Former editor named town poet laureate
NEW MILFORD — Deborah Rose says she's been writing since she “could pick up a crayon.”
“Beginning around age 7 or 8 I would write cute songs that rhymed,” she said. “Eventually, that grew into more sophisticated forms of poetry.”
Rose has been named New Milford's new poet laureate, a position that requires her to promote and support poetry and other literary activities in town.
“I'm honored to have been considered, selected and appointed for this role,” said Rose, who is the former editor of the New Milford Spectrum, where she worked from 1998 through the end of 2020. “I have always had a passion for writing, and poetry has been the medium I explored the most.”
Mayor Pete Bass said he is “thrilled” that Rose accepted the position.
“Her community roots combined with being the former editor of the Spectrum, plus her love for poetry, makes her a great choice for the position,” he said.
Rose's two-year position is subject to reappointment. In a general sense, she expects to promote the appreciation of poetry among town residents. More specifically, she will work closely with the town's Commission on the Arts, the library, arts centers, schools, and other organizations to offer poetry readings, workshops, and other literary-arts activities.
Rose facilitates the New Milford Public Library's poetry workshop. James Scrimgeour, professor emeritus at Western Connecticut State University, led that venue until recently stepping down as the town's poet laureate earlier this year. He was named the town's first poet laureate in 2016.
Rose credits Scrimgeour, who was her professor at Western Connecticut State University where she earned bachelor's and master's degrees in English, in helping her to refine her own work.
“Mr. Scrimgeour has witnessed my evolution as a poet, so it's a real honor to follow him as the town's poet laureate," she says.
In an era of nonstop video streaming and online gaming, some might be surprised to learn that poetry is enjoying a renaissance. The Survey of Public Participation in the Arts, conducted by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Census Bureau, found that 11.7 percent of the U.S. adult population in 2017 — or about 28 million people — had read poetry in the last year. That compares to about 7 percent in 2012.
In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic created an upswing in poetry reading. From March 2020 to March 2021, the website Poets.org saw its traffic increase by 25 percent.
Rose is especially enthusiastic about the role poetry plays in the educational world. She wants to encourage students of all ages to be interested in poetry in expressing themselves. “Poetry provides a powerful way for kids to think, and to process how they perceive the world,” she notes.
Besides being an art form, poetry can serve a therapeutic role. An individual may be undergoing grief or psychological pain and be unable to express that in a conventional way – such as by talking or even crying. While psychologists often encourage people to write journal entries during such trying times, poetry can also perform the same type of healing, Rose explains.
“At such times, what they write may come out as more of a poem than a journaling exercise, or maybe their journaling becomes a poem of sorts,” she said. Conversely, poetry can help the individual express joy as well.
At the New Milford Public Library's Poetry Workshop, aspiring poets have a forum to read and review their work once each month. Such feedback is vital, notes Rose, who credits advice she received from Scrimgeour and other writers when he led the workshop as helping her to refine her craft.
“Sometimes, a particular word or phrase strikes a different chord with the reader than the poet intended,” Rose noted. “It's always constructive to give, and receive, feedback.”
State Sen. Bill Buckbee, R-New Milford, is a lifelong friend of Rose's, and said she has the right combination of creative talent and community ties to serve the town well as poet laureate. “This is an outstanding thing for the town, and I'm very excited for Deborah as well,” Buckbee said.
Buckbee added that Rose has a keen appreciation for New England's beauty, which is borne out in both her words and her photographs. “I've lived in other parts of the U.S., and there's no place quite like New England,” he said. “New Milford especially is made up of very diverse, very different people who embrace one another as a community and look out for each other. Deborah's got that.”
Theo Jannetty, a former classmate of Rose's and longtime friend who lives in Westchester County, N.Y., said a passion for writing first drew the two undergrads together. “Deborah always has her journal with her, and she always dates her work,” said Jannetty, who studied literature at WestConn. “And she always shares her poetry – revising it later if she is inclined to. She sees poetry as a gift to others: Instead of hoarding her work and publishing it only when she has perfected it, for Deb it's something to be shared.”
Rose had several poems in published in anthologies “many moons ago.” She is now looking to compile a book of her writing. Her main communication tool now is social media page on which she posts photos of her observations, along with poetry.
“I love how words fit together,” said Rose, who is also an accomplished photographer. “I tend to go for more free verse: With poetry I begin with a moment or feeling, and I've always found that free verse lets me express that more openly than if I attempted to fit it into a particular format or rhyming scheme.”
Rose began posting her poetry on social media in earnest on New Year's Day in 2021 and has done so daily since. Asked what her topics are, she replied, “Whatever moves me.”
“It's a great way to stay disciplined with my writing and my photography, and it's also quite a bit of fun,” Rose said.
The New Milford High School graduate said individuals frequently respond to her posts publicly and in private messages. “That's really all you can ask for as a writer and poet,” said Rose. “Knowing that you're reaching another human being is such an awesome gift, and very rewarding as well.”