The Friends of the Oak Ridge Library (FOL) along with the Poetry Society of Tennessee (PST), will sponsor a reading by regional authors and poets and a Holiday Book Sale on Saturday, December 16, at the Oak Ridge Library. The reading will feature Linda Parsons of Knoxville, author of six books.
The 18 local authors and poets, including former Knoxville Poet Laureate – Rhea “RheaSunshine” Carmon and other well established writers in this region will read and sell their books during three two-hour time slots from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. The public is invited to the readings. Admission is free. Note that the time of each person’s reading is in parenthesis after their name.
10-12: Ron Lands (10:30), D. Ray Smith (10:45), Sylvia Woods (11), Diane Williams (11:15), Sally Bennett Boyington (11:30), Shirley Raines (11:45)
12-2: Linda Parsons (12-12:30), John C. Mannone (12:45), Kelly C. Hanwright (1), Connie Jordan Green (1:15), Rhea Carmon (1:30), Carol Grametbauer (1:45)
2-4: Keri L. Withington (2:15), Devan Burton (2:30), Wes Sims (2:45), Claudia Stanek (3), Fay Martin (3:15), Judy DiGregorio (3:30)
Linda Parsons of Knoxville is the poetry editor for Madville Publishing and the copy editor for Chapter 16, the literary website of Humanities Tennessee. She is published in such journals as The Georgia Review, Iowa Review, Prairie Schooner, Southern Poetry Review, Terrain, The Chattahoochee Review, Baltimore Review, Shenandoah, and American Life in Poetry. Her sixth collection, Valediction, contains poems and prose. Five of her plays have been produced by Flying Anvil Theatre in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Sally Bennett Boyington has two published novels including Swallowing the Sun and Rainbow Knife, the first books in a trilogy of prehistoric novels titled “Tales of the Watermasters,” bringing to life the ancient civilization of the Hohokam. Sally has written seven novels and numerous short stories and poems, has had several reviews and nonfiction articles published in professional journals and popular magazines.
Devan Burton of Knoxville is author of The Will of the World. His latest book is a volume of poetry: A Room for Us (published by Lamar University Literary Press). He has been published in numerous publications, and is an assistant professor of English at Walters State Community College, where he was recently selected as Distinguished Faculty of the Year for 2022-2023.
Rhea “RheaSunshine” Carmon of Oak Ridge is the creator and Executive Director of the 5th Woman Cohort, which explores the stories of women. Regardless of race, women share the same experiences, fears, joys and more. The 5th Woman Cohort allows the participants to examine their various backgrounds without social and political barriers. Immediate past Poet Laureate of Knoxville, RheaSunshine strives to touch hearts and inspire people to share their own stories. She has self-published four chapbooks and has recorded three audio CDs. Her fourth book, Through the Clouds, explores her battle with Multiple Sclerosis. Published by Iris Press, Rhea’s fifth chapbook, Let the Sunshine In is a chronicle of her poetry since 2001.
Judy Lockhart DiGregorio of Oak Ridge is listed as a Distinguished Alumna by New Mexico Highlands University. She is also a YWCA Woman of Distinction in the Arts and Culture category. Judy is a popular speaker and the author of Life Among the Lilliputians, Memories of a Loose Woman, and Tidbits, humor books from Celtic Cat Publishing who also released her CD, “Jest Judy.” Judy is a humor columnist who has published in numerous anthologies and other publications including The Army Times, Chicken Soup for the Soul Christmas, Chicken Soup for the Beach Lovers’ Soul, and The Writer. Visit Judy’s website at http://judyjabber.com/.
Carol Grametbauer of Kingston is the author of two chapbooks: Homeplace (Main Street Rag Publishing) and Now & Then (Finishing Line Press). Her poems have appeared in numerous journals and anthologies. Following a career in public affairs and community relations with contractors to DOE’s Oak Ridge facilities, she was chair of Tennessee Mountain Writers’ board of directors for 18 years and continues to serve on the board. She is currently working on two poetry manuscripts.
Connie Jordan Green of Loudon County is the author of two award-winning novels for young people, The War at Home, set in Oak Ridge during World War II, and Emmy, both published originally by Margaret McElderry imprint of MacMillan and Simon Shuster, respectively, reissued in soft cover by Tellico Books imprint of Iris Press; two poetry chapbooks, Slow Children Playing and Regret Comes to Tea; and two poetry collections, Household Inventory, 2015, winner of the Brick Road Poetry Award, and Darwin’s Breath (Iris Press).
Author of a survival memoir The Locust Years, Kelly C. Hanwright is a poet, teacher, and dog trainer living in the Smoky Mountains. She is a Pushcart nominee whose work has appeared in various venues including The Birmingham Arts Journal, Lady Literary Magazine, and American Diversity Report.
Ron Lands of Oak Ridge is a semi-retired hematologist at UT Medical Center, Knoxville, Tennessee, who has published short stories, poems, and essays in literary and medical journals. His poem “Decision” appears in the Spring 2019 Intima: A Journal of Narrative Medicine. His chapbooks include Final Path, Finishing Line Press 2021, and A Gathering of Friends, 2022. His story collection, The Long Way Home was published in 2022.
John C. Mannone will be reading from Song of the Mountains (Middle Creek Publishing and Audio, 2023), which was nominated for the Weatherford Award. He has poems in Windhover, North Dakota Quarterly, Poetry South, Baltimore Review, and others. He won multiple awards including a Jean Ritchie Fellowship (2017) in Appalachian literature and served as the celebrity judge for the National Federation of State Poetry Societies (2018). Author of three chapbooks and four full-length collections, he edits poetry for Abyss & Apex and other journals.
Fay Martin of Oak Ridge was born in Jamaica, West Indies, obtained a B.Sc. from the University of the West Indies, a M.Sc. from MacMaster University in Canada, and a Ph.D. in Environmental Toxicology from the University of Tennessee. Her books include: Resurgam! The Poems of Fay Martin and From Jamaican Hills: The Memoirs of Fay Martin.
Shirley Raines, a speaker, consultant, and author was the first woman president of the University of Memphis. She is a member of the Tennessee Women’s Hall of Fame and was invited to speak at the White House Conference on University Entrepreneurship for the FedEx Institute of Technology. She has written 18 books, 15 for educators, 2 for children, and her newest leadership book, An Uncommon Journey: Leadership Lessons from a Preschool Teacher who Became a University President.
Wesley Sims of Oak Ridge has published three chapbooks of poetry: When Night Comes, Finishing Line
Press, Georgetown, Kentucky; Taste of Change, Iris Press, Oak Ridge, TN; and A Pocketful of Little Poems, Amazon. His work has appeared in Artemis Journal, Bewildering Stories, Connecticut Review, G.W. Review, Liquid Imagination, Pine Mountain Sand and Gravel, and several others.
D. Ray Smith, Oak Ridge’s Historian has more than 47 years of experience at the Y-12 National Security Complex. He has co-produced the award-winning Secret City set of two 90-minute DVD’s. He has also written 14 books on the East Tennessee area history consisting of nine “Historically Speaking” volumes, The John Hendrix Story, 1944 Troop Train Wreck, Historical Sketch of Oak Ridge Schools, Oak Ridge International Friendship Bell and Delina, plus more. He publishes a weekly Oak Ridge newspaper column, “Historically Speaking.” His most recent film is the documentary, Ed Westcott – Photographer.
Claudia M Stanek’s work has been turned into a libretto, been part of an art exhibition, and been translated into Polish. Her poems exist online, in print, and in her chapbook, Language You Refuse to Learn. She holds an MFA from Bennington College. Her chapbook, Beneath Occluded Shine, is forthcoming from Finishing Line Press in 2025.
Diane M. Williams of Knoxville taught French language and literature for many years and spent an academic year as a Fulbright Exchange Teacher in France. After moving to Knoxville, she joined UT Knoxville’s Office of Communications and Marketing as an editorial project manager. Diane’s poetry has appeared in online publications One Trick Pony, Bluestem Magazine, Black Moon Magazine, and Monterey Poetry Review. She published her first volume of poetry, Night in the Garden (LunaMoth Press), in 2020. She is working on a new manuscript.
Keri L. Withington (she/her) is a poet, educator, and aspiring homesteader. Her poems have appeared in
numerous journals and anthologies, recently including anthologies from White Stag Publishing. She has published two chapbooks: Constellation of Freckles (Dancing Girl Press) and Beckoning from the Waves (Plan B Press). Withington lives with her husband, children, and many pets and plants in the Appalachian foothills. You can find her teaching for Pellissippi State, planting in her yard, or on FB (@KeriWithingtonWriter).
Sylvia Woods of Oak Ridge is a retired ORHS English teacher. Her book What We Take With Us was published in April 2021. Her work has appeared in literary journals and anthologies including Cutleaf, Southern Poetry Anthology V: Appalachia, Appalachian Review, and many more.
FOL is a non-profit organization that holds used book sales to raise funds for the library as well as to recycle publications, supports the library’s summer reading program for children, sponsors a book club and takes part in other activities, all to benefit the Oak Ridge Public Library and the surrounding communities. Membership forms are available in the library lobby or at the reading.
PST is a non-profit organization founded in 1953, welcoming poets and poetry lovers from across Tennessee and beyond. PST is recognized by the National Federation of State Poetry Societies (NFSPS), and its members may participate in NFSPS-sponsored activities. PST offers members an inclusive, supportive community with opportunities to learn, grow, and appreciate the art and craft of poetry. PST Membership Forms will be available at the reading as well.