St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in State College will host its second annual free poetry reading and panel discussion featuring the winners of its 2022 poetry contest, “Caring for Creation,” on Saturday as part of the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts.
The event will be held in-person at 1 p.m. in the church at 208 W. Foster Ave. and will also be livestreamed on Facebook.
Winners of the contest include Kathleen Morrow, of Pennsylvania Furnace, who took first prize for “Teatime in Noah’s Kitchen”; Judith Sornberger, of Wellsboro, whose “January in Tioga County, PA” was named first runner-up; and Rebecca Pierre, of State College, who was awarded Judge’s Choice for “Being.”
The poetry reading will be hosted by Lock Haven poet Marjorie Maddox, while the panel discussion moderated by Rev. Jeffrey Packard, rector of St. Andrew’s. Panelists are Todd Davis, poet and Penn State Altoona professor of environmental science; Greg Williams, member of Pennsylvania Interfaith Power and Light and habitat rehabilitator; and Rebecca Rumbaugh, director of operations for ClearWater Conservancy.
“Caring for Creation: St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church 2022 Poetry Contest Anthology,” a new book which includes the prize-winning poems, other selected submissions and an original poem contributed by Maddox, also will be available for purchase at the event.
In 2021, Packard came up with the idea of using a poetry contest to ask a provocative question and encourage conversation on a topic of substance and concern, according to a news release. He hopes that combining the contest with a poetry reading, panel discussion and published anthology this year will help bring together people of different backgrounds to focus on “Creation Care” and “Climate Crisis.”
“Part of the beauty of this approach is the ability to engage with new communities,” Packard said. “People with an artistic background, regardless of their faith position, can come to the table with us. People with a passion for the given topic can get involved. People of faith, whether they are Episcopalian or not, Christian or not, can take part. We are reaching beyond our walls to invite people into deep conversation and engagement with a topic that is important to them.”
Winning poems and more about the poets and panelists can be found at artsat.standrewsc.org.
