Just before the winter weekend, the first official poetry competition of the year was held in Poetry Alley, on the ground floor of Foley Hall. Students who wished to participate in this event were challenged to incorporate 5-10 words from Kristal Leebrick’s poem, “New Year Love,” into their own.

Prizes of new and famous poetry books were awarded to three winners and one honorable mention. Muriel Leung ‘15 won First Place for her poem “Ambrosia,” while Brandon Fong ‘15 won Second Place for his poem “Ironing.” Third place and honorable mention was awarded to Doug Johnson ’15 and Che Baez ’15 for their poems “Winter” and “Bedroom Walls,” respectively.

Congratulations to the winners and many other talented young writers who contributed to this wonderful event!

And, an acrostic tribute from the NEWS:

Participants in this competition were mostly seniors, except a few from under-formers or anonymous individuals.

Outstanding poems were submitted, making it very difficult for the two judges, Mr. Tom Hunt and Mr. John Hinman to make their picks on the three finalists.

Exemplified in these poems were the excess amount of creativity and thoughtfulness that Kent students possess.

Trying to write and create a poem requires an essence of time and passion. Mrs. Karen Moreno, the founder of this year’s competition, wanted to bring former faculty and good friend Mrs. Stout’s idea a try, giving students an opportunity to challenge themselves. Mrs. Moreno was curious to see how students would incorporate someone else’s work into their own. Reading poetry, according to her, is a “great pleasure.”

Readers were stunned at the great depth of sensitivity and level of thoughtfulness that their classmates demonstrated in the poems.

Young writers expressed their talent and great ardor for writing in this wonderful annual competition.