FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 30, 2005

Poet Wow’s Morehouse College
During Annual Homecoming Sunday Service

Atlanta, Georgia—The Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel at Morehouse College is the world’s most prominent and prestigious living religious memorial to alumnus, Dr. Martin Lither King Jr. On October 23rd 2005, the chapel held its annual Homecoming service with a turnout of approximately 300 alumni, students and friends. Attendance included the President of Morehouse College, Walter E. Massey ‘58 and his wife Shirley. On stage were Dean of the Chapel and Religion Professor, Dr. Lawrence Edward Carter Sr., guest pastor and Harvard graduate Reverend Joseph C. Robinson ‘92, the 2005 Homecoming MLKJ Chapel Queen, April Green, and progressive author, E. Tara Scurry.

As a former Queen on the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel Homecoming court, author E. Tara Scurry was in familiar territory taking her seat on stage among the other speakers and the chapel assistants. Promptly after the Scripture and Ministry in Song, the crowd hushed, as Scurry took the podium to read the part of the Sunday program titled “Poetry Reading”. For this special occasion, Scurry read the poem, Perfect Vessels To Receive from her upcoming debut, Storm Of Roses: A Compilation of Poetry & Short Stories due this winter. The poetry reading was well received with noted commentary. Senior Psychology major at Morehouse College, William A. Moore attended the service and stated, “The poem was very touching because it really expressed her feelings and the feelings of others about the savior. It really conveyed a message of everlasting love about Jesus.”

Asked why she chose this piece out of the 104 poems, prose and short stories featured in Storm of Roses, Scurry says, “When I do readings, I like to cater specifically to my audience and share which pieces I think would be the most moving or entertaining for them to experience. I always want to know as much as possible about my audience before hand as well as the atmosphere, environment or circumstances surrounding the event. The beauty of Storm of Roses is that it’s about everything. It’s about spirituality, emotions, and the world around us. Regardless of the makeup of my audience, there’s plenty in Storm Of Roses that I can select from to share with specific groups. This is one of the book’s most potent strengths. I actually have a poem in the book titled, Cream Of The Crop, which refers to Morehouse and Spelman students, but I knew that Perfect Vessels To Receive would be a perfect fit for this special occasion.”

Charles Houston, President of the Chapel Assistant Organization at Morehouse College has been a licensed Minister since 2004. A Religion major, he plans to attend Boston University for pastoral and marriage counseling and then found his own church. He had this to say about Perfect Vessels To Receive: “It was very, very timely, thought-provoking and heart-stirring. It captured the essence of her. You can tell she put a piece of herself into the poem, a piece of God into the poem. It was a perfect poem for the perfect time. It was really just awesome. Everything that could be right, she put into it. You could hear it in her voice. If someone were deaf and saw the reaction of the crowd, that would tell the story of the poem. If someone were blind and could only hear, the color of her words would paint the picture for them.”

Founded in 1867, Morehouse College is highly regarded as the premier college for educating African-American men. Morehouse continues to build and nurture outstanding future leaders and produce accomplished alumni such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Samuel L. Jackson, Spike Lee and Dr. David Satcher, former U.S. Surgeon General.

For more information, visit the official website at www.etarascurry.com which will be live by November 1st 2005, contact etaras1@etarascurry.com.

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Storm of Roses: A Compilation of Poetry and Short Stories by E. Tara Scurry, will be published by iUniverse available in hard and paperback, February 2006