SOUTHPORT, CT – Trinity Spiritual Center will host an in-person conversation and live stream event with acclaimed poet and world-traveling priest the Rev. Canon Spencer Reece on Thursday, February 6th at 6:30 PM. This special event is open to all members of the community regardless of religious affiliation.
Rev. Canon Reece will discuss his fascinating life journey as a Brooks Brothers sales associate, a poet-priest healing orphans in Honduras, a national secretary to the Episcopal bishop of Spain, and a priest-in-charge of a parish in Queens decimated by COVID. He will demonstrate to participants how poetry is a way of looking at your life and finding meaning through the lens of wonder.
The Rev. Canon Spencer Reece is currently the Rector of St. Paul’s Wickford, Rhode Island. Born in Hartford, CT, Reece’s journey into the priesthood was elliptical. Though his journey began in his twenties, it was postponed as he patiently developed his craft as a poet, publishing his first collection of poems at the age of 41 while working in retail. This life experience along with his service among at risk populations as a member of the clergy makes him the perfect ambassador for demonstrating how poetry can work through us to lift us up and connect us with the divine in our daily lives.
Reece is a graduate of Wesleyan University, where he majored in English Literature and studied with Annie Dillard. He holds degrees from the University of York in the United Kingdom, Harvard Divinity School, and Berkeley Divinity School at Yale. His poetry was chosen for the Bakeless Poetry Prize by Nobel laureate Louise Glück and adapted into a short film by director James Franco. He has been awarded fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.
“In my life, I have been a priest, a salesman, a store assistant manager – the poems get written at home while I’m doing the dishes,” observes Reece. “This double focus on the particulars of life is how we find meaning and wonder in our most ordinary moments, which is the essence of poetry.”
Copies of several collections of the Rev. Canon Reece’s poetry will be on sale at this in-person event. An author signing will follow.
WHAT: "Restoring the Spirit: Poet-Priest Rev. Canon Spencer Reece
WHEN: Thursday, February 6th at 6:30 p.m.
WHERE: Trinity Episcopal Church Parish Hall, 651 Pequot Avenue, Southport, CT
COST: $25
REGISTER: All are welcome. https://PoetryofDailyLife.eventbrite.com
QUESTIONS: mrkgrsn@gmail.com
About Trinity Spiritual Center
Trinity Spiritual Center is a dynamic and growing community of people of all ages and beliefs, engaging in a broad range of learning experiences to inspire and support their own journeys of spiritual growth. It offers programs and practices that inspire and engage the greater community. Trinity Spiritual Center is pleased to be partnered with Trinity Episcopal Church.
About Trinity Episcopal Church
Trinity Episcopal Church is located in the historic seaside district of Southport at 651 Pequot Avenue (at Center Street) and welcomes seekers of all denominations. Trinity’s mission is to provide a vibrant 21st century Episcopal community that inspires spiritual growth, nurtures genuine connections, and promotes charitable service.