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The Depot will be hosting a free for admission night of poetry Friday, December the 5th at 7PM. Three poets, Alan Berecka, Hank Jones, and Janice Francis-Smith, will speak on the theme "What's So Funny About Peace, Love, and Understanding?"Alan Berecka is an acclaimed American poet whose work deftly blends humor, storytelling, and insight into everyday life. Hailing from rural New York and residing near Corpus Christi, Texas, Berecka is a retired librarian and the author of several poetry collections, including Atlas Sighs: New and Selected Poems, The Hamlet of Stittville, and A Living is not a Life: A Working Title. His poems have appeared in numerous literary journals including the American Literary Review. Currently, he is a regular contributor to the Texas Poetry Assignment and was included in Lamar University Press’s poetry anthology Southern Voices. Although a Texan, he is no stranger to Oklahoma poetry venues, so much so the late great Dorothy Alexander dubbed him the Oklahoma Gulf Coast poet. Berecka’s writing is celebrated for its wit and warmth, reflecting both the absurdities and joys of the human experience. He has a distinctive voice which invites us to see the world a little differently, one poem at a time. From 2017-2019 he served as the first poet Laureate of Corpus Christi.
Hank Jones backpacked the world in his youth hoping to find a poet within until lack of funds prompted him to seek a job at his alma mater, Tarleton State University. He planned to stay a year or two and get back on the road, but twenty-five years later, he is an assistant professor at the same university. To keep his creative spirit alive, and to hone his facility with the written word, he enrolled in the Red Earth MFA program at Oklahoma City University from which he graduated in 2019. His poetry has been published in Cybersoleil: A Literary Journal, Voices de la Luna, Dragon Poet Review, the Concho River Review, and Red River Review. He’s also contributed poems to The Great American Wise Ass Poetry Anthology from Lamar University Literary Press; Speak Your Mind: Poems of Protest & Resistance, published by Village Books Press; the Stone Renga Anthology from Tale Feathers Press; Bull Buffalo and Indian Paintbrush (The Poetry of Oklahoma), edited by Ron Wallace; and The Working Man’s Hand: Celebrating Woody Guthrie, Poems of Protest and Resistance (Fine Dog Press, 2023). His first book of poetry, Too Late for Manly Hands, was published by Turning Plow Press in 2021.
Janice Francis-Smith is a writer, poet and singer-songwriter based in Oklahoma City. After two dozen years as a news reporter and 15 journalism awards for her work, she now serves as Managing Editor of The Black Chronicle newspaper in Oklahoma City. She has been a Woody Guthrie Poet three times, and her work is included in the anthology “Ain’t Gonna Be Treated This Way” published by Village Books Press. She is also a long-time co-coordinator of the Last Sunday Poetry reading at Full Circle Bookstore. As a songwriter, Janice has performed at The Walnut Valley Festival, The Woody Guthrie Festival, and the Kerrville Folk Festival. She has also performed at some of the premier listening rooms in the country, including the Bluebird Cafe in Nashville, the Bitter End in New York City, Eddie’s Attic in Decatur, Georgia and the Blue Door in Oklahoma City. She has produced four full-length albums, winning several songwriting accolades and awards, including a Woody Guthrie Songwriting Contest Honorable Mention, first place in the Walnut Valley Songwriting Showcase, and a Posi Award from emPower Music & Arts.
This event will be free for all attendees and refreshments will be provided. Come out and enjoy some live poetry at The Depot.
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
200 S Jones Ave, Norman, OK, United States, Oklahoma 73069
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