Cora Thomas

“The Force” was certainly with the Skagit River Poetry Foundation (SRPF) on Saturday May 4th, Star Wars Day, as 125 community members gathered to support our nonprofit at our 4th Annual Auction at the historic Hillcrest Park Lodge in Mount Vernon. We want to thank everyone who celebrated with us and our donors who could not attend as we hosted our Star Wars themed fundraiser – even Darth Vader made an appearance! We are happy to announce that in only three hours the love and support of our guests raised OVER $36,000! Our auctioneer and MCs brought the party to life with the night’s exciting live and silent auction items.

Live auction items ranged from dining with Irish poet Tony Curtis, I Sing the Salmon Home Kayak Trip, original art from NW artists, writing workshops, a Moroccan cooking class, VIP tickets to the Skagit River Poetry Festival, even a July 4th party package at Big Lake, and more.

Your support of our organization means we may continue our dedication to our community! The funds raised will help keep poets visiting our local school districts throughout the year in Skagit and Island Counties teaching kids K-14 poetry and encouraging their creative voices to shine. One of our poets from our Poets in Schools Program, Jeffrey Morgan, and a former SRPF Student Poet Laureate’s, Natalie Lahr, shared their personal stories of how the Foundation makes a difference. A video highlighted how writing poetry is visceral – touching each person uniquely and encourages a creative space for freely expressing your own voice. The funds will also support our 2024 Skagit River Poetry Festival, October 3 – 5, as we bring poets from all over the world to converge in LaConner for three days of community workshops and speaking engagements.

This generous support will keep our starship and mission flying high through the poetic galaxies as we continue bringing literary arts to our community, uplifting voices of all ages, and enriching lives as people explore their own stories, one another, and their communities through the powerful practice of the written and spoken word. Our Executive Director, Molly McNulty, our Board President Kathleen Bisagna, and our Board of Directors would like to thank all our corporate and individual donors who donated auction items, Aaron Klesick from Stokes Auction Group, our caterer, Josh Van Hine from Simply Sound Catering, MC David Johnson from Funds for Fun, MC Georgia Johnson (Board VP), the Cincinnatus Duo, sound by Kyle Blevins, PEO Chapter JG LaConner, Hillcrest Park and the City of Mount Vernon Parks and Recreation, and all our volunteers that made this night possible. May the force of poetry be with you, always.