Milwaukie Poetry Series
A group of local residents dedicated to expanding poetry in Milwaukie and the larger community.
Who We Are
Begun in 2007 as a Committee of the Ledding Library of Milwaukie and supported by a start-up grant from the Clackamas County Arts Alliance, the Series has sponsored an exciting series of readings by established local poets taking place on the second Wednesday of each month September through June at 6:30 p.m. Support has continued from the City of Milwaukie after the first Season and has continued since then. WE are very grateful for that.
It is our mission to make poetry more accessible to all members of the community. Reading poetry and bringing people together to hear the spoken word supports and develops community. Poetry is written to be shared out loud. In addition to the readings, the Series has expanded to offering workshops, open mic readings, youth events, bilingual readings, discussion and poetry presentations and in the summer poetry in the park. Poetry is the life of a community; it helps us write our story. Below are links to poet bios, videos, and poems.
Online you can access all past Poetry Series readings at the Ledding Library Youtube channel.
Season Seventeen
The Milwaukie Poetry Series is delighted to announce it's Seventeenth Season.
The readings will be in the Community Room at the Ledding Library, 10660 SE 21st Ave.
We will also be livestreaming the readings through the facilities of the Willamette Falls Media Center on the Ledding Library YouTube Channel. The readings will then be available for viewing on demand on the Ledding Library YouTube Channel.
Latest Poetry Readings
These celebrations are held during January in Oregon and the nation in honor of poet William Stafford who taught for many years at Lewis and Clark College and was Oregon Poet Laureate from 1975 through 1989. The event will be hosted by Tom Hogan and Greg Chaimov. Our Featured Readers will be David Filer, Stephanie Lenox, Sue Reese, and Doug Stone. They will be reading poems by William Stafford and…
Read MoreCharles Goodrich’s new book of poems, Watering the Rhubarb, is just out from Flowstone Press. Previous books include the poetry collections A Scripture of Crows; Going to Seed: Dispatches from the Garden; and Insects of South Corvallis, along with a collection of essays, The Practice of Home, and two co-edited anthologies, Forest Under Story: Creative Inquiry in an Old-Growth Forest and In the Blast Zone: Catastrophe and Renewal on Mount St. Helens. Following a long career as a professional…
Read MoreWendy Willis has published two books of poems, a book of essays, and a textbook. Her last two books, These are Strange Times, My Dear, and A Long Late Pledge were finalists for the Oregon Book Award. Wendy is also the founder and director of Oregon’s Kitchen Table, a statewide community engagement program housed at Portland State University. She lives in Southeast Portland with her family
Read MoreDavid J.S. Pickering is a native Oregonian, having grown up and lived much of his life in the working-class culture of the North Oregon Coast. He received the 2020 Airlie Prize for his first poetry collection, Jesus Comes to Me as Judy Garland (Airlie Press, 09/2021). His poetry is published in a variety of journals including Reed Magazine, Pine Row, Raven Chronicles,and Gertrude Journal. David never aspired to have his…
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