Poetry Contest Winners Reading & Open Mic

The Clackamas Arts Alliance, Milwaukie Poetry Series, and St. John the Evangelist Episcopal church are delighted to host the Poetry Contest Winners Reading and Open Mic on Friday, June 5, 2026.

The reading will be part of the June 5, 2026 First Friday in Milwaukie and will take place from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. in the meeting room at St. John the Evangelist church.at 2036 SE Jefferson St. The Featured Readers will be the winners of the Writing Contest sponsored by the Clackamas Arts Alliance. The winners will be reading their winning poems from the contest. The event will also be available virtually on Zoom.

 The Awards presentation will be hosted by Oregon Poet Laureate Emerita Paulann Petersen.

She has eight full-length books of poetry, most recently My Kindred from Salmon Poetry of Ireland. Her poems have appeared in many journals and anthologies, including Poetry, The Birmingham Review, Prairie Schooner, Orion, Catamaran, Wilderness Magazine, the Internet’s Poetry Daily, and POETRY IN MOTION, which put poems on Portland, Oregon buses and light rail cars. A former Stegner Fellow at Stanford University, she’s the recipient of the Holbrook Award from Oregon Literary Arts, and from Willamette Writers both a Distinguished Northwest Writer Award and a Legacy Award.

Then there will be the Open Mic for all who wish to read their own work or share some of their favorite poems. To get on the list to read ahead of time, please contact Tom Hogan at [email protected]. Plan to read 2 poems. We will go another round depending on how many readers there are. There will also be a sign-up sheet at the event for those wishing to share.                                                     

Come along to this in-person event. You can register for Zoom by contacting Tom Hogan at [email protected] and you will receive a link before the event.

The event will be recorded and available for viewing on demand on the Ledding Library YouTube Channel.