Oregon has a new Poet Laureate to represent the state.
Governor Kotek named Bend resident Ellen Waterston to the role. She is a poet, speaker, and teacher who also runs a retreat called Writing Ranch.
Her work is largely inspired by Southeastern Oregon’s outback.
Waterston will take the role for the next two years, holding readings and workshops across the state.
Waterston is the state’s 11th Poet Laureate, but Ashland’s Lawson Fusao Inada was the fifth. He held the role from 2006 to 2010.
On Waterston’s appointment he says, “The truth is, Ellen Waterston’s poems arrive. They situate themselves naturally, to proceed in compelling, telling ways. Each poem leaves something behind.”
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