Poet of honor named in Aurora

  • 2022-09-08
Ahja Fox has been sworn in as the third Honorary Poet Laureate of the city of Aurora.

Appointments such as this are often made known throughout the community with banner printing.

As Poet Laureate. Fox will be involved in raising awareness about the spoken word and the power of poetry, celebrating the diversity of Aurora in community outreach programs, helping residents of Aurora to share their own poetry and stories, and commemorating national and city events in poetic format.

The Aurora Public Library started the Honorary Poet Laureate program in 2013 to recognize the role of literature as an important part of the shared and diverse culture of the city. It was paused during the past two years and a new application process was started in January. Judges to select the next Poet Laureate included the two previous poets in the position; Bobby LeFebre, the poet laureate of Colorado; Danielle Jurinsky, City Council member; Paula Vargas, Library Board member; and Midori Clark, Director of Library and Cultural Services.

Clark expressed her happiness that the Poet Laureate program has been resumed, especially as Ahja Fox has been selected and appointed to the position. Clark added that Fox brings a unique combination of education and a background in poetry and is confident that Fox will be a champion for literacy and literature given her emphasis on making poetry available to everyone.