Last night, just five days into the year, we held our first poetry event of 2025. Yes We Cant, on Zoom. And because we were still stumbling out of the festive season, stuffed with mince pies and awash with Baileys and mulled wine, we had a collective read-around, with everyone getting the opportunity to read a piece of their work. That meant twenty-four different voices, all sharing their words to an appreciative audience. It’s the beauty of poetry. It’s what we love about what we do.
It also gave us the opportunity to share some good news. Each calendar year, PPP chooses a local charity to support. We do this because we believe poetry doesn’t – and shouldn’t – exist in a bubble, but needs to be involved in its local community. Over the course of the year, we raise money for the charity by putting a small self-imposed tax on our own work, but also by pooling all the shrapnel left from our events over the course of the year once our feature poets have been paid. The generosity of the folk who attend our nights is key to this scheme’s success.
https://www.pexels.com/photo/crop-anonymous-person-showing-donation-box-6348119/
In 2024, our chosen charity was Base 25, and we’re delighted that we raised a total of £355.27 to support their work with young people in Wolverhampton. Our heartfelt thanks to everyone who came along to our events last year and threw money in the virtual hat – you made this possible. You’re stars, every one of you.
Our charity for this year is going to be Hands 2 Help U, which is a food bank, clothing bank, and one-stop resource doing incredible work in our part of the Black Country. Thank you in advance for helping us to help them.
PPP
7th January 2025