Like a beacon signaling to wayfarers in a foggy sea, Guilford’s new creative writing center attracted students and people from the community for a night of poetry and music to present and celebrate the 2000 Lighthouse publication.The room was packed and people stood in the hallway listening in silence for the many poets and musicians sharing experiences and inspirations from their lives. It seemed the room was a collective voice as people took turns performing.

Mary Trigg, a Guilford junior, said with a girlish smile after the readings, “I haven’t had a physical reaction to poetry and song like this in a long time. The poetry and music really hit me.”

Each person who came to the reading was handed a copy of The Lighthouse. The Lighthouse is comprised of poetry, prose, and artwork from many Guilford students.

Among the many performers was Garrison Phillips, a Greensboro resident and member of the Introvert Writing Ensemble, who said, “this kind of experience should not be held in the darkness, but brought out and nurtured in this kind of group setting.”

The momentous night marked a beginning for The King Writing Center. The Center’s focus and goal is the promotion of artistic celebration on the Guilford campus for many years to come. It’s room in the basement of King was used by the physics department until the new science building was built.

Guilford senior Samara Richter, founder and organizer of the King Writing Center, and editor of The Lighthouse, spoke candidly about the aim of the writing center. “This room is a place for people to gather and use as an inspiration. It is a place to use as their own”

Ezra Post, a junior, said, “I think this can really take off and become great if people paid more attention to what’s going on.”

Everyone is welcomed and encouraged to get involved and become a part of the writing center. The room is comfortably furnished with couches and chairs and will soon have computers, but it is not complete. So bring posters, bring books, bring a lamp, bring a plug for the old stereo, bring a rubber chicken, bring anything and add it to the personality of the room.

The quite atmosphere of the King Writing Center is a lot different than that of a coffee house where most poetry readings are held. “Coffee houses are often noisy and people do not pay attention to the readings,” said sophomore Sophia Lynn.

“This room feels like it has been lived in for a while and that’s hard to accomplish. It’s a perfect place to have poetry reading,” said Guilford English professor Becky Gibson.

Something wonderful and inspiring has come to life in the basement of King hall. And like all things born, this is only the beginning.
You can pick up a copy of The Lighthouse in Founders or at the King Writing Center.