BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center - ECPv6.15.13//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-WR-CALNAME:Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/Los_Angeles BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0800 TZOFFSETTO:-0700 TZNAME:PDT DTSTART:20240310T100000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0800 TZNAME:PST DTSTART:20241103T090000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0800 TZOFFSETTO:-0700 TZNAME:PDT DTSTART:20250309T100000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0800 TZNAME:PST DTSTART:20251102T090000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0800 TZOFFSETTO:-0700 TZNAME:PDT DTSTART:20260308T100000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0800 TZNAME:PST DTSTART:20261101T090000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0800 TZOFFSETTO:-0700 TZNAME:PDT DTSTART:20270314T100000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0700 TZOFFSETTO:-0800 TZNAME:PST DTSTART:20271107T090000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260414T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260414T203000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20260316T005822Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260328T205312Z UID:4082-1776193200-1776198600@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Second Tuesday Poetry featuring Escritores del Nuevo Sol/Writers of the New Sun DESCRIPTION:THE ANTIDOTE IS POETRY. COME TO POETRY. \nModesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center is pleased to present Second Tuesday Poetry featuring members of Sacramento-based writing group Escritores del Nuevo Sol/Writers of the New Sun:  Zheyla Henriksen\, Paul Aponte\, Janet Rodriguez\, JoAnn Anglin\, Marco Contreras\, and Lorena Rodriguez. \nDate: Tuesday\, April 14\, 2026\nTime: 7:00 pm PST\nWhere: Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, in the Roseburg Square shopping center \nOpen mic following featured poets (3 min per poet); sign up at the event. Hosted by Gillian Wegener.  \nZheyla Henriksen is an Ecuadorian poet\, researcher\, artist\, and retired college & university teacher including at UC Davis where she received her PHD in Latin American and Spanish Literature.  She has been awarded several times including in 2004 when she received La Medalla de Oro al Merito Cultural in Cuenca Ecuador.  Zheyla was included in the Who’s Who of Distinguished Professionals\, and in History & Anthology of Ecuadorian Literature (2023). \nPaul Aponte is a Chicano Poet\,co-coordinator of Escritores Del Nuevo Sol / Writers of the New Sun\, and member of Círculo De Poetas & Writers. He has been published in the Tecolote Press anthology Poetry In Flight\, Tule Review 2024\, in the anthology Soñadores – We Came To Dream\, in the Los Angeles Review Volume 20 – Fall 2016\, and in Cold River Press Voices 2022-2025.  His colorful book of poetry DEL CACTUS is available through Prickly Pear Press and other sources. \nJanet Rodriguez is an author\, teacher\, editor\, and the author of Making an American Family: A Recipe in Five Generations (Prickly Pear Publishing\, 2022)\, a family memoir. Her short story\, “The Key in the Tignanello Bag” was recently published in the regional anthology\, Sacramento Noir\, edited by John Freeman. Her work has also been featured in Hobart\, Pangyrus\, Eclectica\, The Rumpus\, Cloud Women’s Quarterly\, American River Review\, and Calaveras Station. Her short stories\, essays\, and poetry usually deal with themes involving morality in faith communities and the mixed-race experience in a culturally binary world.  \nJoAnn Anglin is a leading member of Escritores Del Nuevo Sol and has been a teaching poet in the schools\, including at Shriners Children’s Hospital\, and at New Folsom Prison. Her chapbooks include Words Like Knives\, Like Feathers and Heat\, and her poems have been published in Tule Review\, Sable & Quill\, Sacramento Voices\, Rattlesnake Review\, The Pagan Muse\, 100 Poems about Sacramento\, Acorn\, and Cosumnes River Journal. In 2012\, JoAnn received an Arts Program Award from the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors and the Sacramento City Council and in 2024 she was honored by the California Senate for her contributions as a poet and leader to the community. \nMarco Contreras is from Stockton and currently resides in Sacramento. He has been published in UCLA’s Daily Bruin and La Gente De Aztlan magazine. He also has contributions in several anthologies\, including his latest about his trip to the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas. \nLorena Rodriguez has roots in the Andes\, born and raised in a land where the cultivation of potatoes and corn is a way of life. A multidisciplinary artist\, Lorena uses performance and theater as a tool for activism\, community building\, and healing. She is a writer\, performer\, fermenter\, dancer\, and textile artist\, and through her work\, she shares practical actions for health and well-being while inspiring the reimagining of systems that address collective needs and foster healing.  \n  \nHISTORY OF LOS ESCRITORES DEL NUEVO SOL  \n \nLos Escritores del Nuevo Sol emerged from a literary program of La Raza Galería Posada (LRGP)\, the Sacramento Chicano/Native American arts center founded in 1972. Our roots can be followed to an initial poetry event organized by the Royal Chicano Air Force and other groups. That event in 1978 was called “One More Canto”. It was held at the Reno Club\, a downtown neighborhood bar and dance club. This idea of poetry for the community grew and future poetry\, song and performance art events continued. LRGP took sponsorship of the Canto Series well into the 1980’s and 1990’s with those events occurring at La Raza Galería Posada\, Luna’s Café\, the Benny Barrios Studio and the Odd Fellows Hall. \nIn the 1990’s LRGP board members Arturo Mantecón and Francisco X. Alarcón organized a Floricanto series featuring Latino poets. Seeing favorable community interest\, they started a writers’ workshop\, Taller Literario. The Taller philosophy was to foster\, preserve\, and present the best of Chicano/Latino and native American writing. The first meetings attracted about a dozen local writers. Alarcón and Mantecón drew on their experience in publishing and working with writing groups to guide this group to be given recognition and to be established in October of 1993. \nThe Taller became an essential part of La Raza Galería Posada readings and became connected with other significant cultural events – Day of the Dead\, Cinco de Mayo\, exhibition openings\, etc.In time\, events were added such as the Valentine’s Day and the all-Spanish readings. \nEventually the group adopted a new name suggested by Graciela Brauer Ramírez: Escritores del Nuevo Sol / Writers of the New Sun. This recognized the 2012 coming of El Sexto Sol\, the dawning of a new world consciousness based on the Mesoamerican worldview. \nAs the years passed\, Los Escritores became a known part of the Sacramento literary community. In 2002\, José Montoya\, a member of Los Escritores\, was appointed Sacramento’s Poet Laureate. Los Escritores participated in his activities resulting in more visibility. In 2020’s\, two additional members were named Poet Laureate – Lara Gularte (El Dorado County) and Nancy González St. Clair (Lodi\, CA) also contributing to more recognition and visibility for Escritores del Nuevo Sol. \nWith the publication of our 2004 anthology\, Voices of the new Sun\, Poems and Stories / Voces del Nuevo Sol\, Cantos y Cuentos\, the group’s written work took tangible form. The 25th Anniversary anthology was published in 2017\, and in 2025 the anthology Then and Now came to cheer the past and present.  \nWhile the circle has grown\, it also acknowledges the loss of loved ones who were a part of its start: Phil Goldvarg\, José Montoya\, Helen and Esteban Villa\, Luz María Gama\, Max Schwartz\, Sam Ríos\, Jean y Winn Starr\, and Escritores co-founder Francisco X. Alarcón. We remember them well. URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/2026aprilescritores/ LOCATION:Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, Modesto\, CA\, 95350\, United States CATEGORIES:Open Mic,Readings,Second Tuesday ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/2026_April_Escritores-1-e1774731178112.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260403 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260404 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20260315T005846Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260329T033611Z UID:2264-1775174400-1775260799@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Aileen Jaffa Young Poets Contest Deadline DESCRIPTION:Co-sponsored by Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center and National League of American Pen Women\, Modesto Chapter \nCash awards will be given in each of four categories: K-3\, 4-6\, 7-9\, 10-12 \nStanislaus County students in grades K-12 can submit up to 3 poems with an entry fee] of $1 per poem. Each poem must be the student’s original creative work\, 24 lines or less in any style. Submit 2 copies of each poem\, one without the student’s name and one with the student’s name plus an attached entry form. Poems entered in the Aileen Jaffa Young Poets Contest cannot be simultaneously submitted to the Poets’ Corner Contest or any other poetry contest. Submissions must be postmarked by the April 3\, 2026 deadline. \nPlease visit Aileen Jaffa Young Poets Contest for full contest rules. URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/aileen-jaffa-young-poets-contest/ LOCATION:CA CATEGORIES:Contests,Youth Poetry ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/2023-aileen-jaffa-1920-x-1080-px-e1774755366845.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260321T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260321T120000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20260227T205637Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260227T205637Z UID:4078-1774087200-1774094400@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Nature Poetry Reading & Walk at Dos Rios State Park DESCRIPTION:Nature lovers and fans of poetry are welcome to celebrate Spring at the 4th Nature Poetry Reading and Walk at Dos Rios State Park on Saturday\, March 21 at 10:00 a.m..  Participants can bring a few of their own nature poems to read\, or read poems from their favorite nature poets.  After the one-hour reading at the ramadas\, an optional hike will be offered by park staff along the 1.8-mile trail around the oxbow pond.  Loaner binoculars are available. URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/nature-poetry-reading-walk-at-dos-rios-state-park/ LOCATION:Dos Rios State Park\, 3559 Shiloh Rd\, Modesto\, CA\, 95358\, United States CATEGORIES:Other Events,Readings ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Spring-Nature-Poetry-Reading-2026-e1772225596305.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260310T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260310T203000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20260217T003457Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260217T003457Z UID:4047-1773169200-1773174600@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Second Tuesday with Eliot Schain & Salvatore Salerno DESCRIPTION:Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center is pleased to present Second Tuesday Poetry featuring Modesto Poet Laureate Emeritus Salvatore Salerno with Sixteen Rivers Press poet Eliot Schain  \nDate: Tuesday\, March 10\, 2026\nTime: 7:00 pm PST\nWhere: Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, in the Roseburg Square shopping center \nOpen mic following featured poets (3 min per poet); sign up at the event. Hosted by Gillian Wegener \n  \nELIOT SCHAIN\nEliot Schain’s poetry has appeared in Ploughshares\, American Poetry Review\, Santa Monica Review\, and Miramar\, among others\, as well as in a number of anthologies\, including Bear Flag Republic: Prose Poems and Poetics from California and The Place That Inhabits Us: Poems of the San Francisco Bay Watershed.  His book\, The Distant Sound\, was published by Sixteen Rivers Press in 2020.  Earlier books include American Romance and Westering Angels\, both from Zeitgeist Press.  \nSelections from The Distant Sound have been recorded and released as a digital album in collaboration with guitarist Harrison Flynn\, available on Apple Music and Spotify.  A newer collaboration Drive\, They Said\, also with Harrison Flynn\, is available as well.  Schain has served as program director for The Poetry Society of America\, taught high school\, and currently works as a psychotherapist in Berkeley\, California\, where he lives with his wife\, Mary D’Elia.  \nABOUT THE DISTANT SOUND\nThe Distant Sound is a prismatic meditation on what it means to be human\, especially when the body and mind seek their own paths to heaven. The poems employ the long Whitmanian breath and are often narrative\, but with mysterious syntax whose goal is to bypass reason and activate the heart. \n  \nSALVATORE SALERNO \n  \nSalvatore Salerno has an M.F.A. from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro\, where he was awarded The Academy of American Poets University Prize. He has worked as a playwright and poet in the North Carolina Visiting Artist Program. After retiring from teaching English at Davis High School\, Salvatore became a founding member of Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center. He was the Poet Laureate of Modesto from 2020-24. His sixth book of poetry is After Thoughts. \n  URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/2026mar10/ LOCATION:Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, Modesto\, CA\, 95350\, United States CATEGORIES:Open Mic,Second Tuesday ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Second-Tues-_Mar2026_Salerno-Schain-e1771288458398.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260228T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260228T130000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20260227T030236Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260227T031745Z UID:4063-1772283600-1772283600@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Write a Tiny Poem: Workshop with Youth Poet Laureate Valentina Zeff DESCRIPTION:Tiny Poem Workshop With Stanislaus County Youth Poet Laureate Valentina Zeff.  All are welcome! \nLearn how to write a tiny poem + enjoy a Q&A with the Youth Poet Laureate. Find out how to submit your poems to the contest. The Woven Words Tiny Poem Contest is FREE and open to teens who live in or attend high school in Stanislaus County. The contest is a publication opportunity–the entries will be woven into a larger poem and published in a book\, and we will celebrate together a bit later in the spring! \nPLUS YOU CAN WIN PRIZES–top poem in each theme wins $50. Note: all poems will be accepted for publication. Please see contest guidelines for details. \nZoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85093492645 URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/tiny-poem-workshop-for-ypl-teen-poetry-contest/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Contests,Submission Opportunities,Youth Poet Laureate,Youth Poetry ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/tinypoem_workshopFeb28-e1772162239552.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260221T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260221T150000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20260112T145239Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260220T193012Z UID:3998-1771682400-1771686000@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:UPDATED: Poetry at the Carnegie featuring Jesse Wolfe and Stella Beratlis DESCRIPTION:PLEASE NOTE: Due to a necessary scheduling change\, Jesse Wolfe will read with Stella Beratlis on 2/21/26. Cleo Griffith will be a featured reader at a future date to be determined. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. \nPlease join host Gary Thomas at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday\, February 21\, 2026 at Carnegie Arts Center (250 North Broadway Ave.\, Turlock\, California) for a poetry reading featuring Jesse Wolfe and Stella Beratlis. There will be light refreshments and an open mic time following the featured poets. This event is free and open to the public. \nJesse Wolfe is a poet\, scholar\, and English Professor at CSU Stanislaus\, where he has taught since 2006. His debut poetry chapbook\, En Route\, was published in 2020 by Cathexis Northwest Press\, who will also publish his new volume\, Breathe Again: A Polyphony\, in 2026. He is the author of two scholarly books about modernist literature and the history of intimacy. He is currently working on a third scholarly book about African American modernism and ideas of progress. \n \nStella Beratlis is the author of Dust Bowl Venus. Her first collection Alkali Sink was a nominee for the 2016 Northern California Book Award in Poetry. Her poems have appeared in Harbor Review\, California Quarterly\, and In Posse Review. among others\, and in the anthologies The Place That Inhabits Us: Poems from the San Francisco Bay Watershed and California Fire and Water: A Climate Crisis Anthology. She was Modesto’s poet laureate from 2016-2020 and works as a librarian at Modesto Junior College. URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/poetry-at-the-carnegie-featuring-cleo-griffith-and-jesse-wolfe/ LOCATION:Carnegie Arts Center\, 250 N. Broadway\, Turlock\, CA\, 95380\, United States CATEGORIES:Open Mic,Poetry on Saturday,Readings ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/MoSt-Poetry-Saturday-at-the-Carnegie-2-e1771615307968.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260210T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260210T203000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20260123T211216Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260201T042959Z UID:4024-1770750000-1770755400@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Second Tuesday Feb. 10 - William O'Daly and Linda Marie Prather DESCRIPTION:Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center is pleased to present Second Tuesday Poetry featuring Linda Marie Prather and William O’Daly \nDate: Tuesday\, February 10\, 2026\nTime: 7:00 pm PST\nWhere: Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, in the Roseburg Square shopping center \nThe reading is free; drinks\, snacks\, and books are available for purchase at Bookish. Open mic following featured poets (3 min per poet); sign up at the event. Hosted by Gillian Wegener!  \nWILLIAM O’DALY\nWilliam O’Daly\, co-founder of Copper Canyon Press\, is a poet and translator whose published works include eight books of translation of the late-career and posthumous poetry of Chilean Nobel laureate Pablo Neruda and Neruda’s first volume\, Book of Twilight — all published by Copper Canyon Press. Book of Twilight was a finalist for the Northern California Book Award in Translation of Poetry for 2018. His most recent book of poems\, The New Gods\, was published by Beltway Editions in September 2022.  \nIn addition to The New Gods\, he is the author of four books of poems. A National Endowment for the Arts Fellow\, recipient of the American Literary Award from the bilingual Korean American journal Miju Poetry and Poetics\, and four-time Pushcart Prize nominee\, his poems\, translations\, essays\, and reviews have been published in numerous journals and as part of multimedia exhibits and performances. \nAbout The New Gods\n“We need to sit on the rim/ of the well of darkness/\,” Pablo Neruda wrote\, “and fish for fallen light/ with patience.” In the poems of The New Gods\, William O’Daly sits with us beside this well\, each stunning metaphor shaping world after world of possibility. Here the dark currents of bitterness and grief\, arrogance and war give way to the sweetness of a daughter’s questions or the shiver of a Sierra lake. From the charred rubble of Iraq to the snowy Andes of Neruda’s exile\, O’Daly’s deep music guides us beyond the “machinery of destruction” into a new Parnassus where “every word blossoms erotic\,” where heron\, waterfall\, moonlit pools\, and sea all burn with the “inexhaustible light” of beauty and desire\, and we “recognize this burning as our own.” \n~ Terry Ehret\, author of Lost Body and Night Sky Journey \nLINDA MARIE PRATHER\nLinda Marie Prather has been widely recognized\, winning honors in both\, poetry\, and visual art. She has been featured in More Than Soil\, More Than Sky/The Modesto Poets\, Stanislaus Connections\, and KCBP\, and KQBM radio\, Two Roads/A program of Art & Science\, Poets Corner\, A Circle of Voices\, Penumbra\, Poetry of the Sacred\, The Story Teller\, and others. She is a two-time nominee for a Pushcart Prize and was the recipient of the Pegasus Award from California Federation of Chaparral Poets. Linda co-edits the poetry quarterly\, Song of the San Joaquin\, and is an Arts and Letters member of the National League of American Pen Women. \nHer latest and ninth book of poetry Everyday Mercies was released in 2025 and is available on Amazon.` \nAbout Everyday Mercies\nEveryday Mercies is a contemplative collection of poems that finds meaning in the often overlooked ordinary. From the quiet glory of morning light to the surprising resilience found in seasons of uncertainty\, these poems invite us to pause and ponder the mercies granted us anew every morning. \n  URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/2026febsecondtues/ LOCATION:Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, Modesto\, CA\, 95350\, United States CATEGORIES:Open Mic,Second Tuesday ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Second-Tuesday-Feb-10_Prather-ODaly-e1769919786629.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260203T183000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260203T203000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20260121T014103Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260121T014103Z UID:4016-1770143400-1770150600@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Poetry Out Loud Competition Feb. 3 DESCRIPTION:The public is invited to attend the Stanislaus County Poetry Out Loud contest on Tuesday\, February 3 at the Prospect Theater Project. \nThrough this program\, high school students across the country participate in a dynamic poetry recitation competition that is designed to improve their public speaking skills\, help build confidence\, and teach them about literary history and contemporary life. \n\nPoetry Out Loud is a fun and dynamic way to introduce students to poetry.\nPoetry Out Loud builds self-confidence and helps develop social and emotional maturity.\nThe thrill of competition encourages students to do their best and support their peers.\nPoetry Out Loud creates lifelong lovers of poetry and creative writing.\nPoetry Out Loud offers an opportunity for all types of students to succeed.\n\nModesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center\, in partnership with the Stanislaus Arts Council\, is the local organization organizing and hosting the county-level contest. The winner (plus one alternate) move forward to the California Poetry Out Loud contest. URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/poetry-out-loud-competition-feb-3/ LOCATION:Prospect Theater Project\, 1214 K Street\, Modesto\, CA\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/POL-2026-e1768959132790.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260131T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260131T140000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20260123T210646Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260130T211716Z UID:4019-1769864400-1769868000@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Write a Tiny Poem Workshop Postponed until February--date TBA DESCRIPTION:Mini Workshop & Youth Poet Laureate Q & A\n\n\n\nZoom workshop has been cancelled due to unforeseen circumstance. Please return to this page to see future workshops during the month of February!  \nWOVEN WORDS Youth Poetry Contest deadline extended: February 28\, 2026.  \n  \n \n  \nValentina Zeff\, current Stanislaus County Youth Poet Laureate\, answers your questions!\n\n\n\nJoin us on Saturday\, January 24\, 2026 January 31\, 2026\, at 1:00 p.m. as Youth Poet Laureate Valentina Zeff shares tips on how to write a tiny poem for the Woven Words Teen Contest. \n\n\n\nThen you can easily submit your poems to our contest! \n\n\n\nFeel free to drop in and meet Valentina and learn about the Woven Words: Teen Voices from the Central Valley Anthology and how you can submit poems for the contest. URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/write-a-tiny-poem-with-youth-poet-laureate-valentina-zeff/ LOCATION:CA CATEGORIES:Contests,Workshops,Youth Poet Laureate,Youth Poetry ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/MoSt-Gala-2017-0001.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260117T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260117T140000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20251217T210308Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251217T211627Z UID:3992-1768654800-1768658400@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Mini-Workshop for Teens: Write a Tiny Poem - Contest Deadline Jan. 31 DESCRIPTION:Mini Workshop & Youth Poet Laureate Q & A\nValentina Zeff\, current Stanislaus County Youth Poet Laureate\, answers your questions!\nTeens are invited to join Valentina on Zoom on one (or both!) of these two dates: Saturday\, January 17 and Saturday\, January 24\, 2026\, at 1:00 p.m. Valentina shares great tips on how to write a tiny poem for the Woven Words Teen Contest. \nThen you can easily submit your poems to our contest! Deadline for that is January 31\, 2026. \nFeel free to drop in and meet Valentina and learn about the Woven Words: Teen Voices from the Central Valley Anthology. \n  \nJanuary 17 Zoom Meeting\nJanuary 24 Zoom Meeting\n  URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/2026jan17/ LOCATION:CA CATEGORIES:Contests,Submission Opportunities,Workshops,Youth Poet Laureate,Youth Poetry ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/JAN-17-WORKSHOP-e1766005184932.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260113T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260113T203000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20251217T203706Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251217T203706Z UID:3975-1768330800-1768336200@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Second Tuesday Poetry featuring Tara Rico & Juan Luzuriaga DESCRIPTION:Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center is pleased to present Second Tuesday Poetry featuring Inaugural Poet Laureate of Manteca Tara Rico and San Luis Obispo poet Juan Luzuriaga \nDate: Tuesday\, January 13\, 2026\nTime: 7:00 pm PST\nWhere: Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, in the Roseburg Square shopping center \nThe reading is free; drinks\, snacks\, and books are available for purchase at Bookish. Open mic following featured poets (3 min per poet); sign up at the event. Hosted by Gillian Wegener \nTara Rico \nTara Rico (she/her/ella) is a local writer\, advocate\, performer\, and educator. She is the City of Manteca’s first Poet Laureate; her work can be found in collections such as the Tuleberg Press anthology The Fire Within: Labor\, Art\, and the Human Spirit.  \nTara is also the founder of MAS Improv 209 and POETICAS Institute\, a new nonprofit committed to bringing written\, performing\, and other creative art to the Central Valley and under-resourced communities.  \nTara is an actor and comedian who has performed recently at the Pam Kitto Black Box Theater of Stockton\, Modesto’s Prospect Theater\, and at the Central Valley Gender Health and Wellness Center’s “Kings\, Queens\, and Comedians” drag show of 2024.  \n  \nJuan Luzuriaga \nJuan Luzuriaga was born in Guayaquil\, Ecuador\, and immigrated to the U.S. at 16 in 2000. He studied Neuroscience at Rutgers University and English at UC Merced. He teaches poetry in prisons\, at Cuesta College\, and California Poets in the Schools. He has been a featured panelist at UC Merced\, Cuesta College Central Coast Writers’ Conference\, Litfest and more\, and he is a featured panelist at the 2026 San Francisco Writers Conference Poetry Summit.   \nHe has been published in Acentos Review\, San Diego Poetry Annual\, Monterey Poetry Review\, Cholla Needles\, Poetry Breakfast\, Matchbox Magazine\, and in the anthologies Silence Is Consent\, To Be Completely Honest\, and Method Writers Speak. His collection\, Chimborazo Whispers\, is forthcoming from Blue Light Press.  \n  URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/2026jan/ LOCATION:Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, Modesto\, CA\, 95350\, United States CATEGORIES:Open Mic,Readings,Second Tuesday ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SecondTues_Jan2026-960x540-1-e1766003818477.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251213T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251213T133000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20251125T230213Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251126T002640Z UID:3936-1765630800-1765632600@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Mini Workshop for Teen Poets: How to Write a Tiny Poem DESCRIPTION:Woven Words Tiny Poem Contest: Teen Voices from the Central Valley\, presented by MoSt Poetry’s Stanislaus County Youth Poet Laureate program\, is now open for submissions from Stanislaus County high school students grades 9-12. \nPoets are invited to submit 1-3 very short poems (3-5 lines). The contest is free and open to anyone living in or attending high schools in Stanislaus County. \nThe author of the winning poem in each of the five categories wins $50. Poets are also invited to submit poems to the anthology without connecting them to the contest themes. The contest deadline is January 31\, 2026. Stanislaus County YPL Valentina Zeff will weave the short submissions together to create one book-length poem\, to be published as an anthology and distributed to participants. \nZeff will be conducting a mini-workshop on writing a tiny poem and will discuss the contest on Saturday\, December 13\,  202\, at 1:00 pm on Zoom: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81498958531 \nThe Stanislaus Youth Poet Laureate program is presented by MoSt Poetry in partnership with SCOE\, Stanislaus County Library\, MJC’s School of Language Arts & Education and the Library & Learning Center\, and the Stanislaus Library Foundation. URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/2025dec13ypl/ LOCATION:CA CATEGORIES:Contests,Workshops,Youth Poetry ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/MoSt-Gala-2017-0001.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251209T180000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251209T200000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20251112T001258Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251130T184503Z UID:3947-1765303200-1765310400@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Second Tuesday - MoSt Member Potluck/Open Mic DESCRIPTION:Join us for our December reading at The Dragonfly- Art for Life for a joyful open mic and potluck for members of Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center. \nWe’d love to have you there! It’s not too late to join MoSt–you can join at the door\, even. URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/second-tuesday-most-members-potluck-open-mic/ LOCATION:The Dragonfly Art for Life\, 1210 J Street\, Modesto\, CA\, 95350\, United States CATEGORIES:Open Mic,Other Events,Second Tuesday ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Most-SecondTues-Dec2025-e1764528296926.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251122T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251122T150000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20251030T201648Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251030T201648Z UID:3924-1763820000-1763823600@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:MoSt Poetry on Saturday featuring Lucille Lang Day and Carl Landauer DESCRIPTION:Please join host Gary Thomas at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday\, November 22\, 2025 at Carnegie Arts Center (250 North Broadway Ave.\, Turlock\, California) for a poetry reading featuring Lucille Lang Day and Carl Landauer. There will be light refreshments and an open mic time following the featured poets. This event is free and open to the public. \n \nLucille Lang Day is the author of four poetry chapbooks and seven full-length collections\, most recently Birds of San Pancho and Other Poems of Place. She has also edited three poetry anthologies and published two children’s books and a memoir. Her work appears in more than 200 magazines and anthologies\, such as The Cincinnati Review\, The Hudson Review\, River Styx\, The Threepenny Review\, Scientific American\, ZYZZYVA\, and Attached to the Living World: A New Ecopoetry Anthology. Her many honors include the Blue Light Poetry Prize\, two PEN Oakland – Josephine Miles Literary Awards\, the Joseph Henry Jackson Award\, and eleven Pushcart Prize nominations. She is founder and publisher of a small press\, Scarlet Tanager Books. https://lucillelangday.com \n  \n \nCarl Landauer taught history at Yale\, Stanford\, and McGill and is currently a contributing editor for Poetry Flash and a visiting scholar with UC Berkeley’s Institute for South Asia Studies. His poetry has appeared in Kenyon Review\, Exacting Clam\, and Poetry Flash. His writing on poetry and cultural history has appeared in Beat Scene\, The American Scholar\, Salmagundi\, Confrontation\, Renaissance Quarterly\, German Studies Review\, and Poetry Flash—as well as a critical analysis of Project 2025 published by Public Seminar. He is currently writing a long series of poems he calls “refracted ekphrases\,” each of which focuses on a movie that is adapted from literature. \n  URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/most-poetry-on-saturday-featuring-lucille-lang-day-and-carl-landauer/ LOCATION:Carnegie Arts Center\, 250 N. Broadway\, Turlock\, CA\, 95380\, United States CATEGORIES:Poetry on Saturday,Readings ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Thank-you-for-the-beauty-you-create-each-day-e1762905904292.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251111T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251111T203000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20251023T024613Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251031T215834Z UID:3921-1762887600-1762893000@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Second Tuesday Reading featuring Marisol Baca & Gillian Wegener at Bookish DESCRIPTION:Please join us at Bookish Modesto as we feature two tremendous Central Valley poets: Gillian Wegener and Marisol Baca. \nMarisol Baca teaches English\, Literature\, and Creative Writing at Fresno City College. She teaches Honors in the Leon S. Peters Honors Program\, and she also teaches as a part of the RAIN program (Resources for American Indian Needs). Baca is the author of a book of poems called Tremor\, and she was named Fresno’s first woman and first Chicana/Latinx Poet Laureate (2019-2021). Marisol’s poem about the naming of Fresno has been designated the city’s official poem. \nGillian Wegener is the author of one chapbook and two full-length collections of poetry: Lifting One Foot\, Lifting the Other (In the Grove Press\, 2001)\, The Opposite of Clairvoyance (2008)\, and This Sweet Haphazard (2017)\, both from Sixteen Rivers Press. She is also the founding president of Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center\, a previous Poet Laureate for the City of Modesto (2012-2016)\, and a two-time recipient of the Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Prize. She is a long-time educator in Oakdale and has lived in Modesto longer than she’s lived anywhere else. \nThe reading starts at 7:00 at Bookish Modesto. With open mic following featured poets. \n  URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/2025nov11/ LOCATION:Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, Modesto\, CA\, 95350\, United States CATEGORIES:Open Mic,Second Tuesday ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Nov-2025-Second-Tues-Baca-Wegener-e1761947750945.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251025T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251025T133000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20251014T003604Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251019T215926Z UID:3904-1761397200-1761399000@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Author Bio Workshop & Youth Poet Laureate Q & A DESCRIPTION:Mini Author Biography Workshop & Youth Poet Laureate Q & A\nValentina Zeff\, current Stanislaus County Youth Poet Laureate\, answers your questions! \nJoin us on Saturday\, October 25\, 2025\, at 1:00 p.m. as Youth Poet Laureate Valentina Zeff shares tips on how to write an author bio.  This is great to have when you’re submitting poems to anthologies and poetry journals\, entering poetry contests\, and when you’ve been asked to feature at a poetry reading. \nFeel free to drop in and meet Valentina and learn about the Woven Words: Teen Voices from the Central Valley Anthology and how you can submit poems for that. \nZoom Meeting Link  URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/25oct2025/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Workshops,Youth Poet Laureate,Youth Poetry ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/MoSt-Gala-2017-0001.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251014T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251014T203000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20250920T010612Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250920T010626Z UID:3885-1760468400-1760473800@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Second Tuesday Poetry presents FIVE FOR TEN: Five Central Valley Poets DESCRIPTION:Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center is pleased to present Second Tuesday Poetry: Five for Ten\, featuring five Central Valley poets:  \n  \nCasey Giffen\nDaley Perry\nCynthia Barstad\nPaloma Contreras\nMelchor Sahagun III\n \nDate: Tuesday\, October 14\, 2025\nTime: 7:00 pm PST\nWhere: Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, in the Roseburg Square shopping center \nOpen mic following featured poets (3 min per poet); sign up at the event. Hosted by Gillian Wegener \nCASEY GIFFEN:  \nA retired teacher of 40 years\, Casey enjoys creating on-demand poems on his manual\, Smith-Corona typewriter. His poetry has been published in Modesto Poets’ Corner Contests\, Penumbra\, and the Hughson Chronicle. Acts of Becoming is his second poetry collection.  \nPALOMA CONTRERAS:  \nPaloma Contreras is a Mexican\, bilingual poet and educator. Most of her writing is autobiographical and deals with themes of loss. \nMELCHOR SAHAGUN III: \nMelchor Sahagun III is a poet and corny romantic who lives in Stockton. His collection\, Sorry I’m Late\, was published by Tuleberg Press.  \nDALEY PERRY:  \nDaley Perry is a Central Valley native who lived in Tennessee for 15 years before (very happily) returning home in 2019. She loves writing angsty poetry that explores themes of spirituality\, smashing the patriarchy\, pop culture\, and loving our bodies.  \nCYNTHIA BARSTAD: Cynthia Barstad\, an early childhood educator for 30 years before she retired\, has shared her words with her family\, friends\, and strangers for years. She has been published in Stanislaus Connections along with her granddaughter Jenissa\, who shares Cynthia’s passion for words.  \n  URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/2025oct/ LOCATION:Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, Modesto\, CA\, 95350\, United States CATEGORIES:Open Mic,Readings,Second Tuesday ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/October2025_FiveforFive-1-e1758330320233.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251011T090000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20251011T110000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20250906T210809Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250906T210809Z UID:3856-1760173200-1760180400@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Autumn Nature Poetry Reading & Walk at Dos Rios State Park DESCRIPTION:AUTUMN NATURE POETRY READING AND WALK \nSaturday\, October 11\, 2025 –  9:00-11:00 a.m.\nDOS RIOS STATE PARK\n3559 Shiloh Road\nModesto\, CA\nJoin us at the base camp of the oxbow pond for our third nature poetry reading and walk. Park visitors are invited to bring a few of their favorite poems on nature\, written by themselves or by other writers\, that they can share. Hosted by Sal Salerno\, local poet and park volunteer. The reading will be followed by a 10:00 a.m. optional walk on the Pond Loop Trail\, led by State Park staff. URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/autumn-nature-poetry-reading-walk-at-dos-rios-state-park/ LOCATION:Dos Rios State Park\, 3559 Shiloh Rd\, Modesto\, CA\, 95358\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/MoSt-Gala-2017-0001.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250913T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250913T150000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20250727T203110Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250727T204537Z UID:3803-1757768400-1757775600@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:MoSt Summer Poetry Workshop "Poetry in Full Colors - Poesía a Todo Color" DESCRIPTION:MoSt Summer Poetry Workshop at the Salida Library    September 13\, 2025    1:00-3:00 p.m.    \nPoetry in Full Colors -a workshop -Creating your Pallet of Expression in Colors \nCome write with Janette Jameson and Vielka Solano\, board members of MoSt Poetry. \nWe will use words such as blue\, green and brown to accentuate the emotions\, tone and messages in our poems or prose. Colors such as red\, orange and yellow will also be invited to declare themselves in joy and sadness. \nBring a favorite pen and your pad or notebook and meet with others who write with a variety of experience. \nSupplies for writing will also be provided. \n  \nMoSt Taller de Poesía de Verano  en la Biblioteca de Salida    Septiembre 13\, 2025    1:00-3:00 p.m.  \nPoesía a Todo Color – un taller – Creando tu Paleta de Expresión en Colores \nVen a escribir con Janette Jameson y Vielka Solano\, miembros de la junta de MoSt Poetry.  \nUsaremos palabras como azul\, verde y marrón para acentuar las emociones\, tono y mensajes en nuestros poemas y prosa. Colores como rojo\, naranja y amarillo también serán invitados a declararse en alegría y tristeza. \nTrae tu pluma favorita y tu libreta y conoce a otros escritores con varios niveles de experiencia.  \nÚtiles para escribir también estarán disponible. URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/most-summer-poetry-workshop-poetry-in-full-colors-poesia-a-todo-color/ LOCATION:Salida Public Library\, 4835 Sisk Road\, Salida\, CA\, 95368\, United States CATEGORIES:Workshops ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Colorful-Festive-Hispanic-Heritage-Month-Facebook-Event-Cover--e1753646867944.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250909T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250909T203000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20250828T222503Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250828T224348Z UID:3835-1757444400-1757449800@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Second Tuesday Poetry featuring Samantha Tetangco Ocena and Moira Magneson DESCRIPTION:Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center is pleased to present Second Tuesday Poetry featuring Samantha Tetangco Ocena and Moira Magneson\, El Dorado County’s newest poet laureate \nDate: Tuesday\, Sep 9\, 2025\nTime: 7:00 pm PST\nWhere: Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Orangeburg Ave\, in the Roseburg Square shopping center \nOpen mic following featured poets (3 min per poet); sign up at the event. Hosted by Gillian Wegener \nSamantha Tetangco Ocena\nSamantha Tetangco Ocena is a Filipino-American writer and teacher. Her poetry collection\, Hope You Blend In: Studies In Color & Light (Broadstone Books\, 2024)\, was a finalist for the 2023 National Poetry Series. A multi-genre writer\, her poetry\, short stories\, and creative nonfiction have appeared in dozens of literary magazines\, most notably\, The Sun\, Tri-Quarterly\, Puerto del Sol\, Zone 3\, Gertrude\, Foglifter\, and Cimarron Review\, among others. Sam has served as editor-in-chief for Blue Mesa Review\, president of the AWP LGBTQ Writer’s Caucus\, and was co-director of Plume: A Writer’s Companion\, where she co-hosted Plume: A Writer’s Podcast. She has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of New Mexico and is an Associate Teaching Professor at the University of California Merced. \nABOUT HOPE YOU BLEND IN: STUDIES IN COLOR & LIGHT\nIn this fierce debut\, poet Samantha Tetangco wields “words like flint” to reveal the world we live in\, from the apocalyptic world of California wildfires where “our backyards became / this hell / we have created” to the real world in which the queer brown body becomes “an open wound.” But these poems also remind us of the ordinary magic left to us: breathing in a lover’s scent\, planting tulips\, and even the beauty of weeds blossoming “so small & sweet / they always go unnamed.” Meticulously crafted and political in the best ways\, this book brims with sharp beauty and reminds us what it is to be human. \n–Lisa D. Chavez\, author of In an Angry Season \n​Samantha Tetangco’s gaze is so sharp in this collection of poems\, that a single shift in tense can pierce a hole in the wall of contemporary rhetoric. We who “taught the matches / how to strike” are given an aperture to view our own participation in history. Beyond holding witness\, these poems provoke action. Are we—sharing a home\, a country\, a planet (on fire!)—actually in this together or are we just pretending? You will be known by what you choose: will you be a bearer or a borer of fruit? \n–Benjamin Garcia\, author of Thrown in the Throat \n  \nMoira Magneson\n \nOver the years\, Moira Magneson has worked as a river guide\, artist’s model\, truck driver\, television writer\, editor\, and community college writing instructor. A Northern California native\, she lives in the Sierra foothills where she has spearheaded many art actions and initiatives\, including El Dorado County’s Poetry Out Loud Competition\, Veterans’ Voices\, Barbaric Yawp\, and Black Lives: An American Overture. In 2024\, she was the resident poet for ForestSong\, a community arts project exploring solastalgia\, biophilia\, and resilience in the face of wildfire devastation. And just recently\, she was named El Dorado County’s Poet Laureate 25-27. Magneson is the author of A River Called Home: A River Fable\, an illustrated novella (Toad Road Press\, 2024). In the Eye of the Elephant is her first full-length collection of poems.  \n\nABOUT IN THE EYE OF THE ELEPHANT\nMoira Magneson’s In the Eye of the Elephant is an extraordinary collection of poems. I’ve rarely seen a book so exquisite in its centering of the natural world or in its honoring of the animal within us as well as those animals alongside us. Yet these poems are also dazzling and explosive in their reckonings with personal family wreckage\, and so deeply moving\, so deeply consoling in both their private and public grieving. Magneson writes\, “I praise Earth as it is\, its holy cup my heaven.” What a timely balm this book will be to its readers\, and what a treasure of visionary human compassion they will find. \n—David St. John\, author of Prayer for My Daughter \nI am drawn to Moira Magneson’s poems for the grime and gristle of their language—“elisions and plosives swept / piecemeal and stained // off the slaughterhouse floor”—for storytelling that stares pain in the face and delivers a hard-earned\, unexpected beauty that is possible because of a clear-eyed placement in the natural world. This world is not romanticized but instead made wondrous through images that invite readers to consider their own station in the wild. In the Eye of the Elephant is rewarding on numerous levels; I’ll come back to it again and again. \n—Albert Garcia\, author of A Meal Like That URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/2025sept/ LOCATION:Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, Modesto\, CA\, 95350\, United States CATEGORIES:Open Mic,Second Tuesday ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/September2025_Second-Tues_Ocena-and-Magneson-2-e1756420823380.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250830T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250830T150000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20250706T201323Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250706T201323Z UID:3787-1756562400-1756566000@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:MoSt Poetry on Saturday featuring Joshua McKinney & Cecil Morris DESCRIPTION:Please join host Gary Thomas at 2:00 p.m. Saturday\, August 30\, 2025 at Carnegie Arts Center in Turlock\, CA for a poetry reading featuring Joshua McKinney and Cecil Morris. There will be light refreshments and an open mic following the featured poets. This event is free and open to the public. \n \nJoshua McKinney’s fifth book of poetry\, Sad Animal (2024)\, was the recipient of the John Ridland Poetry Prize from Gunpowder Press. His work has appeared in such journals as Boulevard\, Denver Quarterly\, Kenyon Review\, New American Writing\, and many others. He is co-editor of the online ecopoetics journal\, Clade Song. \n \nCecil Morris taught high school English for 37 years in Roseville\, the small northern California city where he grew up. At Work in the Garden of Possibilities is his debut poetry collection. A Pushcart and Best of the Net nominee\, Morris has poems in The 2River Review\, Ekphrastic Review\, Hole in the Head Review\, Lascaux Review\, Rust + Moth\, Sugar House Review\, and elsewhere. He and his wife\, the mother of their children\, divide their year between their California hometown and the cool Oregon coast\, where they walk the beach and marvel at the sea and tide pools and joyful romping dogs. \n \n  \n \n  URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/most-poetry-on-saturday-featuring-joshua-mckinney-cecil-morris/ LOCATION:Carnegie Arts Center\, 250 N. Broadway\, Turlock\, CA\, 95380\, United States CATEGORIES:Poetry on Saturday,Readings ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/MoSt-Poetry-1-e1751830105571.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250816T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250816T150000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20250706T181508Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250706T181508Z UID:3772-1755349200-1755356400@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:MoSt Summer Poetry Workshop - The Journey Itself is Home: Haibun as Travel Journal DESCRIPTION:Haibun——the blending or braiding of prose poetry and haiku——has been a vehicle to reflect upon and write about human journeys——external and internal——since the days of the 17th Century Japanese poet Bashō. Join MoSt board member Gary Thomas as we consider and make some sense of the journeys we take in life. Writing supplies will be provided\, but feel free to bring your favorite pen\, pad\, tablet\, and/or travel photos! \nAs always\, this MoSt Summer Poetry Workshop is free and open to the public. We hope to see you from 1:00-3:00 p.m. on Saturday\, August 16th at the Salida Public Library\, 4835 Sisk Road\, Salida CA. URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/most-summer-poetry-workshop-the-journey-itself-is-home-haibun-as-travel-journal/ LOCATION:Salida Public Library\, 4835 Sisk Road\, Salida\, CA\, 95368\, United States CATEGORIES:Workshops ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/MoSt-Poetry-e1751824641423.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250812T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250812T203000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20250729T152238Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250729T152238Z UID:3818-1755025200-1755030600@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Second Tuesday Poetry: Modesto Poet Laureate Angela Drew + Stanislaus County Youth Poet Laureate Valentina Zeff DESCRIPTION:Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center is pleased to present Second Tuesday Poetry featuring Modesto Poet Laureate Angela Drew with special guest Valentina Zeff\, Stanislaus County Youth Poet Laureate \nDate: Tuesday\, August 12\,  2025\nTime: 7:00 pm PST\nWhere: Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Orangeburg Ave\, in the Roseburg Square shopping center \nOpen mic following featured poets (3 min per poet); sign up at the event. Hosted by Gillian Wegener \nANGELA DREW  \nAngela Drew is a mother\, dancer\, author\, poet\, and self-proclaimed linguistic artist who has loved the rhythm of words for as long as she can remember. Born in Berkeley\, California\, she began writing at age eight\, and has always understood that words have the power to soothe\, stir\, or solidify connection. She has played with the magic of storytelling ever since.  Angela is the winner and first-place slam champion of Modesto’s 2021 ILL List 16 Poetry Slam. She has performed her spoken word poetry at an array of venues\, just to name a few: Yoshi’s Jazz Club\, Oakland\, California; Gallo Center for the Arts and the State Theater\, Modesto\, California; Brickhouse Art Gallery\, Sacramento\, California\, and Apache Cafe\, Atlanta\, Georgia–a landmark poetry lounge that is home to some of Atlanta’s finest creatives.  \nShe is the author of ElderBerry Wine\, a children’s book written in poetic verse that celebrates the beauty and majesty of our elders\, and the richness they bring by  simply being a part of our lives. Join Angela on her poetic journey on all social media platforms. Her book is available on Amazon\, Barnes & Noble\, and other booksellers.  \n  \nVALENTINA ZEFF \nValentina Zeff is a sixteen-year-old poet from Modesto\, California who is currently enrolled in the International Baccalaureate program at Modesto High School. Zeff has been writing free verse and ballad poetry since her freshman year of high school. \nZeff is active within her community and school through social and environmental activism\, extracurricular projects\, and volunteering. She was selected to be a member of the Park’s Youth Committee (April 2024-current)\, Modesto Youth Commission (October 2024-current)\, and student representative for Modesto High School’s Student Senate for both ninth and tenth grade. During the 2023-2024 Speech and Debate season\, she was a top finalist for Original Spoken Word Poetry at State Qualifications. She is also the founder and Co-President of Modesto High School’s Book Club where she leads discussions on novels and poems of interest. Additionally\, she is the Secretary and head layout editor/designer of the Panther Press\, Modesto High School’s monthly newspaper. \n  URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/2025aug12/ LOCATION:Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, Modesto\, CA\, 95350\, United States CATEGORIES:Open Mic,Readings,Second Tuesday ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Aug2025-Second-Tues-1-e1753802491401.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250719T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250719T143000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20250627T181730Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250627T182016Z UID:3764-1752930000-1752935400@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Free Poetry Workshop: Paint Chip Poetry at the Library DESCRIPTION:Join Stella Beratlis at the Salida Library on July 19\, 2025 at 1:00 p.m. in a cool\, fun\, and relaxed environment to try out a variety of poetry prompts inspired by the descriptive language of paint chips. All ages invited. \nFeel free to bring your own extra paint chips to add to the prompt possibilities. URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/free-poetry-workshop-paint-chip-poetry/ LOCATION:Salida Public Library\, 4835 Sisk Road\, Salida\, CA\, 95368\, United States CATEGORIES:Workshops ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/workshopJuly2025-e1751048162369.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250708T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250708T190000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20250627T172145Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250627T175952Z UID:3760-1752001200-1752001200@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Second Tuesday Poetry featuring Sherre Vernon and Paula Sheil DESCRIPTION:Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center is pleased to present Second Tuesday Poetry featuring Sherre Vernon (Merced) and Paula Sheil (Stockton) \nDate: Tuesday\, July 8\, 2025\nTime: 7:00 pm PST\nWhere: Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Orangeburg Ave\, in the Roseburg Square shopping center \nOpen mic following featured poets (3 min per poet); sign up at the event. Hosted by Gillian Wegener \nPaula Sheil  \nPaula Sheil is a Professor of English at San Joaquin Delta College. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts from Raymond College and a Master of Arts in Writing from New College of California. She founded\, with friends\, Tuleburg Press in 2012 and The Write Place in 2017. \nShe taught elementary education\, moved on to arts administration\, and then journalism before joining the faculty at Delta. In the 1990s\, she ran an open mic that prompted her interest in publishing. She and the late Julia Holzer published ¡ZamBomba!\, a poetry quarterly that was read from Seattle to San Diego\, until 2000. At Delta\, Sheil started the Writer’s Guild and Artifact\, the college literary magazine.  \nHer work has been published in too many small journals\, magazines\, and newspapers to mention. She’s prouder yet of the poets and writers she has published and remains committed to empowering and amplifying the voices of Stockton and San Joaquin.  \nSherre Vernon \nSherre Vernon (she/her/hers) is the award-winning author of Green Ink Wings\, The Name is Perilous\, and Flame Nebula\, Bright Nova. Sherre has been published in journals such as Tahoma Literary Review and The Chestnut Review\, nominated for Best of the Net and Pushcart prizes\, and anthologized in several collections including Fat & Queer and Best Small Fictions. \nWe welcome these poets\, both new to the Second Tuesday series! URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/2025july/ LOCATION:Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, Modesto\, CA\, 95350\, United States CATEGORIES:Open Mic,Readings,Second Tuesday ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/July-2025-Second-Tues-Vernon-Sheil-1920-x-1080-px-e1751044850528.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250621T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250621T150000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20250512T190625Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250512T190625Z UID:3742-1750510800-1750518000@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:MoSt Poetry Summer Workshop "Writing Prose Poems: Breaking Free of the Line Break" DESCRIPTION:SATURDAY\, JUNE 21\, 2025        \n1 p.m. to 3 p.m. \nSALIDA PUBLIC LIBRARY \n4835 SISK ROAD\, SALIDA\, CA 95368 \n As the downtown Modesto library undergoes extensive renovations\, the Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center (MoSt) will be kicking off its annual summer workshop series this year at a new location\, the Salida Public Library. \nParticipants will be given the opportunity to read several outstanding examples of the form by noted practitioners and discuss them and how those pieces differ from other types of poetry.  As usual\, though\, the bulk of the time will be dedicated to having attendees begin crafting their own prose poems that afternoon. As always\, we would love to hear what’s been written during the session\, but only if you feel comfortable doing so. \nWe look forward to seeing you that day!! URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/most-poetry-summer-workshop-writing-prose-poems-breaking-free-of-the-line-break/ LOCATION:Salida Public Library\, 4835 Sisk Road\, Salida\, CA\, 95368\, United States CATEGORIES:Workshops ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Green-Watercolor-Happy-Wedding-Facebook-Event-Cover-e1747076505512.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250610T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250610T203000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20250524T025432Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250524T025432Z UID:3748-1749582000-1749587400@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Second Tuesday Poetry with Aideed Medina and Russell Reza-Khaliq Gonzaga DESCRIPTION:Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center is pleased to present Second Tuesday Poetry featuring Fresno’s newest Poet Laureate and spoken word artist Aideed Medina with Tracy poet\, teacher\, and spoken word artist Russell Reza-Khaliz Gonzaga\n\nDate: Tuesday\, June 10\, 2025Time: 7:00 pm PSTWhere: Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Orangeburg Ave\, in the Roseburg Square shopping center\n\nOpen mic following featured poets (3 min per poet); sign up at the event. Hosted by Gillian Wegener\n\nRussell Reza-Khaliq Gonzaga\nRussell Reza-Khaliq Gonzaga has hosted and organized events and workshops including the Sierra Poetry Festival\, the Center Camp Spoken Word Stage at Burning Man\, and the weekly ELYSEUM Writers Workshops at Harbin Hot Springs. Russell is Poet Laureate Emeritus of Lake County (2012-2014) and has represented San Francisco for three years at the National Poetry Slam. As an Arts Educator\, he has worked with several organizations including YouthSpeaks and WritersCorps. He is also the recipient of the Certificate of Honor from the Board of Supervisors and a Mayor’s declaration of “Russell Gonzaga Day” in San Francisco. Currently\, Russell is Poetry Editor for The Fabulist\, hosts the monthly Word Bubbles Open Mic in Tracy CA\, and is caretaker for his beloved Auntie Rosie.\n\nAideed Medina\n\n\nAideed Medina is Pushcart Prize-nominated poet\, award-winning spoken word artist and playwright\, and is the author of 31 Hummingbird: A Suite of Poems (Editorial Xingao\, 2023) and Segmented Bodies (Prickly Pear Press\,  2024). Her poetry and prose have been featured in many publications\, including Fresno State’s Club Austral Literary Magazine\, Chicano Writers and Artists Association Journal\, La Bloga\, Poets Responding\, Split This Rock\, and Nueva York Poetry Review\, among many others\, as well as in compositions for the 559 Mural Project and Fresno Grand Opera’s Opera Remix. Aideed is also a California Naturalist\, and practices “flor y canto” as part of her poetic process and exploration of California’s natural history. This past April\, Aideed was appointed Fresno’s seventh poet laureate. She will serve through March 2027. URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/second-tuesday-poetry-with-aideed-medina-and-russell-reza-khaliq-gonzaga/ LOCATION:Bookish Modesto\, 811 W. Roseburg Ave\, Modesto\, CA\, 95350\, United States CATEGORIES:Open Mic,Readings,Second Tuesday ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Second-Tuesday-June-2025-e1748055176859.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250601T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250601T150000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20250425T000726Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250425T000733Z UID:3705-1748782800-1748790000@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:City of Modesto Poets' Corner Reading & Reception DESCRIPTION:The Parks\, Recreation and Neighborhoods Department and the City of Modesto’s Poets’ Corner Committee are pleased to offer an Annual Poets’ Corner Contest. \nContest Winners\nPoets will be invited to read their winning poems on Sunday\, June 1\, 2025 at 1:00 P.M. at the McHenry Museum\, followed by light refreshments. \nWinning poems will be printed in a booklet that will be placed in the Poets’ Bookshelf\, which contains published works by local writers and will be kept at the McHenry Museum. Each winner will receive a copy of the booklet. \nWinners will be notified by email (or mail\, when email is unavailable.) \nFor more info go to https://www.modestogov.com/558/Poets-Corner-Contest URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/city-of-modesto-poets-corner-reading-reception-2/ LOCATION:McHenry Museum\, 1402 14th St\, Modesto\, CA\, 95354\, United States CATEGORIES:Contests,Readings ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/city-of-modesto-poets-corner-2025-1-e1743369835929.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250531T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250531T140000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20250501T000924Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250503T184819Z UID:3713-1748696400-1748700000@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Welcome 2025-2026 Youth Poet Laureate: Reading & Reception DESCRIPTION:We’ll be celebrating our incoming youth poet laureate\, Valentina Zeff\, at a reading/reception at Modesto Junior College’s Science Community Center.  Come listen to a few poems\, meet youth poets\, and learn about the youth poet laureate program. \nValentina Zeff is a sixteen-year-old poet from Modesto\, California who is currently enrolled in the International Baccalaureate program at Modesto High School. Zeff has been writing free verse and ballad poetry since her freshman year of high school. \nZeff is active within her community and school through social and environmental activism\, extracurricular projects\, and volunteering. She was selected to be a member of the Park’s Youth Committee (April 2024-current)\, Modesto Youth Commission (October 2024-current)\, and student representative for Modesto High School’s Student Senate for both ninth and tenth grade. During the 2023-2024 Speech and Debate season\, she was a top finalist for Original Spoken Word Poetry at State Qualifications. She is also the founder and Co-President of Modesto High School’s Book Club where she leads discussions on novels and poems of interest. Additionally\, she is the Secretary and head layout editor/designer of the Panther Press\, Modesto High School’s monthly newspaper. \nPlease welcome our incoming Stanislaus County Youth Poet Laureate\, Valentina Zeff! \nThe Stanislaus County Youth Poet Laureate program is administered by Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center (MoSt Poetry) with partners MJC Library & Learning Center & MJC School of Language Arts & Education\, Stanislaus County Office of Education\, Stanislaus County Library\, and Stanislaus Library Foundation. \n  URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/2025yplreception/ LOCATION:Modesto Junior College West Campus\, 2201 Blue Gum Avenue\, Modesto\, CA\, 95358\, United States CATEGORIES:Readings,Youth Poet Laureate,Youth Poetry ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/yplreading2025may_rev2-e1746297868725.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250517T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250517T150000 DTSTAMP:20260423T115936 CREATED:20250424T224708Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250510T035050Z UID:3696-1747486800-1747494000@www.mostpoetry.org SUMMARY:Youth Poet Laureate Send-Off Reading & Open Mic: Zoe Byron DESCRIPTION:Please join us as we bid a fond farewell to 2024-2025 Youth Poet Laureate Zoe Byron\, whose tenure as youth laureate is complete at the end of May. She’s the second ever Stanislaus County Youth Poet Laureate and has done a beautiful job representing the voice of youth through her poems. \nThis final reading will take place at the Oakdale Public Library\, 151 S. First Avenue\, Oakdale CA 95361. Please bring a poem to share at open mic! Reading starts at 1:00 p.m. in the Community Room just inside the front entrance. \n  URL:https://www.mostpoetry.org/event/2025may17/ LOCATION:Oakdale Library\, 151 South First Avenue\, Oakdale\, CA\, 95361\, United States CATEGORIES:Open Mic,Readings,Youth Poet Laureate,Youth Poetry ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.mostpoetry.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/2025may17-ypl-e1745534524532.png ORGANIZER;CN="Stella Beratlis":MAILTO:stellab@mostpoetry.org END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR