In commemoration of the 80th anniversary of D-Day, Voices of Poetry is hosting an event in honor of the day on June 9.
The event, titled “The Longest Day — An Afternoon of Poetry & Music in Commemoration of the 80th Anniversary of D-Day,” begins at 2 p.m. at the Unitarian Church of Barnstable. Poets Elizabeth T. Gray, Jr., Dzvinia Orlowsky, Judith Partelow and Al Starkey will read their own work plus poems and letters from those who served in WWII. Lary Chaplan, John Grannis and Mary Ann DeMello will provide the music for the event.
“I really wanted there to be a combination of original poetry or prose by those who served to honor their service and to honor their sacrifice and music,” Neil Silberblatt, founder of Voices of Poetry said. “Music evokes such memories of that period… (and) I thought it would be an integral part of this event…so thrilled that we’ve assembled a great bunch of people.”
Silberblatt founded Voices of Poetry 12 years ago and has hosted over 400 poetry events featuring the likes of Pulitzer Prize winners and never-before-published poets across Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. While the organization has hosted poetry events for other historical events, such as the end of World War I and the end of the Civil War, this year marks the first event held in honor of D-Day. On June 6, 1944, troops from the United States, Britain, Canada and other countries stormed the beaches of Normandy in occupied France to wrest Europe from Adolf Hitler and the German army.
“Memory is the rent we pay to those who went before and we forget them at our peril,” he said.
When it came to choosing the participants for this year’s event, Silberblatt said it was an easy decision based on their work and merits.
“I selected them is because they have written wonderful work and they read beautifully,” he said. “It’s a delight to hear their work and hear them read and it’s an honor to present their voices.”
For local poet Judith Partelow, she was elated to be selected to participate not only to share her work but to preserve and share these stories.
“(It gives) us the opportunity to remember and to bring about information that people don’t know,” she said. “…We have to keep this memory alive and not forget.”
During World War II, Partelow’s father served as a Marine stationed in the Solomon Islands. She said though he didn’t talk too much about his time in battle, he did share stories of his time in the Marines over the dinner table. In his honor, she plans on reading her poem titled “Memorial Day Dessert.”
She also hopes to fit in three more original works, “Going Home,” “Radio Transmissionist,” written about the husband of a close friend of hers who worked as a radio transmissionist in the Navy, and “Comfort of Knowing,” plus “Death that need not have been” by Flora Hendricks and two letters from men in World War II about their experiences of D-Day.
“One (letter) was (written by) Sergeant Robert Polson with the 10th Infantry Regiment, the fifth division,” she said. “(He) wrote a letter shortly after the Normandy landing and it really takes you there and gives you such a descriptive explanation of what the experience was like. For people who weren’t there, and there are so many of us that weren’t, it gives us an idea of the horrors that our military endured.”
Partelow also released a book of her work, titled “Passion and Provocation,” in March and consists of 154 poems written across 40 years of her life. The book is available online and at most retailers.
“The Longest Day — An Afternoon of Poetry & Music in Commemoration of the 80th Anniversary of D-Day” hosted by Voices of Poetry takes place at 2 p.m. on June 9 at the Unitarian Church of Barnstable (3330 Main St.). The event is free to attend but there is a suggested donation of $15.
Frankie Rowley covers entertainment and things to do. Contact her at [email protected].
Thanks to our subscribers, who help make this coverage possible. If you are not a subscriber, please consider supporting quality local journalism with a Cape Cod Times subscription. Here are our subscription plans.