Janie E. Bibbie named County Poet Laureate

Janie E. Bibbie [bib-EE] was named the Tompkins County Poet Laureate Feb. 8. She is the 11th person to serve as Poet Laureate since the position was created in 2001.

As a resident of Tompkins County for 50 years, Ms. Bibbie serves as trustee, deaconess and leader of the caregiver group of Calvary Baptist Church and is a member of Business Leaders of Colors, Greater Ithaca Activities Center’s Senior Program, and the Tompkins County Quilters Guild.  

Bibbie is also the author of “Alzheimer’s Up Close and Personal” and twelve volumes of poetry, including “Pieces of Life: Poems from Smooth” and “Broken Places and Keep Moving: Poems for What’s Next.”

“I got into writing through journaling, basically. It was never meant to be public,” Bibbie said in reference to her book, “Alzheimer’s Up Close and Personal.” “Somewhere along the way, I started feeling like I’m supposed to share this with other people so they can see how difficult this journey is. It wasn’t until after I stepped into this role that I realized there was poetry in it.”

Megan Barber, Executive Director of the Community Arts Partnership, said that Bibbie has all the qualities of an ideal poet laureate. She is an established and well-spoken author and has continuously served the community.

“The position was established to ‘honor local outstanding poets, integrate poetry into the community, enrich the education of our young people, and enhance the county’s position as a cultural center,’” Barber said, quoting the official language used by Tompkins County to describe the position.

Nominations and applications for the position opened up in October 2022 as previous poet laureate, Dr. Christine Kitano, finished her two-year term.

The selection and announcement of the Tompkins County Poet Laureate has been a process administered by the Community Arts Partnership (CAP). CAP solicits nominations and organizes the selection panel for appointment to the post, but they do not select the poet laureate themselves. 

“We received nominations for eight outstanding local poets, each with unique ideas about how to put poetry in service to the community,” Barber said. “We are so excited about Janie’s appointment.” 

After the poet’s appointment, they will work continuously with CAP to share ideas and bring them to fruition through community events and poetry. 

Bibbie said she was surprised by her appointment to the position. She was encouraged to apply by friends and family and knew of three nominations, but did not expect to be the poet laureate.

“I was surprised you know, I’m not a professor and I don’t have a doctorate or writing or english degree so I was surprised and excited for the announcement,” Bibbie said.

Initially, Bibbie attended Ithaca College to study Spanish, but when she received a job in a personnel office at the college she decided to change her major to business administration. Bibbie received her undergraduate degree in 1985 and said she went right into a master’s program, also at Ithaca College, following graduation. 

Her master’s is in human resources, but at the time it was called personnel and industrial relations. 

However, you do not need a writing degree to enjoy writing, or to do it successfully. In addition to her 13 self-published books, she has enjoyed sharing any and all of her writing verbally with the community and friends and family. 

“To me poetry is something that comes from the heart. It’s a result of your thoughts, of your feelings,” Bibbie said. “It’s a written account of observations and I think those are valuable things to share with other people.” 

One of those methods of sharing for Bibbie has been through what she calls, “Poems on the Porch.” She said that she reaches out to neighbors or folks that don’t get out often and asks if she can read them poems on their porch. 

“I’d call people I knew or people that couldn’t or didn’t want to leave their homes and asked if I could just stop by and read some poems to them,” Bibbie said. “This way, there was distance between us if they were nervous but I was also there with them. Since I started writing I’ve just been looking for the opportunity to read to people and I’ve been making my own opportunities.” 

According to the CAP, part of the poet’s duties include “presenting their poetry at one or more Tompkins County Legislature meetings, organizing presentations at other appropriate public events, at least once each quarter for their term, and advocating for poetry in the community, including, but not limited to, bringing poetry to school children, projects or programs that promote the appreciation of poetry, or poetry workshops with under-resourced populations in the community.”

Whether it is through community groups or her entrepreneurship, Bibbie has consistently been an active part of the community for quite some time. She plans to expand her community service in her new role.

“I am the Poet Laureate for Tompkins County, but I’m from the City of Ithaca and my experience is with Ithaca,” Bibbie said. “So, in this role I really would like to be able to get to the hamlets and villages and towns in the county. Why should most of the action happen only in Ithaca? I know there are things happening elsewhere, but I want to expand our reach.”

Both Bibbie and Barber are excited for the appointment and for the projects Bibbie will undertake with the county during her two-year term. 

“I love that our county has this and that it is something we value,” said Amanda Champion, the District 12 legislator for Tompkins County. “I’ve been really happy to see the projects previous folks have done and look forward to seeing what Ms. Bibbie shares with us.”