A Fitting And Stirring Memorial For Village's First Poet Laureate

MAMARONECK, NY — A woman who cheered on a community as it found new ways to communicate its joys and sorrows, and who helped teach a generation how to turn self-reflection into art in a sometimes whimsical and sometimes solemn way will now be remembered with an appropriate space that will keep her contributions alive.

Life in Mamaroneck resembled a fable in recent months as a sculpture of a tortoise and a sculpture of a hare raced through the Village of Mamaroneck. The eternally competing pair have reached the finish line at a new home in the soon-to-be dedicated poetry garden across the street from the Mamaroneck Library and the Emelin Theater.

The dedication of the Mary Louise Cox Memorial Poetry Garden will be this Friday, at 11 a.m., and all are invited to join the Village of Mamaroneck Arts Council to celebrate.

The space was donated by the family of former Mamaroneck Poet Laureate Mary Louise Cox (1925-2021) in honor of their mother. Cox founded Poetry Live! which was an annual event celebrating the voices of high school students in Westchester. Her late husband, Fred Rosenberg, was on the Board of the Library and helped to make the library among the best in the region.

The garden is filled with whimsical sculptures, new trees, plantings, flowers and a bench dedicated to Mary Louise Cox and Fred Rosenberg. All garden design and elements were also donated by the Cox family as a gift to the village. There is a memorial plaque that describes the space as "A beautiful place inspired by a beautiful soul."

That beautiful place inspired by a beautiful soul will no doubt help future artists to tap their muse in much the same way Mary Louise Cox did during her life.

The rain date for the dedication will be Saturday, at 11 a.m. The Poetry Garden is located on the corner of Library Lane and Prospect Ave. in Mamaroneck.

SEE ALSO:

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• In the Age of Texts and Tweets, AMS Students Celebrate the Joy of Poetry
• Circles of Peace - One year after Sandy Hook
• Meet Mary Louise Cox, Mamaroneck's Poet Laureate