Poetry is a way for individuals to express themselves and has been around for centuries. Poetry club at SHS was started in 2005 with the help of Retired Media Specialist Mary Jane Jones.

In 2005, some students that were involved with Readers Club decided that they wanted to create a Poetry Club to express themselves, share their work and make new friends. They went to Jones and she agreed to become their sponsor.

The club decided to meet once a month and they had an open door for anyone who wanted to attend. At each meeting there was anywhere from 10 to 30 students. Poetry Club was to be a place where people could share things they’ve written and then talk about it, only if they wanted to.

“We were reaching people who may not have felt that they had a voice,” Jones said. “And people that found a place to feel comfortable, to fit in. I think that was probably the most heart warming.”

Due to the lack of students wanting to or being able to participate in Poetry Club, there will not be one this year. At the mention of this, Jones was not saddened. Jones believes that if the students need a poetry club then there will be one and that it will come back when the students decide they need it.

English teacher Timothy Jamriska is the current sponsor for Poetry Club. Throughout the beginning of the year, he had several announcements made on SPTV about the club. If students would like to get a Poetry Club started up again, they would need to talk to Jamriska about setting up a meeting and getting the word out about the club.

Jamriska believes that it is important for people to write because it gives them an opportunity to express any emotions that they may have about any given topic whether it’s sad, happy or even anger.

“It’s a chance for kids to deal with a lot of stuff they’re going through,” Jamriska said.