Bellmore-Merrick Central District to host first Writers' Festival

Calhoun High School senior Josh Aberman loves poetry, particularly the Beat Generation poetry produced by such luminaries as Allen Ginsberg. So, when Aberman was looking to do a fundraiser for the Economic Policy Institute as a senior project, he thought he might try an event aimed at writers.

At first he thought he might put on a concert, but Calhoun holds a number of them. He needed to be different. Thus the first-ever Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District Writers’ Festival was born.

The event will be held Friday, Feb. 26, at 7 p.m. in the Calhoun auditorium. The festival is open to writers from Grand Avenue and Merrick Avenue middle schools, and Calhoun, Kennedy and Mepham high schools. The roster of writers, each of whom paid $3 to read their works for three minutes, is now full. Tickets to the performance, which are being sold at the door only, are $5 for all other adults, and $3 for students and senior citizens.

The Economic Policy Institute focuses on researching the financial needs of low- and middle-income Americans and including them in the national conversation on economic policy. The organization can be found at www.epi.org.

Festival participants can read any written works that they have produced, from essays to short stories and poems. Dr. Linda Opyr, Nassau County’s poet laureate from 2011-13 and the author of seven collections of poetry, will be the keynote speaker. Her works have also appeared in the Hudson Review, Atlanta Review. Paterson Literary Review and The New York Times.

An anthology of festival participants’ works will be sold at the door for $5 each. There will also be raffles and refreshments on sale.