The Poetry Posse

Denver poet laureate Chris Ransick doesn't believe in being all high and mighty about his position in life. Instead, his message is more evangelical: He just wants to spread the word about poetry. Trust him, it's a cool thing. So when Ransick took part in the recent marathon recording session of Colorado authors by the Rocky Mountain Unit of Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic, he could hardly wait to come back with his own poetry-specific posse to do it again.

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More About

• Chris Ransick
• Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic
• New York Public Library
• Arts, Entertainment, and Media
• Eyesight and Eye Health

Colorado Poets Lend Their Voices to Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic won't quite be a metered Gunfight at the OK Corral, but Ransick and his band do see it as a new frontier. Thirty to forty poets will descend on the RFB&D studios today from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. to record poetry textbooks to be used by blind, visually impaired, dyslexic and otherwise physically challenged students across the nation.

Want to check it out? You can: Visitors are welcome to come by and watch the action as it unfolds in the unit's eight digital recording booths, where volunteers read everything from Spanish literature to geology textbooks throughout the year.

Created more than fifty years ago by New York Public Library Auxiliary member Anne T. Macdonald — after she was approached by blinded WWII veterans eager to take advantage of the GI Bill of Rights — the Recording for the Blind first turned out six-inch phonograph discs in the attic of the NYPL.

What a long way they've come. Drop in and see for yourself: RFB&D is located at 1355 South Colorado Boulevard, Building C, Suite 406. For information or to volunteer, call 303-757-0787 or go to www.rfbd.org.
Thu., Oct. 5, 9 a.m.-8 p.m.