\, Campus Minister atClark University\, and Protestant  Chaplain of  The College of The Holy Cross.  She is a mother\, grandmother\, and great-grandmother.  Rev. Dr. Catherine Reed is the author of the following publications: Crossing Boundaries\, Between Midnight and Dawn\, Sankofa\, and Fire Goes Out Without Wood and the winner of the Barbara Pilon Poetry Contest and the Dark Horse Third World Contest.  She hosted WCCA TV’s “A Journey of Words.” \n\n\n\n10.   Jina Ortiz holds an MFA from The Solstice MFA Program at Pine Manor College. Her first poetry collection\, Miss Universe (Broadstone Press\, 2025) is a series of persona poems in the voices of the African descendant Miss Universe contestants who have won their country’s crown. Her poetry has been published in Sahara\, Afro-Hispanic Review\, Calabash\, Poui\, New Millennium Writings\, The Caribbean Writer and New Works Review\, Solstice Literary Magazine\, and Worcester Review. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n11.  Muriel Nelson’s publications include Part Song\, winner of the Dorothy Brunsman Poetry Prize (Bear Star Press)\, and Most Wanted\, winner of the ByLine Chapbook Award (ByLine Press). Nominated four times for the Pushcart Prize\, her poems have appeared in Beloit Poetry Journal\, Four Way Review\, Front Porch Journal\, Hunger Mountain\, National Poetry Review\, The New Republic\, Northwest Review\, Ploughshares\, Prairie Schooner\, and Superstition Review\, and on Verse Daily and Poetry Daily. Italian Culture published her critical essay on Eugenio Montale. She holds master’s degrees from the Warren Wilson MFA Program for Writers and the University of Illinois School of Music. \n\n\n\n12.  Diane V. Mulligan is a teacher\, writer\, and artist from Worcester. Her most recent novel is What She Inherits. She has published poems\, essays\, and short stories in many literary magazines over the years including Cognoscenti\, The Ocean State Review\, and Glassworks.Publications: Watch Me Disappear (2012)\, The Latecomers Fan Club (2013)\, and What She Inherits (2017). \n\n\n\nThe poet Jennifer Militello (USA)\, New York\, New York\, June 6\, 2024. Photograph © Beowulf Sheehan\n\n\n\n13.  Jennifer Militello is the Poet Laureate of New Hampshire. She is the author of the hybrid collection Identifying the Pathogen (Tupelo Press\, 2026)\, named a finalist for the FC2 Ronald Sukenick Innovative Fiction Prize\, the memoir Knock Wood\, winner of the Dzanc Nonfiction Prize\, and five collections of poetry\, including\, most recently\, The Pact (Tupelo Press/Shearsman Books\, 2021. Her work has appeared in Best American Poetry\, Best New Poets\, American Poetry Review\, The Nation\, The New Republic\, The Paris Review\, and Poetry. She teaches in the MFA program at New England College. (photo credit: Beowulf Sheehan) \n\n\n\n14.  Carolyn Howe writes poetry to help make sense of the inner and outer worlds that shape our experience of being human. She has published in The Worcester Review and the anthology The Senior Class: 100 Poets on Aging (ed. Laurence Musgrove). She has a chapbook\, Across the Street\, and is working on a collection of poems that speak to challenges facing our nation and world\, tentatively titled Looking Out\, Looking In. Carolyn is Associate Professor\, Emerita at College of the Holy Cross\, end enjoys her retirement with painting and writing poetry at her home on Patch Reservoir in Worcester. \n\n\n\n15.  Kathleen Granchelli spent her career in communications and community relations at a not-for-profit R&D organization following four years teaching English on the high school and freshmancollege levels. Upon retirement\, she reignited her passion for poetry with a focus on writing. Herchapbook\, “For the World\, She Said\,” scheduled to be published later this year\, is drawn fromexperiences living in Australia and Greece and other travels. She lives with her husband\, DavidGranchelli\, in Massachusetts. \n\n\n\n16.  Claire Golding is a freelance writer and editor. She was the 2003 recipient of the Worcester County Poetry Association’s Frank O’Hara Prize\, and has self-published a chapbook\, Poems and Other Offerings (Lulu Press\, 2009). She has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Her poetry has been published in The Worcester Review\, New Millennium Writings\, Contour (as part of the 2017 Tale of Two Cities International Poetry Project with Worcester\, Massachusetts and Worcester\, England)\, The Scenes and Seasons of a Small New England Village\, Penning the Pandemic\, and Last Stanza Poetry Journal. She lives in Princeton\, Massachusetts. \n\n\n\n17.  Polly Brown has happily resettled a family place in western Maine\, where she is growing poems and a few green beans. Her new book\, Stitching\, follows Pebble Leaf Feather Knife\, Each Thing Torn From Any of Us\, and Blue Heron Stone. A new website\, with blog posts\, can be found at pollybrownpoet.com.  \n\n\n\n18.  Robin Boucher: She has taken classes at the Worcester Art Museum\,  Grub Street\, Stanford University and attended workshops like those held at the Stanley Kunitz home\, the Frost Place\, and Mount Monadnock Pastoral Retreats. In 2023\, she was the inaugural poet for the Shawna Shea Foundation’s Library Poetry Tour. Her work has appeared in the Tale of Two Cities Projects\, in a collection of poems from the Slightly Off Beat Poets series\, Worcester Magazine and the Shivering Mouse Art & Poetry Review Vol. One 2025.  \n\n\n\n19.  Cheryl L. Bonin is a bourbon sipping\, baseball watching\, pirate loving\, Neil Diamond singing\, cancerous wench of the breast variety who writes snark filled stories and poetry because it’s cheaper than therapy. Her rantings have been encouraged\, tolerated\, published and/or acknowledged by: her Good Sport Hubby\, random unsuspecting open mic attendees\, The Worcester Review\, Worcester Magazine\, Three Decker\, The National Baseball Poetry Festival\, The Eastport (Maine) Library Review and the 2022 Frank O’Hara Poetry Contest. \n\n\n\n20.  Kathleen Aguero’s most recent book of poetry is World Happiness Index from Tiger Bark Books.Her other poetry collections include After That\, Investigations: The Mystery of the Girl Sleuth\, Daughter Of\, The Real Weather\, and Thirsty Day.She has co-edited three volumes of multi- cultural literature for the University of Georgia Press (A Gift of Tongues\, An Ear to the Ground\, and Daily Fare). A former contributing edior at Kenyon Review\, she is poetry Faculty-at-Large in the Solstice low-residency M.F.A. program at Lasell University and also teaches in Changing Lives through Literature\, an alternative sentencing program. Kathleen has been awarded a 2026 Creative Individuals Grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council. \n\n\n\n21. Eleanor Wilner has nine books of poetry\, most recently Before Our Eyes; New and Selected Poems 1975-2017( Princeton University Press); her awards include the 2019 Frost Medal of the Poetry Society of America for lifelong achievement\,  fellowships from the MacArthur Foundation and the NEA\, the Juniper Prize\, and three Pushcart prizes. She is currently a Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets\, and is a lifelong activist for civil rights and peace.  \n\n\n\n22. Susan Roney O’Brien earned an MFA from Warren Wilson College. Publications include Earth and Farmwife\, Legacy of the Last World\, Bone Circle and Thira. Her work has been translated into Mandarin and Braille\, Susan has been nominated for many Pushcart Prizes and published widely. She was the 2020 recipient of the Stanley Kunitz Medal for Poetry She teaches\, organizes monthly poetry readings and facilitates free poetry workshops. \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nI
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/10th-annual-womens-reading/
LOCATION:Zoom Online Only
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260313T100000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260313T113000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260302T194515Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260302T194518Z
UID:12861-1773396000-1773401400@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Parent Writer Social Hour #2
DESCRIPTION:
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/parent-writer-social-hour-2/
LOCATION:Zoom Online Meeting\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260315T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260315T093000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260225T232344Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260225T232614Z
UID:12821-1773561600-1773567000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Sunrise/Sunset Reading
DESCRIPTION:Sunrise/Sunset Reading: Poetry Bridging Continents.  \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nPoets from USA\, China and Ireland read in three languages. March 15 8:00 AM:  \n\n\n\nThe Zoom link is below: \n\n\n\nhttps://us06web.zoom.us/j/81561710109?pwd=uVtWBOWW33QXJjuncRKwLLRdPaeSPa.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/sunrise-sunset-reading/
LOCATION:Zoom Online Only
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260315T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260315T170000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260315T144508Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260315T144511Z
UID:12961-1773561600-1773594000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Curtin Youth Poetry Workshop #2
DESCRIPTION:Zoom Online Link
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/curtin-youth-poetry-workshop-2/
LOCATION:Zoom Online Only
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260316T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260316T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20251124T181550Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251124T181629Z
UID:12463-1773687600-1773694800@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poetry Writing with Catherine Martin
DESCRIPTION:Spend five weeks writing and reading in the dreamy\, sharp\, upside-down\, carefully organized world of poetry! Whether you’re fine tuning your latest epic poem or wrestling with the blank page\, this class is an encouraging and open environment for poets of all levels and backgrounds. Each week you’ll receive a prompt\, two fascinating poems to read\, and thoughtful\, constructive feedback on the poem you’ve brought to share with the class. You’ll have the opportunity to be workshopped by your peers at least twice\, and you’ll receive written feedback from the class every week. \n\n\n\nWe’ll dive into imagery\, form\, repetition\, sound\, and poetic voice. By the end of this session\, you’ll have five poems\, either new or more polished; writing prompts to carry you forward; and a deeper understanding of the building blocks of poetry. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nInstructor: Catherine Martin  is a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet with work published in Pleiades\, Nimrod International Journal of Prose and Poetry\, Superstition Review\, and others. She loves writing\, reading\, and workshopping with fellow writers and artists. Catherine is currently writing her first manuscript of poetry. She lives in Hopkinton with her family. \n\n\n\nAge: AdultDates: 5 Mondays\, March 2 to 30\, 2026Time: 7 to 9 p.m. \n\n\n\nHCA Policies: Please review our website’s HCA Student Policies and Procedures here. \n\n\n\n\nInjury Waiver: You must agree to the HCA injury waiver to register for classes. \n\n\n\nPhoto Release Agreement: You can agree to the HCA’s Photo Release Agreement during registration.\n\n\n\nWaiting List: If this class is sold out\, it will say so below and will not allow you to register. If so\, please add your name to our waitlist here. \n\n\n\n\nScholarships: The HCA believes the arts are for everyone. Thanks to the generosity of the Dora Kishibay Garabedian Scholarship Fund and individual donations to our scholarship fund\, we can assist children\, teens\, and adults who might not otherwise be able to afford classes. Assistance is awarded based on demonstrated need\, motivation\, and potential benefit to the student. Apply for a scholarship here. \n\n\n\nMEMBERS SAVE ON CLASSES: Your membership helps the HCA change the lives of artists and art lovers through its nurturing faculty\, state-of-the-art facility\, and need-based scholarship program. We are pleased to offer 5% off class costs to HCA Members from the Insider–Plus LEVEL and up.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poetry-writing-with-catherine-martin-3/
LOCATION:Hopkinton Arts Center\, 98 Hayden Rowe St.\, Hopkinton\, Massachusetts\, 01748\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260317T193000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260317T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260216T235419Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260216T235503Z
UID:12770-1773775800-1773781200@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:The 2026 Michael True Memorial Reading
DESCRIPTION:The 2026 Michael True Memorial Reading \n\n\n\nwith novelist Lauren Grodstein \n\n\n\nTuesday\, March 17\, 7:30 PM \n\n\n\nCurtis Performance Hall \n\n\n\nTsotsis Family Academic Center \n\n\n\nAssumption University \n\n\n\nFree and open to the public. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nLauren Grodstein is the author of 6 novels\, including We Must Not Think of Ourselves\,  The New York Times bestseller A Friend of the Family\, and\, the Washington Post Book of the Year The Explanation for Everything. Her most recent novel is A Dog in Georgia.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/the-2026-michael-true-memorial-reading/
LOCATION:Curtiss Performance Hall\, Tsotsis Family Academic Center\, Assumption College\, 500 Salisbury St\, Worcester\, MA\, 01609
ORGANIZER;CN="David Thoreen":MAILTO:dthoreen@assumption.edu
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260318T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260318T203000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260222T162247Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260222T162251Z
UID:12810-1773858600-1773865800@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poetry Extravaganza with Art DuBois
DESCRIPTION:Join us at The Mill in West Boylston on March 18th. \n\n\n\nThe Mill is right off Rt 190\, has a spacious parking lot\, serves delectable apps\, entrees\, and desserts with a full bar. We have a separate room for our monthly shenanigans. Admission is still free. All of the Tip Jar proceeds go to the Feature. \n\n\n\nThe Poetry Extravaganza (PE) is the 3rd Wednesday of the month\, except for July \,from 6:30-8;30 pm. Sign up for the open mic at jfjr6969@gmail.com.  \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nFive minute maximum\, Please!  \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nThere are no language restrictions. We are not kid-friendly!Our Feature Poet on March 18th is the iconic Art DuBoisMark Lewandowski of Lewandowski Painters sponsors our event. That’s how we pay the poets!Join the Fun on March 18th! \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nArt DuBois is a 69-year-old career clinical social worker who has worked as a psychotherapist\, in the Public Defender’s Office\, and in management positions in the human services field. He is an amateur nature photographer and intermittent poet. Clearly\, these two interests overlap for him. He counts Mary Oliver as his main inspiration\, and his own poetry is heavily influenced by his mindfulness practices and his work with helping others. \n\n\n\nArt is married to Susan\, and they have three adult children. Art resides in Uxbridge. He has written poetry throughout his life. Over the last several years his poems have become increasingly impacted by the work he has done helping others\, and then\, even more so\, by his own efforts to find the balance between his own natural inclination to joy and the emotional baggage he himself carries. He shares his poetry articulating common life struggles to maintain peace with the ethos that we are all in this together.Art is an active participant in a plethora of poetry open mike events throughout Worcester County and Northern Rhode Island. He credits this activity as making him feel young again in a truly delightful way.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poetry-extravaganza-with-art-dubois/
LOCATION:The Mill\, 185 W. Boylston Street\, West Boylston\, Massachusetts\, 01583\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260321T100000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260321T110000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260316T202347Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260316T202350Z
UID:12970-1774087200-1774090800@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Meet the Editors
DESCRIPTION:
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/meet-the-editors/
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260321T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260321T160000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260306T181034Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260306T181037Z
UID:12903-1774101600-1774108800@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Booklover's Gourmet
DESCRIPTION:Happy Spring Equinox  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nOpen Mic Poetry \n\n\n\nSaturday\, March 21st \n\n\n\n2:00 pm – 4:00 pm \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nJoin us for a monthly round robin style\, open poetry reading hosted by Robert Eugene Perry. \n\n\n\nSpace for the open mic is limited to 14 and usually fills up quickly. Please email deb@bookloversgourmet.com to register. \n\n\n\nAll are welcome to come listen!
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/booklovers-gourmet-13/
LOCATION:Booklovers’ Gourmet\, 72 E. Main St.\, Webster\, MA\, 01570
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260321T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260321T213000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260226T182429Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260226T182456Z
UID:12831-1774119600-1774128600@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poets @ Large
DESCRIPTION:Poets at Large Presents Schwartz and Reilley March 21st \n\n\n\nPoets at Large will continue its seventh year on Saturday night\, March 21st at 7 p.m. at The Vanilla Bean Café\, 450 Deerfield Road\, in Pomfret\, CT. Featured poets that evening will be Christopher Reilley and Carla Schwartz. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nWorcester poet Christopher Reilley is a two-time Pushcart nominee and former poet laureate of Dedham\, MA. He is also a contributing editor at Acoustic Ink and was involved in print and book production for over thirty years\, working for such companies as Xerox\, EFI\, Ricoh USA and Online Print Solutions and is a copywriter for the Bytesized Studios. His books are Grief Tattoos\, Breathing for Clouds\, One Night Stanzas\, and his latest release\, Pour Decisions\, was inspired by his work as a bartender. All are available from Big Table Publishing. Reilley’s poems have appeared in a wide number of publications\, including the Boston Literary Journal\, Word Salad Poetry\, Wild Winds\, Coldnoon Travel Poetics and many others\, as well as anthologies including Sanctuary\, Hot Summer Nights and Silent Consciousness from Acoustic Ink. He also had a poem selected to be in the Lunar Codex\, mankind’s first interplanetary library\,thanks to NASA and lunarcodex.org. \n\n\n\nCarla Schwartz is a poet\, filmmaker\, photographer\, and blogger. She lives half the year on an unbridged island in Lake Winnipesaukee\, and the other half in the Boston area. Schwartz holds a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Princeton University. Her poems have appeared in Rattle and other journals and in her collections Signs of Marriage\, Mother\, One More Thing\, and Intimacy with the Wind. Learn more at  https://carlapoet.com\, or on all social media @cb99videos. Carla Schwartz received the New England Poetry Club E.E. Cummings Prize. Poets at Large has brought over 120 published and awarded poets to the area since 2020 and dozens of people have participated in the open mic portions during that time. \n\n\n\nPoets at Large is a project of Windham Arts. All events are ADA compliant and are recommended for ages 16 and up. Readings for the rest of the season are sponsored in part by donations from bankHometown\, Charter Oak FCU\, WHZ Financial and The Putnam Area Foundation. Contact karen.warinsky@gmail.com to sign up for the open mic; 5-minute max as time allows.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poets-large-8/
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260322T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260322T160000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260302T193527Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260302T193751Z
UID:12857-1774184400-1774195200@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Slightly Off-Beat Poets
DESCRIPTION:WHAT: Slightly Off-beat Poets Presents: Oliver de la Paz & David P. Miller \n\n\n\nWHERE: WCPA Ballroom at 61 Harvard Street\, Worcester (parking right next to Salisbury House) \n\n\n\nWHEN: Sunday March 22nd @ 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm \n\n\n\nWHAT HAPPENS: Our feature poets of the month will each read for 20 minutes. Then we will take a quick break for book sales\, snacks\, and the raffle before starting the open mic. Open mic will be round robin\, one poem at a time until 4 PM. \n\n\n\nCOST: There will be a 50/50 raffle\, split between the feature and the winner. 5$ to enter. \n\n\n\nSIGN-UPS: There is room for 25 POETS. To reserve a spot please email: roberteugeneperry@gmail.com \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nOliver de la Paz is the author and editor of several books. His latest collection of poetry\, The Diaspora Sonnets\, was published by Liveright Press (2023). It was a winner of the 2023 New England Book Award and was longlisted for the 2023 National Book Award. A founding member of Kundiman\, he is the James N. and Sarah L. O’Reilly Barrett Professor of Creative Writing at the College of the Holy Cross. He also teaches in the Low-Residency MFA Program at PLU and is the former Poet Laureate of Worcester\, MA. \n\n\n\n~ \n\n\n\nDavid P. Miller’s collection\, Bend in the Stair\, was published by Lily Poetry Review Books in 2021. Nixes Mate Books published his Sprawled Asleep in 2019. His poems have appeared in Meat for Tea\, Reed Magazine\, Jerry Jazz Musician\, Tar River Poetry\, Gramercy Review\, Second Coming\, The Ekphrastic Review\, The Disappointed Housewife\, and Cherry Tree\, among other journals. David is a member of Boston’s Jamaica Pond Poets and co-directs their Chapter and Verse literary reading series. He is a member of the New England Poetry Club’s Board of Directors\, and is the recipient of a 2025 Tanne Foundation award.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/slightly-off-beat-poets-13/
LOCATION:WCPA Office @ Salisbury House\, 61 Harvard St.\, Worcester MA\, MA\, 01605\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260322T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260322T190000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260311T234247Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260311T234250Z
UID:12932-1774198800-1774206000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Fireside Creative Expo
DESCRIPTION:
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/fireside-creative-expo/
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260323T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260323T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20251124T181736Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251124T181739Z
UID:12467-1774292400-1774299600@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poetry Writing with Catherine Martin
DESCRIPTION:Spend five weeks writing and reading in the dreamy\, sharp\, upside-down\, carefully organized world of poetry! Whether you’re fine tuning your latest epic poem or wrestling with the blank page\, this class is an encouraging and open environment for poets of all levels and backgrounds. Each week you’ll receive a prompt\, two fascinating poems to read\, and thoughtful\, constructive feedback on the poem you’ve brought to share with the class. You’ll have the opportunity to be workshopped by your peers at least twice\, and you’ll receive written feedback from the class every week. \n\n\n\nWe’ll dive into imagery\, form\, repetition\, sound\, and poetic voice. By the end of this session\, you’ll have five poems\, either new or more polished; writing prompts to carry you forward; and a deeper understanding of the building blocks of poetry. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nInstructor: Catherine Martin  is a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet with work published in Pleiades\, Nimrod International Journal of Prose and Poetry\, Superstition Review\, and others. She loves writing\, reading\, and workshopping with fellow writers and artists. Catherine is currently writing her first manuscript of poetry. She lives in Hopkinton with her family. \n\n\n\nAge: AdultDates: 5 Mondays\, March 2 to 30\, 2026Time: 7 to 9 p.m. \n\n\n\nHCA Policies: Please review our website’s HCA Student Policies and Procedures here. \n\n\n\n\nInjury Waiver: You must agree to the HCA injury waiver to register for classes. \n\n\n\nPhoto Release Agreement: You can agree to the HCA’s Photo Release Agreement during registration.\n\n\n\nWaiting List: If this class is sold out\, it will say so below and will not allow you to register. If so\, please add your name to our waitlist here. \n\n\n\n\nScholarships: The HCA believes the arts are for everyone. Thanks to the generosity of the Dora Kishibay Garabedian Scholarship Fund and individual donations to our scholarship fund\, we can assist children\, teens\, and adults who might not otherwise be able to afford classes. Assistance is awarded based on demonstrated need\, motivation\, and potential benefit to the student. Apply for a scholarship here. \n\n\n\nMEMBERS SAVE ON CLASSES: Your membership helps the HCA change the lives of artists and art lovers through its nurturing faculty\, state-of-the-art facility\, and need-based scholarship program. We are pleased to offer 5% off class costs to HCA Members from the Insider–Plus LEVEL and up.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poetry-writing-with-catherine-martin-4/
LOCATION:Hopkinton Arts Center\, 98 Hayden Rowe St.\, Hopkinton\, Massachusetts\, 01748\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260324T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260324T200000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260227T170020Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260227T170252Z
UID:12839-1774378800-1774382400@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:A Virtual Thirsty Lab with C. I. Marshall
DESCRIPTION:The Thirsty Lab poetry reading\, normally based out of Princeton\, MA\, continues to meet virtually. Join us on Tuesday March 24th virtually on Zoom with none other than C. I. Marshall\, our featured reader! \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nC. I. Marshall’s debut chapbook\, The Locksmith Journeys Into The Afterlife won the 2022 Frosted Fire First Pamphlet Award. Credits include: Steam Ticket\, Birmingham Poetry Review\, 2025 National Baseball Poetry Festival\, 2025 Write Out Loud\, “Echoes” Anthology judged by Neil Astley. Marshall’s poems were shortlisted for the Bridport Prize\, UK and commended for the 2025 Stanza Competition\, The Poetry Society\, UK. For more about C.I.’s writing. C.I. Marshall’s chapbook\, The Locksmith Journeys Into The Afterlife may be purchased for $10.00 from Frosted Fire Press. C. I.’s poem on the Poetry Society Webpage.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/a-virtual-thirsty-lab-with-c-i-marshall/
LOCATION:Zoom Online Meeting\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260325T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260325T190000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260307T165728Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260307T165732Z
UID:12909-1774458000-1774465200@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poetorium at TidePool
DESCRIPTION:Please join us for a very special double feature edition of our monthly open mic and featured poetry reading series The Poetorium Too at TidePool Bookshop at 372 Chandler Street in Worcester\, MA on March 25th from 5 pm to 7 pm hosted by Paul Szlosek & (hopefully) Ron Whittle. It will be a full two hours of poetry and spoken word starting with a brief interview on stage with our two featured poets Yvonne Beaudry (author of Juniper) and Eve Rifkah (author of Lost in Sight) followed by poetry readings by our two features\, a short intermission\, and then an open mic (with 5-minute slots for each reader if time permits). Books by both poets will be available for purchase at TidePool Bookshop that night. For more information\, please get in touch with us at poetorium@mail.com or visit our website https//poetorium.home.blog/2019/04/29/the-poetorium-at-starlite-2/
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poetorium-at-tidepool/
LOCATION:TidePool Bookshop\, 372 Chandler St. Unit 101\, Worcester\, MA\, 01602
ORGANIZER;CN="Paul Szlosek":MAILTO:poetsparlor@hotmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260326T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260326T170000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260315T144241Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260315T144547Z
UID:12959-1774540800-1774544400@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Curtin Youth Poetry Workshop- #1
DESCRIPTION:Zoom Link
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/curtin-youth-poetry-workshop/
LOCATION:Zoom Online Only
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260330T163000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260330T173000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260316T202102Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260316T202106Z
UID:12967-1774888200-1774891800@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Three Decker Meet the Editors virtual event (via Zoom)
DESCRIPTION:Meet the editors of the WCPA’s publication\, Three Decker! We’re available to talk through our current submission period\, what we’re looking for in poetry and short stories\, and any other questions you have about the journal or the WCPA. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nWorcester County Poetry Association is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. \n\n\n\nTopic: Three Decker Meet the Editors MeetingTime: Mar 25\, 2026 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)Join Zoom Meetinghttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/88285834683 \n\n\n\nMeeting ID: 882 8583 4683 \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nOne tap mobile+13126266799\,\,88285834683# US (Chicago)+16468769923\,\,88285834683# US (New York) \n\n\n\nJoin instructionshttps://us02web.zoom.us/meetings/88285834683/invitations?signature=5HncI22E6WgmXDPqRIcQ1WIHdLeabsb_xQziPa5BTe0
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/three-decker-meet-the-editors-virtual-event-via-zoom/
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260330T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260330T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20251124T181839Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251124T181842Z
UID:12469-1774897200-1774904400@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Poetry Writing with Catherine Martin
DESCRIPTION:Spend five weeks writing and reading in the dreamy\, sharp\, upside-down\, carefully organized world of poetry! Whether you’re fine tuning your latest epic poem or wrestling with the blank page\, this class is an encouraging and open environment for poets of all levels and backgrounds. Each week you’ll receive a prompt\, two fascinating poems to read\, and thoughtful\, constructive feedback on the poem you’ve brought to share with the class. You’ll have the opportunity to be workshopped by your peers at least twice\, and you’ll receive written feedback from the class every week. \n\n\n\nWe’ll dive into imagery\, form\, repetition\, sound\, and poetic voice. By the end of this session\, you’ll have five poems\, either new or more polished; writing prompts to carry you forward; and a deeper understanding of the building blocks of poetry. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nInstructor: Catherine Martin  is a Pushcart Prize-nominated poet with work published in Pleiades\, Nimrod International Journal of Prose and Poetry\, Superstition Review\, and others. She loves writing\, reading\, and workshopping with fellow writers and artists. Catherine is currently writing her first manuscript of poetry. She lives in Hopkinton with her family. \n\n\n\nAge: AdultDates: 5 Mondays\, March 2 to 30\, 2026Time: 7 to 9 p.m. \n\n\n\nHCA Policies: Please review our website’s HCA Student Policies and Procedures here. \n\n\n\n\nInjury Waiver: You must agree to the HCA injury waiver to register for classes. \n\n\n\nPhoto Release Agreement: You can agree to the HCA’s Photo Release Agreement during registration.\n\n\n\nWaiting List: If this class is sold out\, it will say so below and will not allow you to register. If so\, please add your name to our waitlist here. \n\n\n\n\nScholarships: The HCA believes the arts are for everyone. Thanks to the generosity of the Dora Kishibay Garabedian Scholarship Fund and individual donations to our scholarship fund\, we can assist children\, teens\, and adults who might not otherwise be able to afford classes. Assistance is awarded based on demonstrated need\, motivation\, and potential benefit to the student. Apply for a scholarship here. \n\n\n\nMEMBERS SAVE ON CLASSES: Your membership helps the HCA change the lives of artists and art lovers through its nurturing faculty\, state-of-the-art facility\, and need-based scholarship program. We are pleased to offer 5% off class costs to HCA Members from the Insider–Plus LEVEL and up.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/poetry-writing-with-catherine-martin-5/
LOCATION:Hopkinton Arts Center\, 98 Hayden Rowe St.\, Hopkinton\, Massachusetts\, 01748\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260331T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260331T200000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260226T180651Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260226T180655Z
UID:12828-1774983600-1774987200@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:A Virtual Thirsty Lab with Eve Rifkah
DESCRIPTION:The Thirsty Lab poetry reading\, normally based out of Princeton\, MA\, continues to meet virtually. Join us on Tuesday March 31st virtually on Zoom with none other than Eve Rifkah\, our featured reader! \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nEve Rifkah is a poet of history and myth. She earned her MFA in writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She was co-founder of Poetry Oasis\, Inc. (1998-2012)\, Founder and editor of DINER\, a literary journal. She is the 2021 recipient of the Stanley Kunitz award. She is author of 6 books. The play Outcasts the Lepers of Penikese Island\, was based on her first book\, Outcasts the Penikese Island Leper Hospital 1905-1921. More information is available on her webpage\, eve-rifkah.com.  Books can be purchased on the webpage. 
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/a-virtual-thirsty-lab-with-eve-rifkah-3/
LOCATION:Zoom Online Meeting\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260407T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260407T200000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260302T195244Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260302T195252Z
UID:12864-1775584800-1775592000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:The Return of the Fox Poetry Readings with Joe Fusco Jr.
DESCRIPTION:We’re back with an exciting new location! It’s the Broadway Restaurant at 100 Water Street\, Worcester. \n\n\n\nOwners Tony and Nequel Germano have a plethora of delightful entrees\, apps\, desserts\, and their famous\, homemade ice cream. The Broadway also serves beer and wine and breakfast until closing (with mimosas!). We’ll have a separate room for our shenanigans. Parking is metered with a lot across the street but Tony and Nequel will take one-hour ($2.00) off every check. Free admission. \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nI asked myself to be the 1st Feature since my closing feature at Root and Press was cancelled because of foul weather. I’ll have a new book ‘Here We Go Again’ available for purchase. It would be awesome to see some past featured performers at our inaugural event at The Broadway. Sign up for the open mic at joesyellowpad@gmail.com. Five minute maximum and limited spots. The Fox Poetry Series\, in honor of the iconic poet Richard Fox\, is sponsored by the Worcester County Poetry Association through a generous donation from the Fox family. \n\n\n\nI’m pleased as punch to continue this exciting open mic/feature every 1st Tuesday of the month from 6 8pm at our new and welcoming venue. \n\n\n\nJoin the Fun on April 7th!  \n\n\n\nSee less
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/the-return-of-the-fox-poetry-readings-with-joe-fusco-jr/
LOCATION:The Broadway Diner\, 100 Water Street\, Worcester\, Massachusetts\, 01604\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260407T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260407T200000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260311T003407Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260313T183820Z
UID:12924-1775584800-1775592000@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Solo/Duet
DESCRIPTION:A poetry and music series at the Merriam-Gilbert Public LibraryFree and open to all! \n\n\n\nPlease stop by or call the Library at508-867-1410 to reserve your seat. \n\n\n\nEach evening will feature poetry readings that will book-end a set of chamber jazz music. This program is made possible by the West Brookfield Cultural Council as supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council\, In celebration of National Poetry and National Jazz Month. \n\n\n\nIt is difficultTo get the news from poems\,Yet men die miserably every day \n\n\n\nFor the lack \n\n\n\nOf what is found there  \n\n\n\n~William Carlos Williams~ \n\n\n\nJoin us on Tuesday evening at 6:00 PM …April 7th : bassist Jerry Wilfong and percussionist-trumpeter Dick HummelGlenn D’Alessio and Susan Roney-O’Brien read \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nJerry Wilfong is an active freelance bassist in the Boston area. He has performed with such distinguished jazz artists as Leni Stern\, John Stowell\, and Richie Cole\, appears on several recordings and can be heard live anchoring two working trios – “Bring Back Pluto” and “The Conversation.” More can be learned about Jerry at jazzfong.com. \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nDick Hummel is a psychologist who works with children in Worcester. Drummer\, trumpeter\, and composer\, Dick has performed in an around the central Massachusetts area both as a solo trumpet and with varied ensembles\, and occasionally with poets; he has led drumming groups with at risk children for over 25 years instilling techniques of ensemble work that insist on listening and complementary interaction. \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSusan Roney-O’Brien earned an MA in Education in 1989 from Anna Maria College in Paxton\, Mass.\, and an MFA in Poetry from Warren Wilson College in Swannanoah\, N.C. She attended The Frost Place on four occasions and was a resident at Dorset House in Vermont.. She curates a Princeton\, Mass.\, reading series at The Thirsty Lab\, and has received MCC grants to bring poets to her community.. She is a member of 4X4\, a group of poets and visual artists who respond to each other’s art through their specific disciplines.. Her book\, Farmwife\, won the William and Kingman Poetry Book Award in 2000. Earth\, a joint venture with photographer Bruce Dean\, was published in 2011. Legacy of the Last World  was published in March 2016. \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nGlenn D’Alessio’s  Finishing Line Press chapbooks (FLP) of poems are: In My Sea Cliff Years of Innocence; A Carpenter’s Building\, Homes for His Poems; and\, Some Tanka in Thanks to
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/solo-duet-2/
LOCATION:Merriam Gilbert Library\, 3 West Main St.\, West Brookfield\, MA\, 01585\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260408T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260408T170000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260330T164337Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260330T164346Z
UID:13013-1775660400-1775667600@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:O'Connell Hoyer Poetry Reading
DESCRIPTION:
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/oconnell-hoyer-poetry-reading/
LOCATION:Sheehan Building Worcester State University\, 486 Chandler St.\, Worcester\, MA\, 01602\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260409T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260409T200000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260306T175458Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260320T205205Z
UID:12894-1775759400-1775764800@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Regie Gibson\, Massachusetts Poet Laureate - Poetry Reading
DESCRIPTION:Rubin Campus Center \n\n\n\n Hagglund Conference Room / CC 301 \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nRegie Gibson\,Inaugural Massachusetts Poet Laureate\, will be our featured poet on April 9 at 6:30 pm\, for our second annual Olive Higgins Prouty Poetry Celebration. This year’s program is hosted in partnership with WPI faculty Jim Cocola and Kris Boudreau\, the Worcester County Poetry Association and the Clemente Course in the Humanities. A detailed event announcement is forthcoming.
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/regie-gibson-massachusetts-poet-laureate-poetry-reading/
LOCATION:Rubin Campus Center\, 100 Institute Road\, Worcester\, Massachusetts\, 01609\, United States
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260409T193000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260409T210000
DTSTAMP:20260610T134947
CREATED:20260324T180343Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260324T180458Z
UID:12997-1775763000-1775768400@worcestercountypoetry.org
SUMMARY:Voices & Visions: Poetry Reading
DESCRIPTION:
URL:https://worcestercountypoetry.org/event/voices-visions-poetry-reading/
LOCATION:Kennedy Hall\, Assumption University\, 500 Salisbury Street\, Worcester\, Massachusetts\, 01609\, United States
ORGANIZER;CN="John Hodgen":MAILTO:hodgen@hotmail.com
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR