Los Gatos Weekly-Times

Poet Laureate to be named prior to Music in the Plaza

By Shari Kaplan

On Sunday, Aug. 23, about half an hour before the 5 p.m. performance of the Terry Summa Orchestra at Music in the Plaza, Los Gatos' best bards will be revealed and the town's two Poet Laureates of the Year--Junior and Senior--will be announced.

The Poet Laureate Contest sprang from Poetry for Everyone of Los Gatos, an eclectic group of poets and poetry fans founded by the late Mary Foster, who died earlier this month. Foster's dream, which she made a reality, was to make poetry accessible and appealing to people of all backgrounds, ages and skill levels.

Last year, Foster named the contest the Bob Aldrich Memorial Poetry Contest, in memory of friend, fellow poet and longtime Los Gatos Weekly-Times writer Bob Aldrich, who died in June 1997. Now the contest may also be named in memory of Foster herself, according to Los Gatan Carol Anne Blisard, an active member of Poetry for Everyone and a friend of Foster's.

There are two categories for would-be poet laureates: the junior division for ages 17 and younger, and the senior division for those 18 and older. The ceremony before the music will feature the awarding of one poet laureate, one second place and one honorable mention in each of the two divisions and certificates of appreciation to everyone.

This year's poets submitted one poem on the topic of rain and two poems on any other topics. The judges were San Jose Mercury News columnist Leigh Weimers, Los Gatos Weekly-Times editor Dale Bryant and Jon Robertson of 1-800-ProColor Inc.

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