MONTICELLO, NY — Kevin Scot Graham will be recognized as the county’s fifth poet laureate at a ceremony on Saturday,  May 4 at the Ethelbert B. Crawford Public Library. The public is welcome to attend the ceremony, which will take place on the outdoor stage at 2:30 p.m. In case of rain, the ceremony will be moved indoors. 

Outgoing poet laureate Sharon Kennedy-Nolle will pass the torch to Graham, who will serve a term from 2024-26. Graham will read an original poem inspired by Sullivan County. 

Graham is also a musician and a visual artist. While poetry has been a common thread throughout his adult life, he plays several musical instruments, including the guitar and a six-string ukulele. After earning a degree in music, he moved to New York City, where he worked both as a performer and producer. His documentary photography was featured in an issue of Art in America, and he won two Emmy awards for lighting direction as part of a studio technical team. In 2016, he moved to Narrowsburg, where he exhibited his art at the Narrowsburg Union and performed in the Delaware Valley Arts Alliance Salon  Series. 

He spent every summer of his teenage years in the Canadian wilderness with an experiential education program and was certified as a guide to lead groups of younger teenagers through difficult terrain. He learned about nature-focused Indigenous spirituality, personal accountability and group dynamics, all of which significantly shaped his core values and primed his interest in working with young people. 

Graham attributes his deep connection to nature and his experience in the wilderness as foundational sources for his love of poetry. It was also this strong kinship with the natural world that drew him to Sullivan County, where the forests and “the smell of the pines” inspire him, he said. 

Graham is currently compiling a book of his poems, possibly to be produced in early summer. He is a strong advocate for inclusion in the arts and has a particular interest in those who feel marginalized. “Sharing my love for reading and writing poetry, I feel reverence and honor when I get the opportunity to inspire someone,” he said.

He is convinced that everyone can create and is passionate about encouraging others to realize their creative potential. He sees art as a powerful way for people to connect and he is looking forward to using the platform of poet laureate to help create those connections among various groups throughout the county. 

The position is made possible in large part with funds from the Decentralization Program,  a regrant program of the New York State Council of the Arts, with the support of the NYS Governor’s Office and the NYS Legislature, and administered by the Delaware Valley Arts Alliance. The project is administered by the Sullivan Public Library Alliance, with additional support from libraries, the Friends of local public libraries and individual supporters of the arts. 

The Ethelbert B. Crawford Library is located at 479 Broadway. For more information, call 845/794-4660, ext. 7.

Contributed by the E.B. Crawford Public Library.