Village Poets Say Farewell to Lloyd Hitt in November 2022

Maja Trochimczyk, Marlene Hitt and Lloyd Hitt at the 4th of July Parade in 2018

Village Poets of Sunland-Tujunga have said their farewells to Dr. Lloyd Hitt, a retired pharmacist, community activist, poet, and a recipient of our 2019 Lifetime Achievement Award shared with his wife, Marlene Hitt. 

The Celebration of Life ceremony took place on Saturday, 19 November 2022 at the New Hope Church in Sunland, with over 100 people in attendance.  The event included live music played on flute, keyboard, prayers and speeches, the presentation of the flag to the widow of this Korean War veteran, complete with Taps beautifully played on the trumpet, and a luncheon during which the attendees could share their memories of Lloyd and his impact on their lives. 

During the "official" part of the event, Joe DeCenzo read the Eulogy, prepared by Lloyd's son Robert.  It is here reproduced in its entirety.

Lloyd Hitt  (1932-2022)  

     Lloyd Hitt was born February 18, 1932 in San Jose California. His father was Bill Hitt, mother Lorraine and sister Marilyn.  He was born during The Great Depression. He grew up in a Christian home and his childhood was primarily during the wartime effort. His father, Bill, was an aircraft mechanic, pilot and chief inspector for McDonnell aircraft.  Lloyd’s family, like most families at that time, did not have a lot of money, lived a frugal life, and moved often following wherever his father’s expertise was needed.

           He often talked about the various places he lived as a boy. Oklahoma, where his father promptly had Lloyd dig a long ditch for a place to shelter in case of tornados. Or Daggett, where they had a nice house provided right on the airbase. Because it was only a two bedroom, like most homes of that era, his father converted a tool shed out behind the house to a bedroom for Lloyd. He remembered how cold it was in the winter and enjoyed the kerosene heater. They had to move again because, as a Christian woman of that era, his mom did not like how the other ladies enjoyed evening cocktails. His father found a small one room cottage in the nearby town of Newberry Springs. He often spoke of the one room schoolhouse where the teacher was about 90 and pulled from retirement to teach his class.

     Lloyd picked, dried and shucked a large sack of walnuts and sold them to the PX on base for $7 and used that money to buy his first .22 rifle. He felt like he was in heaven wandering the vast desert with his .22 and would look for turtles, rabbits and snakes. He also would ride his ex polo pony and said that horse would turn and stop so fast he could hardly hang on.

     He lived in many other areas like Pacoima, Canoga Park and finally Sunland where his father always would convert a chicken coop, garage attic or even have Lloyd live in a tent out in the yard so his younger sister, Marilyn, could have her own room. But he never complained about any of that. We believe it was part of the adventure of life to him.

    

      At the age of 16, he started working at Sunland Pharmacy. He would clean the floors, burn the trash and was finally promoted to soda jerk. I don’t believe he paid much mind to the owner’s daughter at that time as she was 4 years younger, more to follow on that.  Lloyd attended Verdugo Hills High School, where he learned to play the saxophone and joined the band.  He went on to Glendale College where he worked for his associates’ degree. He also attended UCLA.

     

      Growing up with a father in the aircraft industry, he signed up to be a pilot in the air force. While waiting for that call, he was drafted into the Army. He said when he was in boot camp the call for the Air Force came in, unfortunately his commanding Officer informed him he was now Army property. He said he never regretted it.

     

      The Korean war had been going on for some time when he was shipped to an outpost named pork chop hill.  While en route, he would tell Bobby, “The trucks were coming down with the dead and wounded as fast as the trucks were going up with fresh troops.”  He would say, “not a guy in those trucks could spit, their mouths were so dry from fear and not a word was spoken.”

     He befriended a Corporal named White. They shared a machine gun nest together. The tripod on the .50 cal machine gun was broken and White told Lloyd that he saw one laying on the side of the road a few miles back. Lloyd found the tripod but was spotted by the enemy. Mortars came in and somehow, other than some shrapnel in his arm, he was spared. He delivered the tripod and was sent to medical for treatment. That night his nest took a direct hit and his friend White was killed.  

      He had shared his stories with the family over the years without much emotion, but it wasn’t until his dementia was advanced and he was blindly expressing things that they discovered for all those years, he had mastered the suppression of his PTSD.  You never heard one regret about the Army, it taught him so much about life and made him a strong man. He was deeply appreciative of the Army GI bill affording him the chance to attend USC and become a pharmacist. 

     Something else happened when he was overseas, the boss’s daughter I mentioned earlier, her name was Marlene.  She had been writing him letters. Now both mature with some life experience, a romance evolved. They were married in 1956 at St Mark's Church in Glendale.  Married 66 years, she was his only love as he repeated again and again-that he loved her dearly.

     Lloyd was always a leader. When studying at USC, he became president of his fraternity and class president of the USC School of Pharmacy where he graduated with honors. Many hours were spent at the dinette table of the newlyweds studying. 

     Lloyd was a great father to Jeanette and Bobby, their words.  He took them to ride the family horses through the Wash and through the hills, and he and Bobby took the horses backpacking in the wilderness of the Sierra.  He would take the family camping and fishing and was always supportive... Both Bobby and Jeanette worked with him at Hober’s Pharmacy, the store opened by Marlene’s parents. It was a nice way to be together after school or during vacations. Always busy at the Pharmacy, they looked forward to every other weekend at home with him. It would usually be a workday around the house and church on Sunday.  For many years, during this time, Lloyd devoted himself to leadership and fellowship at Sunland Baptist Church of course, now called New Hope Community Church.

     Upon retirement, like most new retirees, he searched for a new direction. He did things like 

making Lincoln logs for the grandkids. He made a miniature adobe mission, walking sticks, and he loved to work in the garden. Marlene donated her time as a docent and historian at Bolton Hall Museum and Lloyd joined her. Once again, him being the leader, he soon became the President of the Little Landers Historical Society that runs Bolton Hall.  There he fought for upgrades to the building such as a new flagpole that hadn’t been replaced since 1914; a new roof and re-landscape the surrounding park prompted him to correspond with city dignitaries sometime to their chagrin. There he also started a movement to preserve local landmarks such as the castle style homes and original structures in our area.  He also spent years on a movement to preserve a place at the local Verdugo Hills golf course as it was previously a WWII internment site.  Tuna Camp Detention Station now has historical status.

With so much energy and so much willingness to give, he became interested in poetry, writing, some travel, paleontology, home improvement, community activities, and family life. Lloyd Hitt spent the last 18 weeks of his life in Montrose Health Care facility, suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease. A devastating end to 90 years of love, devotion, fortitude and service. Lloyd’s was a life well lived.

~ Eulogy by Robert Hitt, presented by Joe DeCenzo

Lloyd and Marlene as Grand Marshalls of the Parade

     

 All attendees of the Celebration of Life received a booklet with a brief biography, photograph, program and a lovely poem by Marlene Hitt. Here's her poem:

  

To You, W.L.H

On the shore once we stood

watching waves take the sand

I close to you

holding my hand

The back of our future

a long time ago

we see clearly now

passed quickly, passed slow

Herb and poultice

salve and balm

gentled soft on wounds

healed, now are gone

On the far shore of the future

still together we stand

I - close to you, you -

holding my hand

Marlene, Dublin, July 10, 2000

There were many speeches at the community-hall part of the Celebration of Life, many memories, many tears.  As representative of Village Poets of Sunland-Tujunga, a group somewhat not well remembered by other attendees, Maja Trochimczyk recalled Lloyd's help during Monthly Poetry Readings at Bolton Hall. Even though he had served as the President of the Little Landers Historical Society, Lloyd was not afraid of the broom: he swept crumbs left by poets after the refreshments were served, and made sure that everything was in good order when the poets left Bolton Hall in the evening. That's "Servant Leadership" at its best! And a great example to future generations of community activists. 

Maja also read two poems by Lloyd from a book of poetry The Earth Time that Moonrise Press published in 2018 and Marlene Hitt edited.  These insightful poems show Lloyd's gifts of observation and reflection about life. 

The Earth Time is a unique poetry collection documenting a lifetime of service of Dr. Lloyd Hitt, a Californian, pharmacist, USC graduate, Korean War veteran, writer, and community activist. The book of 46 poems is divided into five sections, focusing on: the contemplation of natural beauty and power (The Earth Time), dramatic experiences of WWII (The War Time), memories of the past that passed away too quickly (The Memory Time), milestones of a well-lived life (The Life Time), and the time of love, primarily for his wife, poet and historian Marlene Hitt (The Love Time). Dr. Hitt received many awards and honors for his tireless and dedicated community service.

ISBN 9781945938320, paperback, $16.00

http://www.lulu.com/shop/lloyd-hitt/the-earth-time/paperback/product-23907339.html

ISBN 978-1-945938-33-7, ebook, in ePub system, $10.00 

http://www.lulu.com/content/e-book/the-earth-time/24521745

Alone in Paris

Standing at the top

a million miles away

 I’m alone

Below, Paris

glows with a million lights

I sense you near

The Eiffel is crowded,

exotic voices everywhere

Your voice is silent

Lovers walk hand in hand,

far below, and

I feel your touch

Lamps, light

the River Seine

Your breath on my cheek

Headlights circling ever faster 

the Arc de Triomphe

As a racing heartbeat

Steel girders feel cold to my touch

 but I know

I’m not alone

 

(c) Lloyd Hitt, from "The Earth Time" by Moonrise Press, 2018

The Eiffel Tower, photo by Maja Trochimczyk 

The Color of Life

You and I rode

a grain of sand falling

through the eye of the glass

You and I sat

by a yellow crackling fire

sunrise lit the valley below

You and I felt

the golden warmth of a smile

from across the room

You and I saw

the love of our newborn…

a blue velvet lullaby

You and I wandered

through fields of orange poppies

on a desert floor, wondering why

You and I looked 

at the darkness of night

the blackness cradled the stars

You and I listened 

to a rainbow of verse,

when first read

 

You and I succumbed 

to the eye of the glass, grain by grain

leaving yesterday’s sand behind

All this, you and I were 

 full of life because

you were there. 

(C) by Lloyd Hitt, from "The Earth Time" (Moonrise Press, 2018).

Among other speakers, Pamela Shea of Village Poets read her poem written for this occasion:

Well Done, Lloyd, Well Done!

 by Pamela Shea

In remembering Lloyd, I think of a strong oak tree,

Protecting, serving, providing shelter wherever planted.

Family, friends, country, and community are all blessed.

His legacy lives in all of us through good deeds and planting seeds.

Look around, Lloyd lives on among us; hear his song, he is never gone!

(c) 2022 by Pamela Shea

In 2019, Village Poets presented Marlene and Lloyd with a Lifetime Achievement Award for promoting poetry in the foothills. He got plenty of other honors, medals and distinctions, but we want to remember that he shared the world of poetry with us. 

http://villagepoets.blogspot.com/2019/08/marlene-and-lloyd-hitts-lifetime.html

Lifetime Achievement Award for Marlene and Lloyd Hitt from Village Poets

Celebration of Life Programs and flag with medals.

A selection of Lloyd's honors and recognition

Alice Pero Named the Tenth Poet Laureate of Sunland Tujunga

Ms. Alice Pero, an eminent California poet, flutist, poetry teacher and cultural activist, has been named the Tenth Poet Laureate of Sunland-Tujunga for the years 2020-2022. Ms. Pero was selected for her role by a ten-person Poetry and Literature Committee, convened by Village Poets, a local voluntary group presenting poetry readings at Bolton Hall Museum in Tujunga. The Committee consisted of Chair, Joe DeCenzo, the Fourth Poet Laureate of Sunland-Tujunga, and of other Village Poets of Sunland Tujunga, all former Poets Laureate – Dorothy Skiles, Marlene Hitt, Pamela Shea, Elsa Frausto, and Dr. Maja Trochimczyk. The Village Poets were joined by invited representatives of local organizations: Ms. Liliana Sanchez, President of Sunland Tujunga Neighborhood Council, Mr. Ardem Tajerian, Senior Librarian, Sunland Tujunga Branch Library, and Ms. Laurell Gells, Executive Director of the McGroarty Arts Center. The applicants submitted poems, biographic notes, and plans for their term of service; they participated in an in-person interview at the Bolton Hall Museum in Tujunga.

In their congratulatory letter, the Committee stated that Ms. Pero’s poetry “is truly accessible, emotional and relatable to many.  Her love and appreciation of Sunland-Tujunga is prevalent throughout her work.  Her sensitivity and skill as a poet and viable plan to foster the poetic creativity of the youth in our community have set her apart as the person most qualified to express in verse the life and hopes and aspirations of the people of Sunland-Tujunga.” Ms. Pero will start her service on April 26, 2020 and the official Passing of the Laurels Ceremony will take place this summer at the McGroarty Arts Center in Tujunga.

Alice Pero’s poetry has been published in magazines and anthologies including Nimrod, National Poetry Review, River Oak Review, Poet Lore, The Alembic, North Dakota Quarterly, The Distillery, Fox Cry Review, The Griffin, and G.W. Review, California Quarterly, Coiled Serpent, Wide Awake, Altadena Poetry Review, and many others. She has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize by Altadena Poetry Review and California Quarterly. Her book of poetry, Thawed Stars, was praised by renowned poet, Kenneth Koch, as having “clarity and surprises.” In 2017 Shabda Press published a book of poems, Sunland Park Poems, written in Sunland Park by herself and former Sunland/Tujunga Poet Laureate, Elsa Frausto. The book also features photographs Pero took in the park.

Alice Pero and Maja Trochimczyk after a Windsong concert

with Maja as Featured Poet, 2017.

Pero is a teacher of poetry to children in schools for 29 years and a member of California Poets in the Schools. She is the founder of the reading series, "Moonday", ongoing in the Los Angeles area since 2002 and now located in Sunland. An accomplished flutist and former dancer, she created the performing group, "Windsong Players Chamber Ensemble" in 2015 which gives concerts regularly around the Southland. Pero continues to teach poetry to children throughout the Los Angeles area with a current residency at the Delphi Academy in Lake View Terrace. 

Pero lives on the edge of a Southland desert wash with her husband, Dennis, a pastoral counsellor, and she is the mother of two and grandmother of five.  She frequently takes her five year old grandson on walks in the desert wash in back of her house in Sunland, and he has developed a profound interest in nature, the local flora and fauna, particularly the bees that flourish on her very large rosemary bush.

Dorothy Skiles reads at McGroarty Arts Center, April 2012

The Passing of the Laurels ceremony, the tenth such event in 20 years was planned for April 26, 2020, but is now postponed to another date. It will be held at the McGroarty Arts Center (7570 McGroarty Terrace, Tujunga, CA 91042) as a celebration of poetry and the community.  The wreath of green olive leaves (olive for the oil of wisdom and spiritual inspiration, rather than laurel for fame) will be passed to Ms. Pero by the Ninth Poet Laureate, Pamela Shea, (2017-2020). The event, free and open to the public, will include music performances, presentation of honorary diplomas, and poetry readings by both the outgoing and in-coming Poets Laureate.

Pamela Shea (L) with Joe DeCenzo and Elsa S. Frausto, April 2017

Pamela Shea served as the Ninth Poet Laureate since April 2017. During her term as Poet Laureate, she has especially enjoyed writing poems for specific community events. A particularly meaningful event for her was honoring the volunteers and staff who fought the La Tuna Fire and saved the McGroarty Arts Center during the September 2017 fire.

Pamela Shea, photo by Meridyth MacDonald

Ms. Shea has also written for many events at the Sunland-Tujunga Branch of the Los Angeles Public Library; she particularly treasures the time when she wrote a special poem that she read at the library’s Celebration Honoring African American History Month, featuring Lt. Col. Robert Friend, one of the last surviving members of the Tuskegee Airmen. Another memorable event was reading her tribute poem for the Coast Live Oak Tree Celebration at the library in January 2020.

Ms. Shea dressed up as a Cat in the Hat reads to kids at LA Library, 2020

A city-wide event in which Pam participated was the NoHo Lit Crawl in October 2019, where she was part of the First Poet Laureate Parade. Through the L.A. Public Library, she contributed to the “Can We Get Your Autograph?” as well as the NEA Big Read events. She read at a meeting of SHPOA (Shadow Hills Property Owners Association) and participated in the 2018 Gathering of California’s Poets Laureate at McGroarty Arts Center hosted by Dana Gioia, California State Poet Laureate. In December 2019, Pam read a poem before the Los Angeles City Council in support of saving La Tuna Canyon as a historical and recreational site. During her term as Poet Laureate term she has achieved her goal in being published in a number of poetry journals and anthologies, such as the California Quarterly, the Altadena Poetry Review, and Spectrum. She looks forward to having a book of her poetry published soon.

McGroarty Arts Center with Commemorative plaque

The Poet Laureate Program was initiated in 1999 by local cultural activists as a tribute to John Steven and Ida McGroarty, who used their home as a gathering place for prominent town citizens to enjoy cultural and fund raising events. The McGroartys were the town’s most famous citizens. John Steven McGroarty (1862-1944) served as the California Poet Laureate from 1933-1944.  A man of many talents, he was known as a poet, journalist, congressman (1935-39), columnist, publisher, historian, playwright, and community activist.

The Assembly Proclamation declaring McGroarty Poet Laureate of California, 1933

McGroarty published several volumes of poetry, memoirs, and non-fiction. He wrote The Mission Play staged annually at Easter, and had a weekly column in the Los Angeles Times.  The reading of one of his poems, “Just California”, was required by all California elementary school students. The McGroartys donated their estate to the City of Los Angeles to serve as a cultural center for the local community.

Joe DeCenzo speaks to the audience, Passing of the Laurels, April 2017

In 2018, his memory was honored by Dana Gioia, then Poet Laureate of California, with the Gathering of Poets Laureate held at the McGroarty Arts Center – over 60 current and past Poets Laureate participated from the entire state, enjoying workshops and public readings, recorded by the California Arts Council, one of the sponsors of this worthwhile event.

Village Poets: L to R: Elsa Frausto, Dorothy Skiles, Marlene Hitt, 

Joe DeCenzo, Pamela Shea and dr Maja Trochimczyk

Mr. McGroarty’s involvement in the local community served as a model for future Poets Laureate that, so far, included: Marlene Hitt, 1999-2001; Katerina Canyon, 2001-2004; Joe DeCenzo, 2004-2006; Ursula T. Gibson, 2006-2008; Damien Stednitz, 2008-2010; Maja Trochimczyk, 2010-2012; Dorothy Skiles, 2012-2014; Elsa S. Frausto, 2014-2017; and Pamela Shea, 2017-2020.

Dr. Maja Trochimczyk with Joe DeCenzo, April 2010.

More information about the Poet-Laureate Program and former Poets Laureate is on the group’s website: villagepoets.com. Descriptions of past Passing-of-the-Laurels ceremonies may be found on the group’s blog, maintained by Dr. Maja Trochimczyk, villagepoets.blogspot.com:

http://villagepoets.blogspot.com/2017/05/from-elsa-to-pamela-wreath-and-heart.html
https://villagepoets.blogspot.com/2014/04/elsa-frausto-becomes-our-poet-laureate.html
https://villagepoets.blogspot.com/2012/04/this-sunday-passing-of-laurels-ceremony.html

Village Poets with L.A. Poet Laureate Luis Rodriguez, L-R Dorothy Skiles, 

Marlene Hitt, Joe DeCenzo, L. Rodriguez, Maja Trochimczyk

Gloriana Casey and Radomir Luza (October 28, 2018 at Bolton Hall) , Pam Shea's Report and Village Poets News

On October 28, 2019 at 4:30 p.m. Village Poets  will present Gloriana Casey and Radomir Luza as featured poets at the Village Poets Monthly Readings held on Sundays, at 4:30 p.m., at Bolton Hall Museum, 10110 Commerce Avenue, Tujunga, CA 91042. 

The readings include a featured poet (20 min. each for two poets) and two open mike segments. Refreshments are served and $3 donations collected for the cost of the venue, the second historical landmark in the City of Los Angeles, that celebrated its centennial in 2013.  The Museum is managed by the Little Landers Historical Society.

GLORIANA CASEY

A small girl dreams of being——everything. Does she succeed?—Not quite ------- but if variety is the spice of life, it’s been a grand success. Ice skater with the once upon a time Ice Follies, artist, creating animal creatures from paint and rock, teacher; US office of Education grant for Creative Dramatics; arts reviewer for midwest tv and a copywriter  too---occasional actress and SAG/AFTRA member——and of course, a rhymer poet, dedicated to the proposition that more can be learned and retained through RHYME, than form note taking.  After all, before writing, there was rhyme, meter and song!  Writing  on  and on and even  sometimes still  tutoring, and having a wonderful time!

The Magic of MOM   

Oh, MOM, your name’s a palindrome;
it’s letters they form that.
It reads MOM going to the right.
From left? It reads MOM back!

Dependable that MOM word is,
in quality so true.
The YOU we always do count on,
Today, you get your due!

Three hundred sixty-five the days,
just one we celebrate.
We ought to celebrate you more;
perhaps a weekly fete?

A magic MOM in ambigram,
so please, do take a bow!
For even more——just flip that name,
and MOM turns into WOW!

originally appeared altadenablog 2012

*********

THE PIGGY BANK BLESSING

The HE yells," Charge, but SHE yells,”save!”
Dilemma!  Oh so common!
A frugal SHE, yet spendthrift HE.
Finances had hit bottom!

They tried the ice cube frozen test,
where card must thaw to spend.
“Oh my, “ the weary wife did say,
“HIs patience has no end!”

Then next they tried to list all down,
Each purchase to the cent.
But found the pen and paper bills,
In costs , made not a  dent.

“Ah ha, “ HE said. “ I have a thought---
it does seem a bit wiggy.
Each time I charge---- the interest costs,
We’ll put in our bank, Piggy.”

With calculator in his hand,
charge card was wrapped in tape.
He had to figure interest first,
Soon patience met with fate.

“I’m spending that!” He winced in pain.
“This interest costs us dearly.”
SHE  saw his transformation there,
A man was saved, quite clearly.

So HE and SHE, they danced through life,
Both were a little giddy.
Their “interest,” game had saved their lives.
They owed it all to," Piggy!"

SONNET OF THE SCARY

“Sonnet of the Scary—in 13 lines with a Quiz!”

Even now, this longest night of fear shrieks
a dandy wail of ghosts in kith and kin!
So gather the horrors——monstrous freaks
and all——in dead silence terror stalks in!
Usher in secrets of crumbling walls,
and shadows that cut like a pendulum blade!
Add oval portrait—where beauty she  falls,
muted all beauty in Death;s ghastly shade!
A burial casket———life within lurks!
A needful and ape-like clue will abide.
Castle door  padlocked——yet Death takes his perks;
that oblong box holds a secretive bride!
Ravens and Man—evermore————fright’s alive!



If you haven’t guessed who this poem is about, then spell it out.
Take the 1st letter of the first line,
Then the 2nd letter of the second line.
The 3rd letter of the third line, and continue on to line 13.

******

First appeared in the altadenablog in 2013

RADOMIR LUZA

Radomir Vojtech Luza was born in Vienna, Austria in 1963 to renowned Czech parents.  The Tulane University and Jesuit High School Graduate (New Orleans) has been Poet Laureate of North Hollywood, CA for over six years.  The former President of the North Hollywood West Neighborhood Council in Los Angeles and 1997 Bucks County, PA auditor candidate is a Pushcart Prize Nominee, author of 30 books, a Marquis Who's Who Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient and Writer's Digest and 2018 Highland Park Poetry Challenge Honorable Mention.  His poetry has been published in over 90 anthologies, literary journals, blogs, newspapers, magazines and other media.  The veteran stand-up comedian has featured his poetry over 100 times across the country.  Luza is also a SAG/AFTRA/AEA union actor, theatre and book critic and host/curator of over a dozen poetry readings throughout the country, including UNBUCKLED: No Ho POETRY at T.U. Studios in North Hollywood, CA with Mary Anneeta Mann.  He edits and publishes the literary magazine, VOICES IN THE LIBRARY.

To find out more about Luza as artist and critic go to

http://atthetheatrewithRadomirLuza.com. 

Six Million Feet High

Delta flight 403
London to Vienna

Row 13 seats A and B
Mother and me

Seat C
Austrian man
Telling mother that
Holocaust did not happen

“Es war nicht,” he says in German

Czech mother
War survivor

Stands up and blurts out
Her best German

“Es war und es war sehr schlecht”

The slaughter took place and
Was very bad, she says

Finally free
Without apathy
Mother sits down
In B

I stop shaking knee
Order hot tea

SUMMER OF ADVENTURE, CAMPING, AND POETRY

BY PAM SHEA, SUNLAND TUJUNGA POET LAUREATE

This summer, I had a couple of weeklong vacations that were recuperating, renewing, regenerating, and inspiring. In early July, I connected with poetry through nature and the camaraderie of new friends as a participant in the program Drawing Inspiration from the Parks, led by John and Ann Brantingham. This past year, John was named the first Poet Laureate of Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, and this is the fifth year of the Parks program. John leads the writing workshops, while Ann directs the artists, although many of us delved into both means of artistic expression.

Writers and artists from all around the USA attend workshops, hone their skills, do homework (although I slacked a bit on this part), do volunteer work in both parks, and have an amazing time. We pitched our own tents in the volunteer campground, brought and prepared all our own food (stored in bear boxes, of course), saw lots of wildlife, watered tree seedlings in Kings Canyon National Park, pulled out invasive plants from a meadow in Sequoia National Park, and so much more. Information on the program can be found on the Facebook page (“Drawing Inspiration from the Parks”). I hope to do this again next summer, so please let me know if you are interested in participating. 

FOREST TREASURES

Come, my friends, and grow tall like the trees,
With hearts on fire for protecting our lands.
Capture bugs, breezes, and butterflies
In your souls as you scoop and caress soft sand.

Let the forest silkiness embrace your bodies
As flickering stars in dark skies light the way.
Nature can nourish, sustain, and uplift,
Leading on paths of peace to much brighter days.

—Pamela Shea

My second excursion was another camping trip, this time to beautiful Lake Tahoe. This was my second family-and-friends reunion camping trip, which was a time of celebrating our common pasts while making new memories. As a child, I vacationed with my family at Lake Tahoe, where I learned to love the serenity and beauty of Big Blue, also known as Lake of the Sky. This trip was a time of remembrance while also strengthening current relationships. I came home refreshed and ready to resume my life in beautiful Sunland-Tujunga. Both trips gave me confidence as an individual and as a poet, and many poems resulted from these amazing experiences.


LAKE TAHOE TANKA SEQUENCE

beneath mauve mountains
clear blue lake waters flow
the color of my father’s eyes
and mine too
emotions rise from depths

a speed boat bounces
across the lake
I see Father driving
though he’s been gone many years
tears flow and comingle with the lake

sand soft beneath toes
trees wave in cool breezes
I remember early morning chill
when we would water-ski
father always woke early

traits inherited
blue eyes and early risings
I keep father alive
in sharing stores
cycles continue like seasons

—Pamela Shea

VILLAGE POETS NEWS

The reading by Margaret Saine and Eliecer Almaguer on September 22, 2018 was full of poetic and artistic delights.  Margaret translated Eliecer's Spanish poems into English and they read those together. Then she presented her work from the Gardens of the Earth book, so recently published by Moonrise Press that the author has not yet seen a copy.

http://moonrisepress.blogspot.com/2018/09/announcing-new-poetry-volume-by.html

In the Open Mike section, Kathabela Wilson presented her prize winning work, and Rick Wilson performed on a replica of a Native American flute. Fascinating!

Photo by Kathabela Wilson

Photo by Kathabela Wilson

Portraits of poets - Alice Pero, Maja Trochimczyk, Margaret Saine, Eliecer Almaguer.

by Kathabela Wilson.

Kathabela with her poetic notebook. 

Christine Jordan Features on June 24, 2018 and Village Poets Write About Love and Nature

Village Poets are pleased to present Christine Jordan as featured poet on Sunday, June 24, 2018 at 4:30 p.m. The Village Poets Monthly Readings are held at Bolton Hall Museum, 10110 Commerce Avenue, Tujunga, CA 91042. The readings include 30 min. for the featured poet, as well as two open mike segments. Refreshments are served and $3 donations collected for the cost of the venue, the second historical landmark in the City of Los Angeles, that celebrated its centennial in 2013. The Museum is managed by the Little Landers Historical Society, named after the "little land" that each settler received in the Tujunga and Sunland foothills when the area was settled. The readings adhere to a self-imposed PG-13 rating, without extreme depictions of sex or violence, and with an air of gentility,  so poets use their words to bless the world, rather than curse it.

CHRISTINE JORDAN

CE (Christine) Jordan has performed and created unique dance/theatre work all her life. Her signature dance opus, ‘LA Breakdown’, a 6-part dance/theatre work, premiered in sections from 1984 to 1987 at Cal State LA, and came together in a complete showing at Fringe Festival LA in Fall 1987, entertaining folks for two weekends at the Mac Arthur Park Bandshell.  She was bitten by the poetry bug in 1982, and has subsequently had her work published in  Armchair/Shotgun, Blue Satellite, Rivertalk and other journals over the years.

Her true love, though, is blurring lines & meshing genres. She began staging her poetry and stories in 1996,  performing with The Nannette Brodie Dance Theatre in 1996-97.  Most notably, her signature theatre opus, ‘Notes on a Country Childhood’, an evening solo outing full of touching and entertaining stories and poems about her rural childhood in Ojai, CA, has been performed in parts and as a whole in various theatrical and non- traditional performing spaces since 2009. She edits, combines, and happily riffs on this material as part of the texts for many Story Chicks pieces, the two gal theatre company she began with Terri MartinLujan in 2013. This is yet another example of getting ‘bitten’ by a good idea!

Ms Jordan’s current solo work includes ‘Map to the Stars’ with live piano accompaniment by Craig Kupka, which debuted at ArtShare LA in March 2016, and its next incarnation, ’Tinsel Town, tall tales of a ballerina in Hollywood‘, which enchanted young and old at the Hollywood Ivar Branch of the LA Public Library in July 2017. ‘A Model Life’, her humorous run-down of life as a fashion model in the 70’s and 80‘s, debuted at The Coffee Gallery Backstage in Dec. 2016 and then was seen with new visuals as part of  Moda 360 at The New Mart downtown LA in Aug. 2017. Story Chicks’ newest opus, ‘Starstruck, your name in lights’ a show about young performer’s dreams and stumbles, is currently being developed to debut in early summer 2018. A cabaret version of the show debuted in March 2017 at The Padua Hills Theatre in Claremont.

CE has her BA in dance/UCLA and MA in Theatre/CSULA. She has studied ballet and tap intensively, danced with The Moving Co. a Pasadena-based modern dance company, part of the NEA Dance Touring program, from 1973-78, worked with Bella Lewitsky and Miriam Nelson on stage and in television, and with Debra DeLiso in acting and staging memoir.  She has also created costumes and props for local LA theatre companies, including her favorite company, The Foliage Theatre Project, throughout the 1990s. Ms Jordan spent 10 pretty marvelous years modeling on the runway, for TV, and editorial shoots, represented by Mary Webb Davis in LA and by Ellen Harth in NY. Her career teaching creative dance and theatre to children spans 25 years, and she continues to learn and create by the seat of her pants!

possum garden                  by C.E. Jordan

this living-space

out of doors, by

day, glows, shift-

ing its spotlights.

But by night to

night I found

all the familiar

places hording their

own kind of light.

Like my white x-

mas lights, strung

common, are now

as good as

steaming

searchlights, making

my pagoda’s ceiling

its own Hollywood

premier

and the latest

possum waddling

across the red

carpet, shining

his day-glo mime-

masque right straight

in my direction. Creatures

tame and not, natural

for the most part, go

phosphorescent, and

blink tidings from

white patches

here and there. And

Vinca and periwinkle-shaped

wheels of light,

teeming stars

in white crockery

whiter and still no

moon. Then

  

the sounds like heat

seem to rise and

float dismembered

in the semi-darkness.

Voices badgering, more

wild things whining low.

And crickets, I’m sorry,

but you have to hear

this tiny, squeaking

chorus, hallelujahs

& noir plots this

night, growing home-

made stories &

third man types

shadow-hopping,

wild life out

here.

VILLAGE POETS NEWS

The May 27, 2018 reading by Seven Dhar and presentation by Abby Diamond were full of inspirational moments and true poetic delights. 

Seven Dhar, Maja Trochimczyk, Abby Diamond

Abby Diamond presented an original torn-paper collage to Moonrise Press, for use in the press's publicity.

We decided to post some of the Village Poets recent verse and bring more love to the world from our foothill community.

 Love’s Cliche

by Joe DeCenzo

May the words of the tired uninspired hackneyed poets

Ring out louder than the bells of Westminster if those words be love

If love be cliché then let me soak in its ponderous rain.

Let its mundane repetition fill the tomes of mankind

Its every margin and indentation ‘til there is no blank space

Let it be the first word spoken at daybreak

The last word murmured at prayers

And the longest note sustained in every choral song

Let Love be the first ingredient of every recipe

The first provision of any contract

The last word uttered with my dying breath

Thorns

by Marlene Hitt


I know the rose
the splendid rose
I know the thorns
the tender skin
the gash
I know the gash
I know the fur
caught on the thorn
I know the fur
I know its warmth
I know the warmth
the noontime sun
the face of the rose
as it greets my eye
I know the rose
I know the thorn

the thorn I never touch.

Wash Wonderland

by Pamela Shea

Wash Wonderland

2/5/18 – Pamela Shea

Alice falls

Through the looking glass

Surfacing

In the wash

In the distance a dog howls

In trees birds flutter

She whistles

To her friends

Overhead

A flock of geese fly, fly, fly

They call, sing

Reconfiguring 

Hummingbird flits

From flower to flower

Mesmerizing

With the whir of wings

A crow caws, caws, caws

Seemingly scolding

In no hurry

To vacate its post

West to east

Sky pushes past moon

On its way

To golden sunrise

Indulge dear Alice

She is quite harmless

Carefully she steps 

Sauntering along, sauntering along, sauntering along 

In the past she ran

Trying to escape

Now she hops and skips

Into the future  

When she leaves

It will be blessing

She will fly, fly, fly

Somewhere far beyond

Perhaps north

To mountains

Or south

To deserts

Maybe east

To sunrise

Or west

To ocean sunset

Won’t you please join Alice

When you are able?

Wonderland exists

Wherever one chooses

Here, here, here

by Maja Trochimczyk

I love my mountains

blue and spring green still

under clear azure expanse,

their velvet pleats pile up

in layers above the valley

rock pathways in empty riverbed.

This is the Earth - naked

free of trees and houses, of rush

and pavement and cars on hot asphalt

in LA summers - this is

pure repose - serenely breathing

slowly, deeply - in the cycle of centuries

I love my mountains

the bluish shadows on distant slopes

manzanita and sage scattered 

on those close by- they open

like curtains into infinity - to let me in

beyond the next peak, the next canyon

into new worlds that grow within

in warm sunlight, under cool glow

of spiraling galaxies before dawn.

I'm here, I found my life

waiting for me under the indigo

cupola outlined with deep purple

at the ridges -  here crickets

measure the night as they sing

"we are here, here, here, here..." 

while birds sleep

hidden among branches.

Only the distant waves of truck noise

from the freeway remind me

that this paradise of mine

this magic, fluid, living 

folding and unfolding is my LA home

my own LA LA Land, of sweet

mountains under the brightest of Suns.

Unbridled

by Dorothy Skiles


Fond memory
ever so softly, quietly
calls to me…                                   

Monarch butterflies
in early summer’s flight
flutter through and beyond
mother’s morning glory vines
dressed in brilliant blues
and free to grow unbridled
along the chain link fence
of my childhood.

Butterfly by Bill Skiles (2013).

MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS MONTH

Since May is the Mental Health Awareness Month and in 2018 also the month of the "We Rise" campaign by the Department of Mental Health of Los Angeles County, some poets at the reading dedicated their work to increasing the awareness of mental health issues, and the importance of health and wellness.  

Dr. Maja Trochimczyk of Phoenix Houses of California, and Moonrise Press, read poems inspired by nature and reflections on finding and maintaining emotional well-being in life.  Other poets, like Pamela Shea, Dorothy Skiles, and Marlene Hitt, selected work inspired by the love of nature, reproduced above, as expressions of wisdom and beauty of the natural world and its soothing effect on human emotions and psychological well-being. 

Flyers about Phoenix House  behavioral health services in California were available during the event. More information about "We Rise" may be found on DMH website: http://whywerise.la/