April is National Poetry Month
The April 7, 2022 City Council Meeting began with a Proclamation designating April as National Poetry Month, which happens to be the largest literary celebration in the world! We were honored to be joined by San Mateo County Poet Laureate Aileen Cassinetto, who received the Proclamation from the Mayor and then shared a poem of hers titled, “Take Heart”. This is the official poem commissioned by San Mateo County Health’s Wellness Team to honor all first responders and the loved ones of those we lost to COVID-19.
Aileen cited the many programs, awards, and installations the City hosts each year, in particular the Annual Artists' Evening of Sharing. This event took place on March 19, virtually, where everyone got a front-row seat to Brisbane's illustrious artist community! If you didn't get a chance to watch the event yet, it's available to play back here on the City's YouTube channel. One of the artists, local author Tony Press, will be presenting one of his poems on Friday, April 8th at the San Mateo Public Main Library, 5-6:30pm in the Oak Room, located on the first floor of the library. Light refreshments will be served, with a book signing starting at 4:30pm.
Between 2019 and 2022, students 18 & below who live or attend school in San Mateo County have been encouraged to participate in poetry projects that raise awareness of the climate crisis by looking at how human ecology, ecosystems, climate justice, housing justice & human relationships are interconnected. Check out Speak Poetry's Youth and Eco-poetry page. You may recognize one of them, Brisbane resident Cassandra Bousquet, who recently graduated from the Youth Climate Ambassador program and held the United Against Climate Change Fair in the Community Park last November. She'll be performing a reading on Saturday, April 16th at the Redwood City Public Library starting at 1pm as part of the Teen Makers event. Aileen will be joining her, along with another teen poet, Chloe Chou. We're pleased to see young people's voices being uplifted through poetry!
