Lake County Poet Laureate Sandra Wade officially began her term in office on Tuesday, April 11 before the Lake County Board of Supervisors. Board Chairman Anthony Farrington read aloud a proclamation that was approved earlier in proceedings. It appoints Wade to a two-year term for 2006 and 2007. During an appearance Wednesday, May 3 before trustees of the Konocti Unified School District, Wade said that during her tenure she wants to encourage the generations to talk to each other. She proposed that young people interview their oldest living relative or the oldest person on their street and write three to five pages about their life. “It can be a poem or prose,” Wade said, adding that in other communities, the equivalent of her office is “literary laureate” and that she correspondingly considers it her function to encourage creative writing of all kinds. Prior officeholder Carolynn Wing Greenlee welcomed Wade as her successor at a celebration of poetry held on Saturday, April 1. The celebration honored the two finalists ? Fran Ransley and Janet Riehl ? as well as other applicants and included readings by former poets laureate for the County of Lake. Wade is an active supporter of poetry and appears on a regular basis at local readings and open mics. She has previously hosted a program on local, listener-supported KPFZ LP, 104.5 FM. Wade credits Yuba Community College educator Dr. Frances Crary, who also applied to be poet laureate, with discovering her in 1978. Prior to that, Wade said, she did not think of herself as a poet. The April 11 proclamation heralded the official commencement of Wade”s two-year term in office. During this time she will represent Lake County at civic and cultural events and promote poetry events locally. Wade will work with the Konocti Unified School District to inspire young people through video conferencing as well as host poetry events for all Lake County schools. At the end of her two-year term, Wade will be responsible for coordinating the selection process for the new poet laureate. Contact Cynthia Parkhill at cparkhill@clearlakeobserver.com.
