NEWS, September 2017: Peter Sears, Celebration of Life will take place Sunday, October 29, 3-6 p.m. The public celebration will begin at Eliot Chapel on the campus of Reed College, Portland, Oregon, and will be followed by a reception at the Gray Lounge of Reed College (Portland, Oregon). You can learn more about this public celebration, and RSVP here. A Reed College campus map can be found here.
Remembrances in Peter's name are suggested to Oregon Humanities, which administers the Poet Laureate Program for the Oregon Cultural Trust,at 921 SW Washington St., #150, Portland, Oregon 97105.
You can read a full announcement of Sears' passing here. To share thoughts and reflections on his life, work, and influence, please visit Remembering Peter Sears, courtesy of Oregon Humanities.
NEWS, July 2017: Former Oregon Poet Laureate Peter Sears Dies At 80.
Peter Sears, poet and teacher, passed away on July 20, 2017, in Corvallis, Oregon. He served as Oregon’s Poet Laureate from 2014 to 2016, and was active in the state’s literary community for more than 40 years.
NEWS, August 2015: Peter Sears poems featured at 2015 Britt Music Festival.
Poetry conventionally seeks to re-create the human voice on the page. But when poems are set to music, vocal or instrumental, an entirely new creation spring forth. Read more about the experience on the Links page.
NEWS, April 2014: Peter Sears named Oregon's seventh Poet Laureate.
Governor John Kitzhaber has named Peter Sears of Corvallis to a two-year appointment as poet laureate of Oregon. Read the full announcement here.
The position of Oregon Poet was established by the governor of Oregon in April 23, 1923 and adopted by the Oregon Legislature in 1989 (Laws, 1989, Chap. 122, Sec. 1,2,3; Statutes, 1994 Supplement, Sec. 357.925). The first laureate was Edwin Markham. The position began as a lifetime appointment, then was changed to a four-year year term. In 2006, Lawson Inada was named to a two-year appointment by Governor Ted Kulongoski. Subsequent appointments are for a term of two years.
Previous Laureates
- Edwin Markham (April 23, 1923-1931)
- Ben Hur Lampman (February 20, 1951-1954)
- Ethel Romig Fuller (1957-1965)
- William Stafford (October 1975-1990)
- Lawson Fusao Inada (February 17, 2006-2010)
- Paulann Petersen (2010-2014)
Visit the Library of Congress Main Reading Room for more information.
Browse around the site to discover more about Sears' books, teachings, affiliations, and to connect with him about readings, workshops and public engagements.
"I want light, high morning light, and a breeze.
And heat, full heat that flutters."
From "Full Heat that Flutters," The Brink
