Top Beverly Teen Poets Honored In 30th Annual Contest

BEVERLY, MA — The Beverly Public Library is celebrating the creative minds of the city's youth once again this year as it announced the winners of the 30th Annual Teen Poetry Contest.

In the Middle School Division, the winners are Abraham Finn in third place for "The Zooming Goat," Connor McGrane in second place for "The Year The World shut Down," and Emma Jae Colotti in 1st place for "Only One Is Banned."

In the High School Division, the winners are Gwen Zappasodi in third place for "Cutting Carrots," Eliana S. Wright in second place for "Too Good For Their Jokes," and Jessalyn Enamorado in first place for "Ode to the Warm Lamp in the Corner of My Room."

This year, the BPL received over 270 poems. The poems were judged blindly by a panel of incredibly accomplished local poets, Liz Ciampa, founder of Winter Street Writers; Colleen Michaels, director of the Writing Studio at Montserrat College of Art; and M.P. Carver, Director of the Massachusetts Poetry Festival.

The poetry contest is supported by the Friends of the Beverly Public Library, Joan Nelson, and all of the parents, teachers, and school librarians who encouraged their students to enter.

This year's winners:

Middle School Division
Hope Dobkowski for "The River and the Pond"
Sophia Gurung for "the end"
Wren for "Into the Reef"
Nayeli Lohnes for "Deportation Desperation"
Scarlett Maxwell for "On a boat on a lake on a warm summer day"
Salma Reda for "Ode to Microphones"
Meara Reeder for "Freedom's Call" and "Still Standing"
Bear for "The Backyard"
Camille Schwartz for "Blissful Escape"

High School Division
Lauren Conant for "Ice Cream and Heels"
Lillian. A. Counts for "I have long hair"
Magdelyn Dalton for "Just a Rumor"
Alaina Evers for "Where I’m From"
Lucy Falk for "Newton (101 Madison)"
River Lawrence Gauthier for "The Endless Night"
Arlo Kinsey for "Summer"
Yishine Shi for "Déjà vu"
Hazel Streb for "Family Dinner"
Caleb Sylvester for "A Photograph of Me - 2013"
Ella Wanstall for "bringer of death"