Big news! This year I was named the 47th Poet Laureate of Bucks County—the place I’ve called home for almost my entire life. Starting in the late 1970s, the county has held a competition where Bucks County residents are invited to submit a small collection of poems, which are judged by poets from the surrounding community. The winner becomes the Poet Laureate for a year. This year’s judges were Joanna Fuhrman and Courtney Bambrick, poetry editor of Philadelphia Stories.
I’m so honored to have this opportunity, which included a reading last Sunday (November 12) at Bucks County Community College. I got to read my work along with Bambrick and Tom Mallouk, our 2022 Poet Laureate, as well as this year’s runners-up, Lake Angela, Kevin Taylor, and Melinda Rizzo. It was really wonderful to have the chance to read with this talented group of people.
Thanks so much to everybody who came out, and thanks to Dr. Ethel Rackin for setting up the event. It was a beautiful time.
Tara Tamburello 