2nd Saturdays Next workshop: May 11th; 3PM    

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Carol Anderheggen was born Carol Mae Ray in Miami Florida, but now lives a busy retired life as a transplanted New Englander. Her volunteer work with the American Red Cross and membership in the Ocean State Poets group and serving her own poetry muse keep her occupied.

Carol’s spiritual home for her muse is The Frost Place in Franconia, NH where she worked on the staff of The Frost Poetry Festival for many summers. While there, she worked at and produced the Participant Anthology for the Festival. Her more recent work with the Ocean State Poets in bringing poetry and workshops to challenged groups such as the Learning Upwards program at Salve Regina University in Newport, RI continues to inspire Carol.

Her poems have appeared in The Great Swamp Gazette, The 2010 Island Writer’s Circle Anthology, URI Women, Anemone, Northeast Journal, Women Against Nuclear War, A Letter Among Friends, NEARI Bylines, and other regional journals. She has self-published two chapbooks – Are You a Born Child? And The Breast Cycle, a Journey of Dreams and Nightmares.

Heather Sullivan is a long-time active member of the Ocean State Poets. She is an award winning writer, whose 1999 memoir and personal essay won first place in the Writer’s Digest competition. She holds an M.A. in English and has had work appear in Tiferet: A Journal of Spiritual Literature; Balancing the Tides: A Newport Journal; The Writers’ Circle 2008 & 2010 Anthologies; Newport Round Table’s Walls and Bridges Anthology; The Providence Journal; The Newport Daily News, and She Shines Magazine. Her essay “Compassion” aired on Rhode Island’s National Public Radio This I Believe series, and she has recorded her poetry for Insight Radio for the visually impaired. From 2007 to 2010, Heather served as Assistant Creative Director of the Rhode Island Writers’ Circle, and in 2011, she edited “Butterfly Wings” a poetry chapbook that featured the work of 75 individuals through the Learning Upwards program at Salve Regina University.

David Dragone was born in Springfield, MA and moved to Rhode Island 30 years ago. David’s poetry has repeatedly appeared in The Common Ground Review, Avocet, California Quarterly, The Providence Journal, and others. He has twice had poetry read on Rhode Island’s National Public Radio, and has also had his poetry read as part of Trinity Repertory Company’s monthly radio theatre program. David lives in Middletown with his wife and son and is a member of the Ocean State Poets.