Booked for Lunch Brings Poetry and Community Together at Pioneer Memorial Library
February 4, 2026
The monthly Booked for Lunch series at Pioneer Memorial Library continues to grow into a cornerstone community gathering, blending literature, conversation, and local talent into a welcoming mid-day program. The latest installment, held Wednesday, February 4, filled the library with a standing-room-only crowd eager to hear from local poet Rich Hawkins and his newly released book, On Sitting Bull Hill.
From the opening moments, the atmosphere was relaxed and inviting, with laughter and quiet reflection weaving through the room as Hawkins read selections from his work. Using a warm, wholehearted delivery, he shared poems that resonated deeply with the audience, including Jimmy the Talker and several other crowd favorites. The connection between reader and listeners was immediate, with attendees even requesting specific poems during the presentation.
One of those requests was James, a piece that stirred a shared sense of recognition among the crowd. The poem centers on a familiar figure from many childhood classrooms, the quiet classmate who may not have spoken much but left a lasting impression. The reading prompted reflection and conversation, as listeners found themselves wondering about those people from their own past and where life may have taken them.
Hawkins’ journey to becoming a published poet is closely tied to Pioneer Memorial Library itself. In 2015, the library hosted its first poetry workshop, an event Hawkins attended while already active as a writer and speaker. It was there that his focus on poetry truly took shape. Embracing the accessibility of modern technology, he began writing poems directly on his cell phone, capturing ideas as they came rather than waiting for the right time or place.
Since that workshop, Hawkins has written an extensive collection of poetry, much of it born in everyday moments and refined through steady practice. Library staff repeatedly encouraged him to compile his work into a book, and after about a year and a half of persistence, the project finally came together.
Carol Barnes, a former Colby Community College instructor with experience in journaling projects, played a key role in organizing and selecting poems for the final manuscript. A group of local readers, including Melanie Wilks, Paul Steele, Carol Farms, and John Sanders, helped review and shape the collection. Wilks also typed the manuscript and worked with Leroy’s Printing to produce the book locally, ensuring Hawkins retained full rights to his work while keeping the entire project rooted in the community.
The book itself was composed within the walls of Pioneer Memorial Library, a fact Hawkins highlighted by dedicating it’s own honorary copy of “On Sitting Bull Hill” to the library, its staff, and its volunteers. The dedication underscored the role the library has played not just as a venue, but as a creative home and catalyst for local voices.
During the program, Wilks shared practical advice for aspiring writers, encouraging attendees to capture words and phrases the moment they surface by using a notes app on their phone. She explained how returning to those notes later can turn fragments into finished poems, emphasizing that cell phones now serve the same purpose notebooks once did, only with greater convenience.
Hawkins closed the session by challenging those in attendance to try writing a poem themselves and expressed his hope that Pioneer Memorial Library might restart a regular poetry program in the future. Judging by the packed room and engaged audience, the February Booked for Lunch program demonstrated once again that local stories, when given space and support, can bring a community together in meaningful and lasting ways.