River of Words Flows Through Hampton Park Library

Next week, a new river will flow through north Forsyth. River of Words, a traveling exhibit of art and poetry, will be on display at the Hampton Park Library April 16 to 30.

Coordinated locally by the Georgia Center for the Book and Project WET (Water Education for Teachers), a program of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, River of Words is a national poetry and art competition. Each year, students in grades 4 – 12 are invited to create visual art or poetry that shows an understanding and appreciation of the natural environment and their local watershed.

Part of Your World by Carina Lefkovits
Shiloh Point Elementary School
River of Words State Winner, Category II

More than 150,000 entries have been submitted since the River of Words program began in 1997. Entries are judged on a state and national level. Thirteen Forsyth County students from Shiloh Point, Brookwood Elementary, and Matt Elementary were recognized as finalists or state winners.The exhibit is touring across Georgia and most recently stopped at Shiloh Point Elementary School.

This is the third year Shiloh Point has hosted the exhibit. Several students there have won state-level awards each year. Over the last four years there have been two national-level winners at the school who received trips to Washington, DC and California for the national award ceremonies.

The Hampton Park Library is the last stop on the schedule for the River of Words exhibit. It will return to the Georgia Center for the Book at the Decatur Library in May to be refitted with winning poems and art from the 2016 competition. Those winners are expected to be announced in May.

The River of Words exhibit is suitable for all ages and may be visited during the library’s regular hours, Monday through Thursday from 10:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and Sunday from 1:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.