Help celebrate the Stroll’s 30th Anniversary!

It’s been 30 years since the first Stroll in September 2021—what a great opportunity for us to celebrate our remarkable poetry community. During this coming year, we want to recognize the contributions of members past and present, and imagine the future. It’s also an opportunity to let more people know about the Stroll.

So we are looking for ideas. How would you like to celebrate the Stroll’s anniversary? You’re invited to submit a proposal that could be implemented during our 30th year.

Perhaps you’d like to put together a chapbook of “30” poems or do a special project to profile our poetic community. Maybe you can think of new ways we can use technology. Maybe there’s a special event, workshop or mentoring idea you’d like to coordinate. (Imagine an actual Stroll afternoon again!)

We hope for great ideas, and know we can’t do everything. But we’re hoping to pick at least three that are feasible. Proposals will be evaluated based on the following:

  • how they meet the goals for the 30th anniversary,
  • logistical considerations,
  • feasibility
  • interest to members and the poetry community

The Stroll’s Board will assist with promotion and advertising, liaising between activity/event leaders and interested members. Unfortunately the Stroll can’t contribute funds, but will offer in-kind support where possible.

Deadline to submit a proposal is September 27, 2021, so you have all summer to polish your proposal and talk to others who might be interested in helping to make it happen.

If you have any questions, please contact Shirley Serviss at sserviss@telus.net

Haven at Home Returns – A Message from the President

The Stroll’s Haven Committee has been in touch with our friends at the Upper Crust Cafe and we’re all looking forward to having us back there. But with rising COVID-19 Variant numbers and spacing at the restaurant, we’re just not comfortable with the parameters of safety for our members at this time. So, the board has chosen to stay online for our 2021 Haven Reading Series this fall.

We’re hopeful things will improve and we will review the status again in November with a possible return to Havens at the Upper Crust Cafe in the new year.

Keep your fingers crossed that we shall see each other in person in 2022!

Stay well,

Janis Dow
President

2021/2022 POETS’ HAVEN ONLINE SIGN UP IS NOW OPEN!

Welcome back, poets!

As you know your membership entitles you to an 8-minute reading slot at one of our 2021/22 “Haven at Home” online Reading Series.

By following this link, you may go directly to the sign-up page on SignUp Genius. From the calendar, simply pick and click the date that works for you and put your full name in the sign up slot under “Comments.”  Mic Host spots are also available at the same place.

Please consider signing up sooner rather than later as this popular reading series tends to fill quickly!

ONE MORE OPPORTUNITY TO PICK UP YOUR 2021 ANTHOLOGY

For those Stroll members who weren’t able to pick up their anthologies on the first distribution date (May 22), we have scheduled a second pick-up date. We will also have a limited number of Parkland Poets anthologies on hand, as well as the three chapbooks edited for the Stroll by Markus Eymann.

Here are the details:

Pick-up Date:     Saturday, August 14, 2021
Time:                  1:00 pm to 5:00 pm
Location:            See below «

« In order to maintain privacy, rather than publishing the location in a publicly accessible newsletter, this information will be sent only to those who request it. Please send an email to the anthology editor, Deborah Lawson, at strollantho@writersguild.ab.ca. Location and other details will be sent to you.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Before coming to pick up your anthology, please make sure you are feeling well and have not had any exposure to COVID-19. Even though, as of this date, the City of Edmonton has relaxed or removed some of the COVID–19 restrictions, the safety of all our members and their loved ones is still paramount. Our distribution day volunteers will have access to gloves and masks, and will don them upon request. We want everyone to feel safe and comfortable as they come to pick up their anthologies. Your copy will be always be ready and waiting for you to pick it up in the future, when you are well and/or when the situation has stabilized.