Shepherd University’s chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, the International English Honor Society, has continued with its long tradition of monthly literature readings.
Readings begin with the featured reader reading an excerpt or a whole work of literature, and then, during an open portion, the members are encouraged to read. It can be anything from something they have written themselves or something written by a favorite author.
Dr. Chad Loewen-Schmidt, assistant professor of English, was the featured reader for the first event, held on Thursday, Sept. 19.
Before reading his selection of poems he titled “A Love for Disillusionment,” he discussed how he had never been good at writing poetry, but continued on to say, “Teaching is my poetry.”
His readings included many things, even some poetry from his two young daughters. The overall theme of his readings was, as the title might suggest, disillusionment. Once finished with his readings, the group took a break to enjoy pizza, soda and casual conversation.
One of the vice presidents of Sigma Tau Delta, Brandon Nicholas, read a poem he wrote titled “Let it Sway” and one by Hayden Carruth titled “Scrambled Eggs and Whiskey.” Brandon felt that “being an active member in Sigma Tau Delta has been a very enriching experience.” He enjoys how Sigma Tau Delta has connected him with very interesting and intelligent people.
Perhaps one of those people is Dr. Heidi Hanrahan, associate professor of English and the faculty advisor for Sigma Tau Delta. During this meeting she decided to read two poems by Frank X Walker, this year’s writer-in residence. The first poem was titled “Domestic” and the second “Work Song” from his book “Buffalo Dance: The Journey of York.”
Sigma Tau Delta has two types of members: initiated members and associate members. Initiated members are invited by the Department of English and Modern Languages. They accept anyone for associate membership who is interested in literature, poetry, theory and writing. They hold weekly meetings at 4:30 p.m. on Mondays in the West Virginia Room of the Scarborough Library.