Stroll of Poets Society

Monday, May 2
7:00 pm, “Doors” 6:30 pm 

Featured Readers: Tyler DeWacht, Maija Lin, Charlie Gill, Heather Powell, Spoken Word Youth Choir (4 spots)

Mic host: Alice Major

It Ain’t Terse; It’s Fresh Verse

Hear Ye! Hear Ye! Come hear some poetry!
Come one! Come all! Hear some verse, after all!
A long black hearse ran over my big purple purse,
but it’s not terse because it is Fresh Verse!

Join the Edmonton Stroll of Poets Society,
as we hear the words of young celebrities
from our City that is so fine and glorious.
At Fresh Verse it’s cool to be victorious.

On Monday, May 2^nd, come hear some poetry!
On Zoom you’ll find some high society!
8 Poets under 25 don’t need a nurse
because they are darn good at writin’ Fresh Verse!

8 more poets will read in the Open Mic;
once it’s all said and done, we’ll take a hike!

Zoom invite If you know anyone who would like to attend Fresh Verse 2022 and is not a Stroll member please direct them to strollquestions@gmail.com.

Hello, Strollers—

Another Distribution Day rolls around. Come for the following:

• Stroll of Poets Anthology 2022
• 30th Anniversary Chapbook
• To renew your Stroll Membership (for the 2022–2023 season)

First and foremost, before coming to pick up your anthology, please make sure you are feeling well and have not had any exposure to any variant of the COVID-19 virus. The safety of all our members and their loved ones is still paramount, and your copy of the anthology will be always be ready and waiting for you to pick it up in the future, when you are well and healthy. We do not mind continuing to store it for you.

Pickup Details

Date:               Saturday, May 28, 2022
Time:               1:00 pm to 5:00 pm
Email:              strollantho@writersguild.ab.ca

To maintain privacy, please email strollantho@writersguild.ab.ca, as location information will be sent only to the people who contact us directly, rather than being printed in the publicly shared newsletter. This information will be sent out about one week in advance of the pick-up date.

If it’s not possible for you to pick up your anthology on May 28th, we would encourage you to have a family member or friend pick it up for you. If this also is not possible, or if you prefer to wait, we will provide information on future distribution possibilities as details become available.

Extra copies

Each person whose poem appears in the anthology or in the chapbook is entitled to one complementary copy, but if you wish to order extra copies, these are available for $10.00 each. A limited number of back issues of the 2020 and 2021 anthology are also available for $5.00 each. Please do your best to bring exact change or a cheque for the exact amount, made out to the Stroll of Poets.

Up next at the Haven!

Monday, April 18, 7:00 pm, “Doors” 6:30 pm 

Featured Readers: Naomi McIlwraith, Nancy Mackenzie, Ruth Anderson Donovan, & Max Vandersteen

Mic Host: Josephine LoRe

Open Mic:  Sign-up (2-min. poem) New and first-time readers are always welcome and given priority during the Open Mic.

Zoom invite If you know anyone who would like to join our online reading nights and is not a Stroll member please direct them to strollquestions@gmail.com.

Please note all requests for Zoom links to “Haven at Home” evenings need to be done before 5pm.

Up next at the Haven!

Monday, April 4, 7:00 pm, “Doors” 6:30 pm 

Featured Readers: Loren Marsden, Janis Dow, Saraswoti Lamichane & Deborah Lawson

Mic Host: Hugh McAlary

Open Mic:  Sign-up (2-min. poem) New and first-time readers are always welcome and given priority during the Open Mic.

Zoom invite If you know anyone who would like to join our online reading nights and is not a Stroll member please direct them to strollquestions@gmail.com.

Please note all requests for Zoom links to “Haven at Home” evenings need to be done before 5pm.

Happy Spring Everyone!

On Sunday March 20^th, we held another successful AGM on Zoom with 31 Stroll members in attendance Thank you to all who came out to show support, take in information and vote.  Let’s give a round of applause to John Leppard and Max Vandersteen for Tech and Co-Hosting this year. We would also like to thank Don Perkins (our Returning Officer) and Lisa Mulrooney for help with ballots again this year.

We appreciate all the candidates who ran for election this season and we’re excited to welcome Kayleigh Cline to our leadership team. Kayleigh has been active with our 30^th Anniversary Poetry Remix project this year and we’re happy to add her cheerful demeanour and technical skills to our team! Our returning group of board members consists of Alice Major, Anne Gerard Marshall, Markus Eymann, Max Vandersteen, Naomi McIlwraith and Shirley Serviss. I am happy to work alongside this dynamic group of individuals this year as president once again. We’re also happy to welcome Audrey Brooks and Leslie Dawson back as board associates. The Stroll of Poets and Parkland Poets continue to have a board representative at each other’s meetings to keep up to date on upcoming events.

In recognition for his ten years of service at the Stroll of Poets, (seven as president) a poetic tribute was read to John Leppard from various Stroll members. John’s wife, Mary Frances, was also present to share in honoring John’s contributions to the Stroll. A copy of this tribute poem to John has been added to the 2022 Anthology. The Anthology is due to arrive in May (please watch for announcements regarding the date).

Our new board will hold their first meeting in April and we look forward to another fabulous season of poetic expression with the Stroll of Poets!

May these warmer temperatures find you venturing out into a less restrictive world. As you do so, please to watch the Stroll newsletter for further 30^th Anniversary events in the upcoming months. However we gather going forward, may this next season be our best yet!

With warm regards,
Janis Dow