Feb 19

City of Modesto Poets’ Corner Contest


The Community & Economic Development Department and the City of Modesto’s Poets’ Corner Committee announce the Annual Poets’ Corner Contest. The submission period for this contest ends on March 8, 2019. Entries must be postmarked by Friday, March 8, 2019.  Electronic entries must be submitted by 11:59 pm on Friday, March 8, 2019.  Winners will be notified via email (or post, if email is not available). Poets will be invited to read their winning poems on Sunday, May 5th, 2019 at 1:00 PM at the McHenry Museum followed by light refreshments.  Winning poems will be collected in a booklet, which each winner will receive.  Additional copies of the booklet will be available at the McHenry Museum.

The contest is open to all Stanislaus County residents and offers two categories for poetry entries:

  • General: Any kind of poetry on any subject, rhymed or unrhymed.  Free verse and form welcome.  Group of three haiku accepted as one entry.
  • Special:  “Community: Where do you belong?  Be it family, school or a larger community, tell us about what it means to be part of something bigger than yourself.

For requirements, submission details, and other information, please visit the City of Modesto’s Poets’ Corner Contest page.

Feb 10

2019 Poetry Festival Contest Winners

We are proud to congratulate our winning poets from the 2019 Modesto Poetry Festival’s poetry contest. Names and winning poem titles are listed below by category. Thank you to everyone who attended for making this year’s event another success!

Category:  The Edge of the Sea

Second Honorable Mention: Sea Shells by Roberta Bearden
Second Honorable Mention: Midway, Standing at the Edge of the Sea by Linda Prather Nelson
First Honorable Mention: The Sea by Ed Bearden
Third Place: Offshore by Laura M. Bayless
Second Place: Gloaming by Jennifer Lagier
First Place: Persistent by Kate Aver Avraham

Category:  In and Out of Fashion (Life A La Mode)

Second Honorable Mention: Solitaire by Laura M. Bayless
First Honorable Mention: Full Circle Fashion by Ellaraine Lockie
Third Place: Ballerina Man by Kate Aver Avraham
Second Place: When We Were White by Ed Bearden
First Place: Life a la Mode by Louise Kantro

Category: Here in This House

Second Honorable Mention: Radiation Oncology by Roberta Bearden
First Honorable Mention: Without Horses by Cleo Griffith
Third Place: This Old House by Gordon Preston
Second Place: Something About the Stairs by Laura M. Bayless
First Place: Laundry by Kate Aver Avraham

Category: What Remains

Second Honorable Mention: They Say You Lost Everything by Lynn M. Hansen
First Honorable Mention: What Lingers by Kate Aver Avraham
Third Place:  The Unexpected by Cleo Griffith
Second Place: Try This Again by Linda Prather Nelson
First Place: The Remains by Nancy Haskett               

Feb 06

Tonight 2/6–Poetry Out Loud County Competition

Join us tonight, February 6th, at MJC’s Little Theater from 7:00 to 9:00 for the county-level Poetry Out Loud competition!

Poetry Out Loud is a national poetry recitation contest for students, sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation. Last year, our county winner took third place at the state level, so don’t miss the chance to witness this year’s contest and support these wonderful students in developing and demonstrating their poetry reading skills.

Poetry Book Club

MoSt is pleased to announce another installment of our Poetry Book Club! The meeting will be held on Wednesday, April 24th from 6:30 to 7:30 at the downtown library. Our featured book is Wade in the Water by Tracy K. Smith–copies will be available from the Modesto Library or on Amazon, and we will have a few copies on hand.

This event is free and open to the public.

Sixth Annual Benefit Gala

Save the date for our Sixth Annual Benefit on April 14th, 2019! Our annual MoSt Poetry Center Benefit provides our supporters with the chance to enjoy food, drinks, and music while mingling with poetry-minded friends.

Come have a lovely afternoon of poetry, food and drink, music, poetry games, a silent auction, and the release of our 2019 George Rogers-Lee Nicholson Chapbook featuring the work of young poets.

Tickets are $20 each and available online at https://mostpoetry.eventbrite.com.

You’ll also be able to buy tickets at the door, but if you purchase them beforehand we’ll know you’re coming and can better plan for the event.

To read about some of our past events, click here.