Erin Veith, a senior at West Virginia Wesleyan College and a Rock Cave resident, recently won first place in the 2003 Regional Poetry Competition sponsored by the National Society of Arts and Letters.

The event was held March 8, in the Graham Auditorium at Washington State Community College in Marietta, Ohio.

Looking for a poet, not only for a poem was the objective of the judges in the competition, and based on that criteria, Veith captured first place and $1,000 for her poems “In the Summer,” “Summer at Audra State Park, West Virginia,” “the Yew Tree,” and “City Sky.”

About her work, the judges wrote, “She showed a genuine understanding of the infinite ways in which form and content are one…It will be more than interesting to see how this writer will develop.”

With her first-place award, Veith qualified to become a national contestant for $10,000 at the National Society of Arts and Letters’ National Competition May 16-17 at Lexington, Ky.
The Ohio River Valley Chapter will cover all of Veith’s expenses for her trip to Lexington.
Second place in the competition and $750 went to Kristin Rutter, a junior at Marietta College, while third place and $500 was awarded to Randi Ward, a senior at Ohio University.

Judges for the competition were published poets and professors of English: Devon McNamara from West Virginia Wesleyan College, Pam Kircher from Mansfield, Ohio, and J. Allyn Rosser from Ohio University.