Kenmore, NY, May 10 — The Kenmore Village Improvement Society (KVIS) will host its next Open Mic Poetry Night on Thursday, May 10, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the KVIS meeting space, 7 Warren Ave., Kenmore.
Writers and poetry lovers of all styles and experience levels are invited to attend. Participants may read their own original work, share a favorite poem by another author, or just listen. Sign-up to read or perform begins at 6 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
The May featured reader is Trudy Stern, a Buffalo-based poet and artist and a longtime contributor to the region’s literary community. She is the author of the chapbook Taurus in Lake Erie and the limited-edition Ghosts Dreams, and her work has appeared in anthologies and readings over the past three decades. Stern was the proprietor of Tru-Teas teahouse on Elmwood Avenue, where she helped foster a local poetry community, and she collaborated with her husband, artist Michael Morgulis, on early Just Buffalo broadsides in the late 1970s. In addition to her work in the arts, she has spent decades as a nurse and continues her work at the UBMD Long COVID Recovery Center. Her poetry reflects a sustained interest in listening, storytelling, and the unexpected details of everyday life.
KVIS President Melissa Foster said the organization hopes the evening offers an opportunity for connection and creativity in a welcoming setting.
“It is always such a joy to experience the word feast we have each month at our poetry night,” Foster said. “We hope everyone who comes will enjoy connecting with others through spoken word.”
Open Mic Poetry Nights are held on the fourth Thursday of each month and are open to all members of the community.
The KVIS is a group of volunteers celebrating 18 years of serving the community. We strive to help make our neck of the woods as good as possible in as many ways as needed. Membership to the KVIS is free and open to all people living anywhere who care about Kenmore. For more information, please contact KVIS President Melissa Foster at [email protected].