Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center

Second Tuesday @ Barkin' Dog *Date Change
2016-11-15 18:00 - 20:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Barkin’ Dog Grill, 940 11th St, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
Our usual Second Tuesday reading is being held a week later — same time, same place — with Modesto Poet Laureate Stella Beratlis and Alice Anderson. Come join us for a reading followed by our usual open mic!

Poetry Reading at the Library
2016-10-29 14:00 - 16:00 | Stanislaus County Library, 1500 I Street, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
On Saturday, October 29 at 2:00 at the downtown Modesto library, there will be a poetry reading! Modesto Poet Laureate Stella Beratlis and former Poet Laureate Gillian Wegener will be reading with Bay Area poets Rosa Lane and Nina Lindsay. Stay after the reading for a Q&A and book signing.
All four poets have books published by Sixteen Rivers Press. Join us for a great afternoon!

MoSt Board Meeting
2016-10-26 18:30 - 20:00
Our next Board meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, October 26th, at 6:30 pm at Tom Portwood’s home. Please contact info@mostpoetry.org for more information, if you would like to attend. All members are welcome.

Second Tuesday @ Barkin' Dog
2016-10-11 18:00 - 20:00 | Barkin’ Dog Grill, 940 11th St, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
Come join us at the Second Tuesday reading series at the Barkin’ Dog Grill! This month, our poets are Jerry Fleming and Melchor Sagahun, and as always, you are invited to stay for the open mic after the reading.
Also, we are giving away tickets to this year’s Ill List Poetry Slam! But you have to be here to win…so don’t miss this one!

Great Valley Bookfest
2016-10-08 10:00 - 16:00 | Bass Pro Center, 280 Lifestyle Road, Manteca, CA, 95337, United States
Come and see MoSt members and a panoply of authors from the Central Valley and beyond!
Celebrate the fun of reading with author talks, autographs, cooking demos, workshops, costume parade, contests, vendors, and books, books, books! — Admission is free!
MoSt president Gillian Wegener and board member Linda Scheller will be reading in the Poets’ Corner, and MoSt board member and treasurer Sarah Stevenson will be presenting in the afternoon on the Mystery! Thriller! Romance! stage. Dozens of authors will be available all day, chatting with readers and selling books in the Author Alley.
Take some time out on a Saturday to celebrate the love of reading! For more information, visit the Great Valley Bookfest website.
The Great Valley Bookfest is held at:
The Promenade Shops at Orchard Valley (aka Bass Pro Center)
Highway 120 at Union Rd exit
280 Lifestyle Road
Manteca, CA 95337

MoSt Board Meeting
2016-09-29 18:30 - 20:00
Join us at Tom Portwood’s home for our next Board meeting! All interested MoSt members may attend. For more information, contact us at info@mostpoetry.org

Summer Poetry Workshop: The Beauty of Form with Sal Salerno
2016-09-24 13:00 - 15:00 | Stanislaus County Library, 1500 I Street, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
Save the date for a workshop on Making a Poem: The Beauty of Form at the Modesto Library with MoSt Board member Sal Salerno. This poetry workshop is designed to instruct poets on the use of rhythm, rhyme, and forms in order to enhance the beauty and durability of their work. Participants should bring five copies of two of their unfinished poems to the workshop.
This free workshop is open to the public. Light refreshments will be provided. For more information contact the Modesto Library at (209) 558-7814.
Sponsored by Friends of the Modesto Library, Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center.

Local Author Fair at the Library
2016-09-24 09:00 - 12:00 | Stanislaus County Library, 1500 I Street, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
Come visit us at the Stanislaus County Library’s 7th Annual Local Author Fair! MoSt will have a table with information and poetry books for sale. It’s the perfect accompaniment to the nearby Farmers’ Market, and you can infuse your day with even MORE poetry by attending Salvatore Salerno’s 1:00 pm poetry workshop inside the library.

U.S. Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera
2016-09-18 15:00 - 16:30 | Carnegie Arts Center, 250 N. Broadway, Turlock, CA, 95380, United States
United States Poet Laureate, Juan Felipe Herrera, is coming to the Carnegie Arts Center in Turlock, and we could not be more excited.
Mr. Herrera will give a reading on Sunday, September 18 at 3:00 P.M. Seating is limited for the event, so please purchase your tickets soon. Individual tickets are $25 general, $20 for Carnegie Arts Center and MoSt members, and $15 for students. A select group of premium tickets are available for $50 and will include a pre-lecture reception (starting at 2 P.M.) and book signing with the author.
Tickets can be purchased at the link below.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/juan-felipe-herrera-reading-tickets-25586839927

Second Tuesday @ Barkin' Dog
2016-09-13 18:00 - 20:00 | Barkin’ Dog Grill, 940 11th St, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
Join us for our monthly reading series and open mic following the reading! This month’s featured poets are from awg.

Modesto Poet Laureate @ Queen Bean
2016-09-06 19:00 - 21:00 | Queen Bean Coffee House, 1126 14th St, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
Our new Modesto Poet Laureate (and founding Board member of MoSt) Stella Beratlis will be featured in the Queen Bean’s poetry reading series this month! Join us and show your support for poetry in the community.

Poetry on Sunday @ Carnegie
2016-08-28 14:00 - 17:00 | Carnegie Arts Center, Gemperle Gallery, 250 N. Broadway Ave., Turlock, CA, United States
Come join us at the Carnegie Arts Center in Turlock for our next installment of the quarterly Poetry on Sunday series, featuring Laura Bayliss, Pat Egenberger, Lynn M. Hansen, and Jennifer Lagier. This event is FREE and open to the public, with an open mic following the reading. Join us in celebrating the spoken word!
Click here to download the PDF flyer.
Laura Bayless is the author of three collections of poetry, The Edge of the Nest, White Streams and Touchstones, and Persistent Dreams. Her poems have appeared in local and national publications, and anthologies, including Dancing on the Brink of the World, Selected Poems of Point Lobos, Porter Gulch Review, The Homestead Review, and Blue Heron. She is co-editor of an award-winning compilation of stories and poems about the Carmel River – Passion for Place. She participated in seven Women’s Voices readings at the Carl Cherry Center in Carmel and multiple Women and Food art and poetry presentations on the Monterey Peninsula. “In the practice of writing poems I find what has been waiting for me, what sheds another layer of pretense. I am uplifted, enriched, reconciled, and reminded of all that I do not know. I cast my poems to itinerant winds, unquestioning of where they might reseed in the meadow of another heart.”
Pat Egenberger‘s first published poems appeared in the early 1970’s in Original Works, a multi-language journal. Locally, Song of the san Joaquin, Modesto Poets’ Corner, and Between Sheets have published her poems over the years. Her work was included in the anthology More Than Soil More Than Sky, the Modesto Poets. Other publications include Spirit of the Rose Journal, Women Talking, Women Listening, and Medicine Jug. Pat taught for about 38 years in public schools–middle school through university–various subjects, such as English, foreign languages, art/drama electives, and video production. She enjoys learning foreign languages, exploring various art media, doing volunteer work, and spending special time with grandchildren. She lives in Modesto with her husband of 49 years, Leroy.
Lynn M. Hansen, author of Flicker, Poems by Lynn M. Hansen, has lived in the Modesto, California area since 1955. Her roots are rural as reflected in her poetry celebrating Valley living. A naturalist and trained biologist she uses her poetry to immortalize natural environments like vernal pools and grasslands special to the Central Valley. She is Past President of the Modesto Chapter of National League of American Pen Women, a founding member of MoSt Poetry Center, a member and 2014 Grand Prize winner of the Ina Coolbrith Circle’s annual Poets’ Dinner Contest. Her poems have appeared in The Pen Woman; More Than Soil, More Than Sky, an Anthology of the Modesto Poets; Quercus Review; hardpan; and Song of the San Joaquin, among others. She lives with her husband Richard Anderson in Modesto, California not far from the Tuolumne River, lifeblood for Valley farmers and spawning salmon.
Jennifer Lagier has published ten books and in literary magazines. She taught with California Poets in the Schools, co-edits the Homestead Review, helps coordinate monthly Monterey Bay Poetry Consortium Second Sunday readings. Forthcoming books: Harbingers (Blue Light Press), Scene of the Crime (Evening Street Press), Camille Abroad (FutureCycle). Website: http://jlagier.net

Summer Poetry Workshop: Ekphrastic Poetry with Gary Thomas
2016-08-27 13:00 - 15:00 | Stanislaus County Library, 1500 I Street, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
Save the date for a workshop on Ekphrastic Poetry at the Modesto Library with MoSt Board member Gary Thomas.
This free workshop is open to the public. Light refreshments will be provided. For more information contact the Modesto Library at (209) 558-7814.
Sponsored by Friends of the Modesto Library, Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center.

Second Tuesday @ Barkin' Dog
2016-08-09 18:00 - 20:00 | Barkin’ Dog Grill, 940 11th St, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
Join us for our monthly reading series and open mic following the reading! This month’s featured poets include Mai Der Vang and members of the Hmong American Writers’ Circle.

Summer Poetry Workshop: Persona Poetry with Linda Scheller
2016-07-16 13:00 - 15:00 | Stanislaus County Library, 1500 I Street, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
Save the date for a workshop on Persona Poetry at the Modesto Library with MoSt Board member Linda Scheller.
This free workshop is open to the public. Light refreshments will be provided. For more information contact the Modesto Library at (209) 558-7814.
Sponsored by Friends of the Modesto Library, Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center.

Second Tuesday @ Barkin' Dog
2016-07-12 18:00 - 20:00 | Barkin’ Dog Grill, 940 11th St, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
Join us for our monthly reading series and open mic at the Barkin’ Dog Grill in Modesto! This month’s featured readers will include MoSt secretary Tom Portwood and Susan Kelly DeWitt.
Tom Portwood is a founding member of the Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center, and serves on its board as its Secretary. His poems have appeared in Modesto Poets Corner, Stanislaus Connections, hardpan, Many More, Describing the Depths, and Song of the San Joaquin, as well as More than Soil, More than Sky: the Modesto Poets anthology. By the Pond is his first chapbook.
Susan Kelly-DeWitt is the author of Spider Season (Cold River Press, 2016) and nine previous poetry collections, including The Fortunate Islands (Marick Press, 2008). A former Wallace Stegner fellow, her work has appeared in numerous anthologies and journals at home and abroad. She has also been featured at Wordstock, and on Writer’s Almanac, Verse Daily, and Ted Kooser’s American Life in Poetry. For more information, please visit her website at www.susankelly-dewitt.com.

Poet Laureate Reception
2016-07-12 16:00 - 18:00 | McHenry Museum, 1402 14th St, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
Join the Modesto Culture Commission and Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center in welcoming the new City of Modesto Poet Laureate and honoring the outgoing Poet Laureate, our own Gillian Wegener. There will be a poetry reading and light refreshments will be provided.

Summer Poetry Workshop: Poetry of Place with Gillian Wegener
2016-06-15 18:00 - 20:00 | Stanislaus County Library, 1500 I Street, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
Join Modesto Poet Laureate Gillian Wegener, Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center (MoSt), and the Modesto Library for the first in a series of poetry workshops. Come read and write poetry focused on place — the places we love and the places that haunt us. Play with image, metaphor, and rhythm and bring place alive for those who read your work. This free workshop is open to the public. Light refreshments will be provided. For more information contact the Modesto Library at (209) 558-7814.
Sponsored by Friends of the Modesto Library, Modesto-Stanislaus Poetry Center.

Poetry on Sunday @ Carnegie
2016-05-22 14:00 - 16:00 | Carnegie Arts Center, Gemperle Gallery, 250 N. Broadway Ave., Turlock, CA, United States
This very special reading will feature the winning youth poets from the Aileen Jaffa Poetry Contest, administered by MoSt and the Modesto Chapter of the National League of American Pen Women. Please join us! Download the PDF flyer here.
Read more about the competition on our Contests page.

Poetry on the Spot @ Art Walk
2016-05-19 17:00 - 21:00 | Preservation Coffee, 1030 J Street, Modesto, CA, United States
MoSt Poets will do Poetry-on-the-Spot for the Third Thursday Art Walk in downtown Modesto at Preservation Coffee. Poetry on the Spot means: you pick 5 words, we write you a poem!

35th Annual Poets' Corner Celebration
2016-05-15 13:00 - 15:00 | McHenry Museum, 1402 14th St, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
A reading to celebrate the 35th annual Poets’ Corner contest from the City of Modesto; 1:00 at the McHenry Museum.

Poetry on the Spot
2016-05-13 15:00 - 18:00 | CSU Stanislaus, 1 University Circle, Turlock, CA, 95382, United States
MoSt Poets will do Poetry-on-the-Spot at CSU Stanislaus from 3pm to 6pm. That means: you pick 5 words, we write you a poem!

Second Tuesday @ Barkin' Dog
2016-05-10 18:00 - 20:00 | Barkin’ Dog Grill, 940 11th St, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
Join us for our monthly reading series featuring fantastic local poets and an open mic following the reading!

Poetry for Peace and Justice
2016-04-29 18:00 - 20:00 | Peer Recovery Art Gallery, 1222 J Street, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
A Free Community Event at the Peer Recovery Art Gallery, 1222 J Street Modesto CA 95354.
Come listen to original poems, spoken word, music by local artists and peace readings from thought leaders, hosted by The Modesto Peace Life Center. Download the PDF flyer for more information.

MoSt Board Meeting
2016-04-28 18:30 - 20:00
Our next Board Meeting is scheduled for April 28 at 6:30 at Tom Portwood’s home. Please contact us at info (at) mostpoetry.org for more information about attending.

MoSt Annual Gala
2016-04-17 14:00 - 17:00 | Barkin’ Dog Grill, 940 11th St, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
Join us during our open house for food and drink, music, a silent auction, and poetry. Funds raised at this benefit will help MoSt Poetry Center to continue to bring poetry to schools, senior centers, and community organizations. Just this year, we have held our annual poetry festival in February, are working on establishing a chapbook series for local up-and-coming poets, and are partnering with the Carnegie Arts Center in Turlock to bring United States Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera to the Carnegie for a reading and workshop.
Music by Dr. David Chapman and Travis Silvers of the Modesto Junior College Music Department. Silent auction items to include gift baskets, arts and crafts, gift certificates, and more! Please contact info@mostpoetry.org if you have a silent auction item to donate.
Tickets $20 each; includes food and beverage. Tickets are available from MoSt board members, at the door, or online at Eventbrite–just click below.

Deadline: Aileen Jaffa Young Poets Contest
2016-04-15
This contest is offered as a means of encouraging young writers throughout Stanislaus County and as a way to remember poet Aileen Jaffa, the founding President of the Poets of the San Joaquin and member of the Modesto Branch of the National League of American Pen Women.
Any student enrolled in a Stanislaus County school, grades K through 12, is eligible to submit up to 3 entries, at $1 per entry. Read more and download the entry form on the Contest Page.

Deadline: Poets' Corner Contest
2016-03-11
March 11th is the deadline for this year’s Modesto Poets’ Corner contest! The guidelines are up at https://www.modestogov.com/prnd/poet_corner.asp. Share the link and let everyone and their parents know that this contest is out there!

Second Tuesday @ Barkin' Dog
2016-03-08 18:00 - 20:00 | Barkin’ Dog Grill, 940 11th St, Modesto, CA, 95354, United States
The Second Tuesday Reading Series continues with featured readers Julia Levine and Linda Prather. 6:00 at the Barkin’ Dog Grill — more info to come!

Poetry on Sunday Series @ Carnegie
2016-02-28 14:00 - 16:00 | Carnegie Arts Center, Gemperle Gallery, 250 N. Broadway Ave., Turlock, CA, United States
Come join us at the Carnegie Arts Center in Turlock for our next installment of the quarterly Poetry on Sunday series, featuring Angela Morales Salinas, Nancy Haskett, Sarah Haskett, and Katy Brown. This event is FREE and open to the public, with an open mic following the reading. Join us in celebrating the spoken word!
Download the PDF flyer here.

Poet and photographer Katy Brown, whose work frequently appears on Medusa’s Kitchen Blogspot and Convergence, has won awards in The Ina Coolbrith Circle, The Berkeley Poets’ Dinner, and The International Dance Poetry Competition. Her poetry has been in Brevities, Rattlesnake Review, The Song of San Joaquin, Poetalk, Persimmon Tree, and Harpstrings, as well as in several anthologies such as Sacramento Voices, Entering, and Fog and Woodsmoke. Other writing credits include, automobile humor, greeting cards, a multiple-ending book, a poetry workbook, and a series of short mysteries for young readers. Her secret power is that she can catch a lizard with a blade of grass.
Nancy Haskett has been writing since she was in high school. An educator for over 30 years, she retired in 2011 and is an active member of the poetry community in Modesto, CA. She is a member of the Ina Coolbrith Circle, MoSt (Modesto Stanislaus Poetry Center), National League of American Penwomen and other local writing groups. Nancy has presented her poetry at the Carnegie Arts Center in Turlock, CA and has been published in many places, including the anthology More than Soil, More than Sky; Stanislaus Connections; Penumbra; Homestead Review; Iodine Press; Song of the San Joaquin; The Pen Woman, and more. In her spare time, Nancy enjoys reading, traveling, and spending time with her family.
Sarah Haskett is the daughter of an English teacher and an artist; surrounded by these inspirations, she has, not surprisingly, been writing poetry since she was a child. She is a high school English Honors and Creative Writing teacher, and therefore much of her inspiration to write comes from her classroom, as well as the injustices of society. Having recently graduated as a Master in Teaching for Social Justice, Sarah finds ways to meld her passion for writing with her passion for bringing awareness to those social issues. Her writings have been published by Modesto Poet’s Corner, Stanislaus Connections, and the booklet she publishes with her Creative Writing students each year. In her almost non-existent spare time, she likes to travel and hike with her husband and their two dogs, Ringo and Whiskey.
Angela Morales Salinas is a retired kindergarten teacher who writes poetry for love. She has been published locally in Penumbra, Something So Write, Stanislaus Connections, and hardpan.
Angela states, “I came to this country speaking nothing but Spanish. When I went to school, I quickly learned to speak English. I fell in love with how two languages could work together to create something unique. I have been in the San Joaquin Valley for most of my life, starting at the very southern end, Kern County, and making my way slowly but surely up north. I have chosen to work in a neighborhood that many people do not like to think about. I understand. It is hard to look at want and fear because if you are not careful that is all you will see. You have to be able to look past that and see the absolute joy and hope that is there beneath the surface. This crazy mix of languages, people, and ideas has been my inspiration. There is beauty in the ugliness, and harshness masks a gentleness that’s also there. If I can give voice to what our valley is trying to tell us, I will have done I think, what I was sent to do. But to accomplish this I know I must listen carefully, look deeply and allow love to guide my voice.”
