Synopsis - 4th Annual Raymond Carver Writing Festival (RCWF)

"Carver Movie Night & Adult Poetry Slam"

April 16 & 17, 2010 at The Blue Nutria in Clatskanie, OR 97016
 

          Team spells:  "Together Everyone Achieves More!"  That certainly is reminiscent of the recent, successful conclusion of the 4th Annual Raymond Carver Writing Festival (RCWF) events held on Friday and Saturday, April 16 and 17, 2010, underscored by the "Carver Movie Night" showing of "Short Cuts" a 1993 drama film directed by Robert Altman using Los Angeles as a setting for the Pacific Northwest backdrop of Carver's stories and the "RCWF Adult Poetry Slam" held the following day at The Blue Nutria in Clatskanie.

          On behalf of the Clatskanie Friends of the Library, Inc. who sponsored the event, I thank all who came forward both as organizers, volunteers and participants making this a truly extraordinary gathering enabling poets, through an interactive setting, to draw strength from their peers.
 

          No one can do everything, but everyone can do something was exemplified by the bright collage of community leaders and literary lights that gathered during the event.

          Clatskanie Mayor Diane Pohl, pluperfect of the action verb of getting positive things done in our community that she personifies, officially opened the poetry slam as a time to honor Clatskanie's Raymond Carver Day, celebrated annually on May 25, that she proclaimed back in 2007, with the approval of the city council.
 

          A quiet man with search of soul approach to writing, Dr. Lars Nordström, Swedish-American author, poet and translator who lives with his family on a small vineyard in Beavercreek, Oregon, was on hand sharing his nurturing spirit.
 

          Enter Barbara Drake, Professor of English, Emerita of Linfield College, whose poetic pause pulsated throughout the poetry slam lifting attendees to a lilting level of rhyme into the rhythm of reason.  Drake, who attended elementary school in Clatskanie until she was nine years old and then moved away and graduated from Coos Bay High School in 1957, seemed to find solace in this homecoming still following the path of her childhood dreams.
 

          Then the Carver-classic Carter Crockett, penname of Bruce Wolf, of Oregon City, charmed all through the recitation  from memory of a potpourri of poems whose final poem was "Party of Six."  It was based on the question, "If you could invite anybody from history to dinner, who would it be?"  And it won the festivals First Prize.
 

          Pied Piper of the RCWF and slam master John Lillich along with his wife Kris, who tallied scores along the way, led the group through the event with spark, sizzle and steam.  Their in-kind contribution of the use of The Blue Nutria gratis was vital to the vision of this festival offering.

          Stir in Pamela Sellix, proprietor of Hump’s Restaurant, who came up with an aromatic meatball, plus trimmings, buffet and you end up mellow and merry feeling magnificent and we couldn’t have succeeded without the help of Friends Foundation hostess Carol Lillich who deftly served out a Carver favorite raspberry crème filled chocolate cake and pencil in the indelible refreshment barman, Joe Perriconi who served out pop and piping hot vegetarian pizzas delivered from Fultano’s Pizza.

          Not to forget the logistic liaisons of tireless energy embodied by George (webmaster of the RCWF raycarverfestival.com) and Debbie Throop, Clatskanie Library director Elizabeth Kruse who lent a steady hand to the rudder guiding the creative cluster, John and Janine Salisbury whose songs of encouragement brightened the day for festival officials,  Sally Jones of Rainier and Jennifer Lehmer of Clatskanie whose smiles warmed the room, Ryan Tallmon and Kim Morrisey who were the candle’s of caring along the way and Deborah Steele Hazen, Publisher and Editor of The Clatskanie Chief, who acted as sister of solace throughout the event.
 

          Quote of the day:  "How much does it cost to attend the event, Ernie?" Asked Robin Fouché, director of the Clatskanie Together Coalition (CTC) as she kindly lent the coalition's movie projector for the event.
 

          When I replied, "nothing - it is sponsored by the Friends Foundation with grant support from the Oregon Cultural Trust (OCT) administered through the Columbia County Cultural Coalition (CCCC)" she smiled back, "only in Clatskanie!"
 

          One can only believe that Ray Carver, famed American short-story writer and poet whose realistic writings about the working poor mirrored his own life from when he was born across the street from The Blue Nutria in the old Clatskanie Medical Building in 1938 to the end of his life's journey when he passed away with lung cancer in Port Angeles, Washington in 1988, would have given a positive nod to this 4th Annual RCWF held in his honor as an exceptional enrichment tool of honing literary skills for all who participated.

          And if in unison we wrote a story that weekend, it was to say that we did all we could and it turned out to be more than we could have ever imagined.

 See "Poet Nighthawks"