{"id":13278,"date":"2025-03-17T20:30:16","date_gmt":"2025-03-18T00:30:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/?p=13278"},"modified":"2025-03-17T20:47:22","modified_gmt":"2025-03-18T00:47:22","slug":"an-evening-of-appreciation-honoring-north-carolinas-poet-laureate-jaki-shelton-green","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/?p=13278","title":{"rendered":"An Evening of Appreciation: Honoring North Carolina\u2019s Poet Laureate, Jaki Shelton Green"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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By Robbie Perdue<\/h5>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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On the evening of March 13, 2025<\/strong>, the halls of the North Carolina Museum of Art<\/strong> were filled with the rhythmic beauty of words and the profound echoes of a literary legacy. The occasion? An Evening of Appreciation for North Carolina\u2019s Poet Laureate, Jaki Shelton Green<\/strong>\u2014a night dedicated to honoring her contributions to poetry, the arts, and the generations of voices she has inspired.<\/p>

The event brought together a distinguished lineup of speakers, each offering their reflections on Jaki\u2019s influence<\/strong> and the transformative power of poetry. Jeff Bell<\/strong>, Executive Director of the North Carolina Arts Council<\/strong>, opened the evening with remarks that set the tone for the celebration, highlighting Jaki\u2019s impact on the literary landscape<\/strong> and her tireless advocacy for poetry as a vehicle for social change.<\/p>

Liza Wolff-Francis, the current Carrboro Poet Laureate,<\/strong> and Dasan Ahanu, 2023 Piedmont Poet Laureate,<\/strong> spoke eloquently of Jaki\u2019s enduring contributions<\/strong>, with one reading one of Jaki’s powerful poems, and the other sharing an original piece written in tribute.<\/p>

But perhaps the most poignant moments of the night came from the voices of the youth<\/strong>\u2014young poets who have been profoundly shaped by Jaki Shelton Green\u2019s influence and mentorship<\/strong>.<\/p>

  • Autumn Maivia, the current Orange County Youth Poet Laureate<\/strong>, recited one of her poems after speaking about how Jaki\u2019s work paved the way for young poets like herself.<\/li>
  • Grayson Perdue and Justin Wellons, both former East Columbus High School Poet Laureates<\/strong>, reflected on Jaki\u2019s impact on their own creative journeys, before sharing selections of their poetry with the audience.<\/li><\/ul>

    These young poets are a direct testament to Jaki\u2019s lasting influence, particularly through North Carolina\u2019s Youth Poet Laureate program\u2014the first of its kind in the nation<\/strong>, which she founded to uplift and amplify emerging voices.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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    Left to Right: Autum Maivia, Grayson Perdue, Jaki Shelton Green, Justin Wellons<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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    As the evening came to a close, Jaki herself took the stage, her presence as commanding as the poetry she has gifted to the world. She spoke with wisdom and warmth, sharing reflections on her journey and the ever-growing community of poets she has nurtured. One statement, in particular, resonated deeply:<\/p>

    “One day, I may sit down\u2026 but for now, I am still here.”<\/em><\/p>

    And indeed, she is. A living legend, a guiding force, and a poet whose words continue to shape the soul of North Carolina.<\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    North Carolina\u2019s literary community gathered on March 13, 2025, to honor Poet Laureate Jaki Shelton Green in an evening filled with heartfelt reflections and powerful poetry. Young and seasoned poets alike shared how Jaki\u2019s work has shaped their voices, celebrating her legacy as a mentor and trailblazer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13286,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[171],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13278","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/jsg-1-scaled.jpg","acf":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13278","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13278"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13278\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13293,"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13278\/revisions\/13293"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/13286"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13278"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13278"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/feathersandwhiskey.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13278"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}