The Foundation’s Community Leaders Poetry Reading, an annual event from 2009 to 2019, re-emerged this spring as Helena Reads Poetry!

 

On April 26, ten members of the Helena community shared a poem of their choosing, either one they wrote or selected, and reflected on poetry in general and what their poem meant to them. 

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Foundation Vice President Bruce Whittenberg warmly introduced each reader. HCTV filmed the event, which is available for viewing on YouTube and at the Helena Civic Television website. 

 

Attendees enjoyed delicious desserts catered by Helena High’s Culinary Club.

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We wholeheartedly thank our 2023 Helena Reads Poetry! readers for participating in this year’s event:

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• Bill Borneman read “The Metaphysics of Monotony,” an original poem.

• Keiran Boyle read an untitled original poem based on “In the Shallows” by Amanda Gorman along with Gorman’s poem.

• Aria Comstock read an original poem about geocaching: “TFTC.”

• Ryan Cooney read “Lost” by Patricia Goedicke.

• Bruce Day read “Man Dog” by Jim Harrison.

• Kelly Elder read an excerpt from John Steinbeck’s Travels with Charley.

• McCall Flynn read “Jabberwocky” from Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland.

• Mary Irish Johnson read “I Saw in Louisiana A Live-Oak Growing” by Walt Whitman.

• Molly Kruckenberg read “Pearl & Lee,” “Alyce Looks,” and “Clarissa Lands” by Sean Hill.

• Abby Shea read two poems from the LGBTQ2S+ zine, Transcendent Joy: “Trans as in Transcental” by Ashe Walker (Volume 2) and “Now Tell Me You’re Afraid” by Misha P (Volume 1).