The South Region Conference of the Haiku Society of America (HSA) will meet at the Arlington Resort and Spa in Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas the weekend of November 5 – 6, 2021. John Stevenson, of Ithaca, New York, will be the featured poet. A former president of the HSA, Stevenson is a haiku poet who is loved and admired by many.
The Haiku Society of America was founded at Columbia University in New York City in 1968, by twenty-five people who enjoy 17th-century Japanese haiku poetry. Today there are over 1000 members around the world. If you are unfamiliar with haiku poetry, this is a rich occasion to discover it.
Shokan Tadashi Kondo of Tokyo, Japan, will not attend due to COVID-19 concerns for international travel. He will take a rain check for a future conference.
The Arkansas Haiku Society (AHS) will host the event. The AHS was founded in the home of Verna Lee Hinegardner, Arkansas Poet Laureate in 1997. The late Dr. Paul Tucker served as president from 1997-2017. His leadership resulted in international recognition for haiku in Hot Springs.
This will be the 25th haiku conference in the Spa city. One-quarter of a century of haiku poets and friends gathering to read, write and enjoy ancient and modern haiku poetry.
All are welcome. This is a humanities-sponsored event with no charge for attendance. For information, email hkilby@hotmail.com, or phone 501-767-6096.
