Poetry Night with Lucyna Prosko, Kathleen McCoy, & David Graham

Lucyna Prostko, a Polish-American poet, graduated from the M.F.A. program at New York University, where she was awarded the New York Times Fellowship. Her poetry appeared in various literary journals, including Fugue, Washington Square, Painted Bride Quarterly, Quiddity, Ellipsis, Salamander, Cutthroat, One Jacar Press and Five Points. Her first book Infinite Beginnings was judged winner of Bright Hill Press Poetry Book Competition by Joan Larkin. She currently pursues a Ph.D. in English at SUNY Albany.

Kathleen McCoy teaches college writing and poetry in the house where her daughter just finished her B.A. degree and her husband gardens. Her poetry has been short-listed and long-listed for international prizes including the Fish International Poetry Prize, the Discovery Prize, the Dana Awards, the Book Excellence Awards, and a Fulbright. Her books include Green and Burning, More Water Than Words, and Ringing the Changes and her blog is The Real McCoy: A Take on Poetry.

David Graham was born & raised in Johnstown NY, and spent his career teaching college English, most of it at Ripon College in Wisconsin. After retirement he and his wife, the artist Lee Shippey, moved to Glens Falls. Currently he is a contributing editor for the online journal Verse-Virtual, where he contributes a regular column, “Poetic License,” on poetry and poets. He has published poems, essays, and reviews in a wide variety of anthologies and journals, both in print and online; and given numerous presentations and readings in many states. His most recent of seven books of poetry is The Honey of Earth (Terrapin Books, 2019). He is also co-editor of two anthologies, After Confession: Poetry as Autobiography (with Kate Sontag), and Local News: Poetry About Small Towns (with Tom Montag)

Caffè Lena offers extraordinary music in an intimate venue steeped in history. It has been in continuous operation longer than any other folk club in the USA. First opened in 1960 in Saratoga Springs NY, the Caffè's early years were entwined with the social movements of that era. Emerging artists such as Bob Dylan, The Freedom Singers, Arlo Guthrie, Emmylou Harris and Don McLean took their turn on the stage, alongside esteemed veterans such as Clarence Ashley, Mississippi John Hurt, Skip James and Pete Seeger. The venue has been called “An American Treasure” by the Library of Congress, and has received recognition from the GRAMMY Foundation for its contribution to American music.