Washington State Poet Laureate Derek Sheffield will appear Sept. 11 at the Vernetta Smith Chehalis Timberland Regional Library for “An Hour With the State Poet Laureate.”
The free event starts at 5 p.m. in the library’s large meeting room.
Sheffield will speak about his journey on becoming the state poet laureate, as well as read some of his poems. Afterward, Sheffield will take part in a question-and-answer session with attendees.
“We are thrilled and honored to have Derek speak at our library in his position as our state poet laureate. We hope people not only in Chehalis but in surrounding communities will attend to hear him share his poetry and answer questions,” Muriel Wheatley, library manager for the Chehalis and Centralia branches of Timberland Regional Library, said in a news release.
Sheffield is Washington’s eighth poet laureate. He teaches at Wenatchee Valley College and edits poetry at Terrain.org.
The Washington State Poet Laureate builds awareness and appreciation of poetry through public readings, workshops, lectures and presentations, according to the Washington State Arts Commission (ArtsWA). The Washington State Poet Laureate program is jointly sponsored by the ArtsWA and Humanities Washington.
The free event is co-hosted by Timberland Regional Library and the Friends of the Chehalis Library (FOCL). FOCL is paying for the costs related to the event.
The Vernetta Smith Chehalis Timberland Library is located at 400 N. Market Blvd. in Chehalis.
