PCHS students bare hearts at annual poetry slam

March 6, 2024 at 11:11 p.m.

Port Chester High School senior Kevin Lorenzana reads his poem “The Reflection,” at the 19th annual Phillis Wheatley Poetry Slam on Thursday, Feb. 29. The Haseco Avenue resident won the competition, following a performance he spent three months crafting. (David Tapia/Westmore News)

Among Port Chester High School’s Black History Month celebrations, the event last Thursday, Feb. 29, featured a staple of the school community—the Phillis Wheatley Poetry Slam.

It’s a tradition that Secretary to the Principal Mattie Gooden started 19 years ago, alongside Byron Womack, a former assistant principal at Port Chester Middle School who died in 2018.

    “The Reflection,” by Port Chester High School senior Kevin Lorenzana, was the winning poem at the annual Phillis Wheatley Poetry Slam on Feb. 29.
  

The competitive event was held in one of the building’s music rooms in the new wing facing Tamarack Road, with 25 people in attendance.

Slam poetry is half professional public speaking and half performance art, according to Nelson Diaz, the Port Chester High School Poetry Club advisor.

“It gives kids the opportunity to express themselves while practicing how to communicate with an audience,” the English teacher said.

Prior to the actual contest, several guests read their own works, including school faculty, the winner of the 2018 slam Karen Pantoja and Port Chester Middle School student Annie Rodriguez, whose older sister is a member of the club.

“Her sister couldn’t come to meetings if Annie couldn’t come, because her parents were working,” Diaz explained. “She’s a writer, and I think she’s going to win this one day, seriously.” When she asked him if she could read one of her poems, he emphatically agreed.

Her poem, “New Year, New Me” centered on accepting herself and deciding what is best for her, disregarding what others may think.

“This is my year, so I should face my fear,” the young poet recited. “Don’t listen to what others want to hear, listen to what you want to hear.”

Diaz said this year’s event was one of the best in terms of quality and participation.

While the slam itself is a competition, featuring a panel of five judges who went into a separate room to deliberate after all six poets performed, Diaz said it’s not the primary focus.

“Here, we help students express themselves and show them that their voices are heard,” he said. “They can be uncomfortable a little, which leads to growth.”

This year’s winner, high school senior Kevin Lorenzana, saw his triumph as a testament to his development as both a poet and a person.

    Too short to reach the microphone, Port Chester Middle School student Annie Rodriguez performs her poem “New Year, New Me.” She was one of five guest poets who read one of their original works.
 By David Tapia   

The Haseco Avenue resident said before joining the club in the middle of this year, he was more of an athlete than a wordsmith.

Lorenzana is a member of the school’s wrestling team, a boxer and an avid weightlifter. However, he’d spent a large amount of time searching for a way to communicate his internal struggles.

“I’ve been trying to express body dysmorphia for a long time, because I’ve always had it,” he said. Body dysmorphic disorder is a mental health condition where a person can only focus on perceived flaws in their physical appearance. Lorenzana said bottling up the negative feelings associated with the conditions led him to make poor decisions in his past.

“Before, I wasn’t really a good kid,” he lamented. “I was doing dumb stuff because I didn’t have an outlet for this.”

It wasn’t until several months ago that he found what he needed.

“Kevin joined the club because of his girlfriend, Marisabel,” Diaz said. Marisabel Rodriguez, a skilled poet in her own right, has been a member of the club for two years and earned first place in the slam in 2023. “On a whim, he came to one of our meetings and was inspired.”

Rodriguez’ poem this year was centered on her relationship with her father, while others, like junior Camila Marroquin, spoke on the concept of love.

    Marisabel Rodriguez, the winner of the 2023 poetry slam, poses with her second-place award from this year.
 By David Tapia   

While performing his poem, “The Reflection,” Lorenzana conveyed his struggle with body dysmorphia. His voice trembled as he spoke about what he experienced while looking in a mirror. As he entered the second half of his piece, he spoke louder, determined to overcome whatever negative thoughts he might have.

His message stood out to the judges.

“I’ve been coming to the poetry slam for five years,” said Greg Guarino, an English teacher who served as a judge that evening. “It’s rare to see a male poet talking about body issues. It spoke to me, as a man who’s struggled with self-esteem and self-image issues.

“I told the other judges 17-year-old me could not have gone up in front of my peers and talked about my challenges with my personal appearance,” he continued. “So, that was incredible to watch Kevin do.”

Supportively, Port Chester High School Principal Luke Sotherden said “all the poems were incredible.” He, along with Guarino, Guidance Counselor Vanessa Clay-Williams, Assistant Principal Juan Sanchez and Special Education Teacher Violeta Yzeiraj made up the panel of judges.

“When we made our decision, it was like splitting hairs,” Sotherden said. “But Kevin embodied everything that we were looking for.”

After receiving his first-place award, Lorenzana, in typical sportsman fashion, dedicated his victory to important people in his life. “This is for my two sisters, who are always watching me, my girlfriend, and my parents,” he said.

He credits poetry for changing his life. “It’s helped me so much because I can let out how I feel, I get good grades, I’m an honor roll student now,” he laughed.

When asked what winning the slam meant to him, Lorenzana paused, letting the words come to him.

“It’s honestly a huge accomplishment for me,” he said. He’d been preparing “The Reflection” for the last three months. “I’ve always been good at sports, but this is a different type of award. This is something that came from my heart, not my physical abilities.”

    English Teacher Greg Guarino (left), Special Education Teacher Violeta Yzeiraj, Principal Luke Sotherden, Assistant Principal Juan Sanchez and Guidance Counselor Vanessa Clay-Williams sit front and center during the poetry slam. The high school faculty are preparing to judge each performance to declare a winner.
 By David Tapia