2018 ICC Contest Winners  Grand Prize:              Ode to Broken Things                                           Judy Bebelaar  A. California: James Roberts  1st prize                       Angel’s Flight                                                         Robert Eastwood  2nd Prize                     Eroica-July 21, 1996 at Stern Grove                      Alyza Lee Salomon  3rd Prize                      A knock on the Door in the Middle of the Night      Ann Molin  1st HM                        Getting to Yes, San Francisco, 2018                       Kathleen McClung  2nd HM                       Homeless                                                                Denise Lapachet Barney  3rd HM                        Pidgeon Point En Plein Air                                      Sam Hersh  4th HM                        The Farallones                                                        Eileen Malone  5th HM                        The Path in the Delta Near Locke                           Tanya Joyce  B. Journeys: James Robert  1st Prize                      Dusk on the Road to Tai’an                                     Alyza Lee Salomon  2nd Prize                     Prelude in C Major                                                  Deborah Schmidt  3rd Prize                     Under the Moon                                                       Louise Kantro  1st HM                        Journey Homeward                                                  Anita Erola  2nd HM                       Returning to the Ruins: a contrapuntal poem          David Anderson  3rd HM                        Bucket List                                                               Katharine Wilson  4th HM                        Migrations of the Monarch                                       William Landis  5th HM                        Shacking up at Sixty-Six                                          Sandra Anfang  C. Love: Barbara Crooker  1st Prize                     Seven am                                                                 Diane Moomey  2nd Prize                   Haibun for Joanna                                                    Georgette Howington  3rd Prize                    Lowpensky Lumber                                                  Judy Bebelaar  1st HM                       So, she said                                                              LaDonna Fehlberg  2nd HM                      Long Distance                                                           Cynthia Patton  3rd HM                       old saloon doors                                                        C.D. Giovacchini  4th HM                       The strings and the Bow                                            David Anderson  5th HM                       Straight Girls                                                             Jabez W. Churchill  D. Humor: Barbara Crooker  1st Prize                     Robert Bunsen                                                           Bill Latimer  2nd Prize                   Seven Deadly Gifts from an Unknow Suitor               Cleo Griffith  3rd Prize                    Not Trees                                                                    Selma Calnan  1st HM                       Learning to Box at Seventy                                        Judith Chibante Neal  2nd HM                      Head (Not Ted) Turner                                               Jan K. Dederick  3rd HM                       English: The Magpie Language                                 Evie Groch  4th HM                       Elder Couple at Bedtime                                            Claire Baker  5th HM                       Word Play                                                                  Jan Hersh  E. Nature: Laura Boss  1st Prize                    The Dark Voicelessness in which the words are the deed      Susan Harvey  2nd Prize                   Cellar                                                                          C O McCauley  3rd Prize                    Fallen Leaf Lake                                                         Judy Bebelaar  1st HM                       Gift                                                                              Robert Eastwood  2nd HM                      Avian Angles                                                              Sherry Sheehan  3rd HM                       Night of Thick Clouds                                                 Aline Soules  4th HM                       Blood Moon                                                                Lynn M. Hansen  5th HM                       Abrupt Change                                                           Norma M. Kohut  F. People: Laura Boss  1st Prize                     Exposure                                                                    Sandra Anfang  2nd Prize                    Internment                                                                  Eileen Malone  3rd Prize                     The Martial Artist as Cancer Patient                          Dan O’Connell  1st HM                        Sawmill Willy                                                              C O McCauley  2nd HM                       Tribute to Neva                                                          Nancy Haskett  3rd HM                        Nevertheless, she persisted                                      Barbara Saunders  4th HM                        SHE WAS QUOTABLE                                              Sherry Sheehan  5th HM                        Love is Love, Even if it Doesn’t Take                         Louise Kantro  G. Fake (Theme): Bill Reyer  1st Prize                     Villanelle on the T Word                                              Marie Rosales  2nd Prize                    My Mother’s Violets                                                    Torre Houlgate-West  3rd Prize                     Metaphor                                                                    Robert Eastwood  1st HM                        The Holocaust                                                            Claire Baker  2nd HM                       Pay it backward                                                          C O McCauley  3rd HM                        25 Lines or Less – in Your Spam Filter                       Tanya Joyce  4th HM                        Fake News                                                                  Sandra Anfang  5th HM                        Dance of Deception                                                     Evie Groch  H. Poet’s Choice: Bill Reyer  1st Prize                      Ode to Broken Things                                                  Judy Bebelaar  2nd Prize                     Color in the ‘40s                                                           C O McCauley  3rd Prize                      Plums                                                                           Johanna Ely  1st HM                         Not the One You Married                                              Katy Brown  2nd HM                        Flashbacks in a Bottle                                                  Ellaraine Lockie  3rd HM                         On the Death of My Right Ear                                      Judith Chibante Neal  4th HM                          History’s Muse                                                             Alyza Lee Salomon  5th HM                          Little Black Dress                                                         Sandra Anfang 2022 Poets Dinner Contest Winners GRAND PRIZE: First Yoga Teacher Gwyan O’Gara Sebastopol BEGINNINGS & ENDINGS: First: False Spring Dorty Nowak Berkeley Second: Birth-Year Words Robert Eastwood San Ramon Third: Bluebells Claire J. Baker Pinole 1 HM: Hitchhiker Louise Moises Richmond 2 HM: We Read their Names Kimberly Satterfield Emeryville 3 HM: Where Are We Gail Wasserman Benicia HUMOR: First: Wabi Sabi Cathy Crystal Oakland Second: Cooking Up A Stew Dorty Nowak Berkeley Third: Watching the Yankees with Uncle Richard Mary Eichbauer Benicia 1 HM: The MRI Sonnet Dorothy Gilbert Richmond 2 HM: Le mot juste Deborah Bachels Schmidt El Sobrante 3 HM: A Bird in Paradise Jan Hersh Danville LOVE: First: Whale-of-a-Heart Johanna Ely Benicia Second: Token of Love Sandra Simmer Richmond Third: Love in the Time of Covid, a villanelle Sandra Anfang Petaluma 1 HM: Cocoon Aline Soules Danville 2 HM: Scent of Loss Judith Chibante Fresno 3 HM: A Grandmother’s Blessing Gail Entrekin Orinda NATURE: First: The Calligraphy of Winter Johanna Ely Benicia Second: That Summer off Quartz Creek Road Marty Williams Oakland Third: Atmospheric River Valerie Sopher El Cerrito 1 HM: The New Moon in the Old Moon’s Arms Claire J. Baker Pinole 2 HM: The Valley Aline Soules Danville 3 HM: Silk Moth Deborah Bachels Schmidt El Sobrante PEOPLE: First: An Ode to H2O Ellaraine Lockie Sunnyvale Second: Estrangement Connie Post Livermore Third: She Remembers Suzanne Bruce Fairfield 1 HM: Three Chords and the Truth Charlie McCauley Martinez 2 HM: Changing Course Kathleen McClung San Francisco 3 HM: Waiting Aline Soules Danville POET’S CHOICE: First: Rue St. Honore in the Afternoon... Mary Eichbauer Benicia Second: Probationes Penna (Pen Trials) Deborah Bachels Schmidt El Sobrante Third: Geronimo Haikus Jim Cardwell Oroville 1 HM: Wizard of Oz Abecedarian Kathleen McClung San Francisco 2 HM: Ultimatum Claire J. Baker Pinole 3 HM: Uppity Woman Becky Bishop White Benicia SPACES & PLACES: First: New York, March 2020 Dorty Nowak Berkeley Second: Shugacity Kathleen Herrmann Vallejo Third: Thumbing Around Charlie McCauley Martinez 1 HM: To the Jazz Combo Setting Up... Kathleen McClung San Francisco 2 HM: Smoky Hollow Greg DeHart Oakland 3 HM: I Am Wandering Sam Hersh Danville THEME – DISCOVERY: First: For Susan Charan Sue Wollard Livermore Second: Digging Laura Schulkind Berkeley Third: The Apsara Cathy Crystal Oakland 1 HM: Solstice Shivers Evie Groch El Cerrito 2 HM: California January Louise Moises Richmond 3 HM: What the Bee Discovers Johanna Ely Benicia 2022 102nd ICC Contest Winners Poems About California 5 HM- Yellow-Billed Magpies, Central Valley Gold: Cleo Griffith 4 HM- Happy Isles, Yosemite National Park: Arlene Downing-Yaconelli 3 HM- California in Early May: Johanna Ely 2 HM- Our Creek: Eileen Malone 1 HM- California Dreamin’, August 1955: Lynn M. Hansen 3 Place- Climbing Half Done: Claire J. Baker 2 Place- Next Stop West Oakland: Jan Dederick 1 Place- Way they saved/Trail of Tears: Sandra Anfang Nature 5 HM- Heat Wave: Valeri Sopher 4 HM- My Gardening Gloves: Ron Kemper (non member) 3 HM- Copperhead: Robert Eastwood 2 HM- Catching a Monarch: Mary Eichbauer 1 HM- Unquenchable: Deborah Silverman 3 Place- Wild: Deborah Schmidt 2 Place- Above/Below: John Rowe 1 Place- Aubade With Skunk: Kathleen McClung Love 5 HM- Mojave: Louise Moises 4 HM- More Than Usual: Gail Onion 3 HM- Under Wraps: Jan Hersh 2 HM- After My Husband Returns Home With a Clean Bill of Health: Robin Michel 1 HM- Cleaning Out the Dishwasher: Ed Bearden 3 Place- Frida: Sam Hersh 2 Place- Voice in Past Perfect Tense: Ellaraine Lockie 1 Place- Field Guides: Johanna Ely Poet’s Choice 5 HM- Let Go the Words: Tanya Joyce 4 HM- Not Fair: Becky Bishop White 3 HM- Secret of Life: Gregory DeHart 2 HM- Before I Became a Willow: Ellaraine Lockie 1 HM- Walking Alone: Connie Post 3 Place- Slicing the Papaya: Sandra Anfang 2 Place- And the Moon Rose: Louise Kantro 1 Place- Extras   for Jim: Mary Eichbauer People 5 HM- Surrender at Bear Paw, Montana- October 5, 1877: Lynn M. Hansen 4 HM- My Brother used to Sleepwalk: Connie Post 3 HM- They called him, ‘The Loneliest Man in the World’: Georgette Howington 2 HM- Life Above the Shop- Deborah Grossman 1 HM- Photo Finish: Sandra Anfang 3 Place- A Well-Kept Garden: Arlene Downing-Yaconelli 2 Place- Hidden Voices: Robert Eastwood 1 Place- The Theif of Pompeii (Pompeii, Italy, 79 CE): Mary Lindberg Journeys 5 HM- The River Styx: Tanya Joyce 4 HM- Going to Greece  for Barbara Lyon: Robin Michel 3 HM- In Tana Toraja   Tongkonen Village, Island of Sulawesi, Indonesia: Deborah Silverman 2 HM- Early Morning Journey: Nancy Haskett 1 HM- The Yellow Leaf: Ed Bearden 3 Place- Moccasins Behind Glass: Deborah Schmidt 2 Place- Watching “Titanic” on Retreat at Tomales Bay: Kathleen McClung 1 Place- Vus Ride to Blue Creek Preserve, Belize, A Villanelle: Lynn M. Hansen Humor 5 HM- Typology: Neal Whitman 4 HM- Personal Alarm: Cleo Griffith 3 HM- I’ve been Vacuuming Rocks in the Backyard for Over Three Hours: Nancy Haskett 2 HM- Sugar-rage: Nancy Tolin 1 HM- Stylometry: Evie Groch 3 Place- Catellan’s Banana, Comedian: David Anderson 2 Place- A Bird in Paradise: Jan Hersh 1 Place- Politics: Robert Eastwood Theme: Poisoned Pleasures 5 HM- Italian Food: Connie Post 4 HM- The Son-In-Law: Robin Michel 3 HM- Semper Fi: Kay Renz 2 HM- Smoky Hollow: Gregory DeHart 1 HM- Morning Song: Robert Eastwood 3 Place- Some Kind of Monster: Daniel Williams 2 Place- This Dry Raisin My Heart: Mary Eichbauer 1 Place- To the Dial Painter    Waterbury Clock Company, Connecticut, 1923: Deborah Schmidt Grand Prize Poem Watching “Titanic” on Retreat at Tomales Bay: Kathleen McClung       2023 Poets' Dinner Contest Winners Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     To the Handsome Young Firemen Chopping It Up on the Sidewalk Outside the Cafe Kathleen McClung San Francisco   CATEGORY:  BEGINNINGS & ENDINGS (24 Entries) Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     Labor Sandra Anfang Petaluma Second Place     Easter Sunday/Passover Karen Marker Oakland Third Place     First Notes of Debussy’s Prelude to “Afternoon of a Faun” Robert Eastwood San Ramon First HM     “Thelma and Louise” Alternate Ending Kathleen McClung San Francisco Second HM     Noncompliance Eileen Malone Daly City Third HM     Evening Descends Connie Post Livermore    CATEGORY:  HUMOROUS (16 Entries) Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     To the Handsome Young Firemen Chopping It Up on the Sidewalk Outside the Cafe Kathleen McClung San Francisco Second Place     The Lounger Anita Erola Novato Third Place     Fine-toothed Comb Robert Eastwood San Ramon First HM     55 on 101 Jackie Pels Walnut Creek Second HM     Blank Pages Jim Cardwell Oroville Third HM     Puns & Needles Evie Groch El Cerrito   CATEGORY:  NATURE (20 Entries) Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     Core Samples Sandra Anfang Petaluma Second Place     Icelandic Winter Dorothy Gilbert Richmond Third Place     Close Encounters Kathleen Herrmann Vallejo First HM     Return to California Hills Claire J. Baker Pinole Second HM     Red Fox Karen Marker Oakland Third HM     The One-Step Road to Recovery Ellaraine Lockie Sunnyvale   CATEGORY:  PEOPLE (20 Entries) Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     The Queen of Sweden Jackie Pels Walnut Creek Second Place     Winter Train Ride Aline Soules Danville Third Place     Last Call Charlie McCauley Martinez First HM     Last Farmer’s Market Suzanne Bruce Fairfield Second HM     Settling for a Title Evie Groch El Cerrito Third HM     Ex Communication Connie Post Livermore    CATEGORY:  SPACES & PLACES (21 Entries) Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     Coming to Iceland Dorothy Gilbert Richmond Second Place     Apogee of Turning Twenty Alyza Lee Salomon Hercules Third Place     Ode to the Blue City Karen Marker Oakland First HM     What the Cave Taught Me Eileen Malone Daly City Second HM     Anamnesis Sandra Anfang Petaluma Third HM     Geared Up for Good Flying Deborah Grossman Pleasanton   CATEGORY:  LOVE (8 Entries) Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     To the Eucalyptus Tree Johanna Ely Benicia Second Place     “Yes” Deborah Bachels Schmidt El Sobrante Third Place     Keep Out Sandra Simmer Richmond First HM     Together at Sunrise Kathleen Herrmann Vallejo Second HM     Catch Nancy Tolin Benicia Third HM     How Am I to Know Gail Wasserman Benicia   CATEGORY:  THEME—WATER (22 Entries) Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     Wind & Water Ellen Romano Hayward Second Place     At Rodeo Beach Deborah Bachels Schmidt El Sobrante Third Place     Wetlands & Dry Seas Deborah Grossman Pleasanton First HM     Adrift Charlie McCauley Martinez Second HM     The Unseen Suzanne Bruce Fairfield Third HM     The Oarsman Louise Moises Richmond   CATEGORY: POET’S CHOICE (21 Entries) Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     The Piper’s Farewell Deborah Bachels Schmidt El Sobrante Second Place     Viewing Picasso’s Guernica Claire J. Baker Pinole Third Place     Before I Became a Widow Ellaraine Lockie Sunnyvale First HM     In the Kitchen Alyza Lee Salomon Hercules Second HM     Wind River Villanelle Kathleen McClung San Francisco Third HM     Hand to Hand Combat Connie Post Livermore   2023 ICC Contest Winners GRAND PRIZE POEM:     Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     Sleeping Towards Apocalypse Ed Bearden Modesto   CATEGORY:  Journeys Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     Sleeping Towards Apocalypse Ed Bearden Modesto Second Place     Brittle Willow Corey Weinstein San Fransisco Third Place     A Night at the Rest Stop Louise Moises Richmond First HM     Glaciers Ellen Romano Hayward Second HM     Dream  Aline Soules Danville Third HM     Journey Nancy Haskett Modesto Fourth HM     Relieved Of Freight Eileen Malone Broadmoor Village Fifth HM     Pataphysics Mary Eichbauer Benicia CATEGORY:  California Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     Holy Ellen Romano Hayward Second Place     The Day the Forest Died Roberta Bearden Modesto Third Place     Variations on a Fallen Sequoia  Dan Williams Wawona First HM     Monarchs Jabez Churchill Ukiah Second HM     Summer Solstice 2023 Georgette Howington Walnut Creek Third HM     San Francisco Ocean Beach  Eileen Malone Broadmoor Village Fourth HM     Summer Solstice in the Sierra Mountains Karen Marker Oakland Fifth HM     Living in the Light Ellaraine Lockie Sunnyvale CATEGORY:  Love Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     At the Open Window Aline Soules Danville Second Place     Where Did He Go? Georgette Howington Walnut Creek Third Place     Petals Mary Eichbauer Benicia First HM     The Spot Against the Wall Gail Wasserman Benicia Second HM     Love After All Corey Weinstein San Francisco Third HM     What I Don’t Want You to Know Kay Renz Santa Rosa Fourth HM     Pomegranate Diane Lee Moomey Half Moon Bay Fifth HM     Hymn Sharon Pretti San Francisco   CATEGORY:  Humor Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     3 a.m. Carole Dwinell Briones Second Place     Wayne-the-Brain Gary Turchin Berkeley Third Place     ESL is Not Easy Neil Whitman Pacific Grove First HM     The Impish Car Keys Katrina Monroe Benicia Second HM     What You May Have Missed When You Ditched My Spanish Class Evie Groch El Cerrito Third HM     A Frank Autopsy David Anderson Lincoln Fourth HM     Nothing is Available John Rowe El Cerrito Fifth HM     Leaving Hopkins Street Nursery Valerie Sopher El Cerrito   CATEGORY:  Nature Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     The Cellist and the Nightingale Deborah Bachels Schmidt El Sobrante Second Place     We Used to Have Meadows Christine Horner Lafayette Third Place     Coming and Going John Rowe El Cerrito First HM     Come, I’ll Show You Miriam Aroner El Cerrito Second HM     Midnight Sun Country Anita Erola Novato Third HM     Petrichor Jim Milstead El Sobrante Fourth HM     The One-Step Road to Recovery Ellaraine Lockie Sunnyvale Fifth HM     What is Wild Katrina Monroe Benicia   CATEGORY:  People Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     Man of the Hole Deborah Silverman Crockett Second Place     Kin Sharon Pretti San Francisco Third Place     The Lilac Bush Roberta Bearden Modesto First HM     Portrait of Edweard Muybridge Dan Williams Wawona Second HM     Pay it Backward Charles McCauley Martinez Third HM     The Backyard Boatman John Rowe El Cerrito Fourth HM     Wildflowers Sandy King Lafayette Fifth HM     After Your Chemo Treatments Katrina Monroe Benicia   CATEGORY:  Childhood Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     Upon First Realizing I Was Poor Dan Williams Wawona Second Place     Fireflies Louise Moises Richmond Third Place     Miracle at Silver Spur Christian Camp Lynn Hansen Modesto First HM     Gus Ellen Romano Hayward Second HM     Keepsake Memories Jane Russell Pittsburg, Ca. Third HM     A Jar of Clouds Nancy Tolin Benicia Fourth HM     Cutting the Apron Strings Becky Bishop White Benicia Fifth HM     Holy Communion Connie Post Livermore   CATEGORY:  Poet’s Choice Place Title Poet’s Name Poet’s City First Place     Mid-Hudson Bridge Dorothy Gilbert Richmond Second Place     This is What We Do Louise Kantro Modesto Third Place     Last Night Sandy King Lafayette First HM     Resonant Ellen Romano Hayward Second HM     John Ashbery's Memory Palace Mary Eichbauer Benicia Third HM     Caught in the Web Ellaraine Lockie Sunnyvale Fourth HM     Holding On Tom Myers Modesto Fifth HM     Above the Burial Cave Sherry Sheehan Crockett   WINNERS LIST 97TH POETS’ DINNER JUNE 8, 2024 CATEGORY PLACE TITLE NAME Nature G Prize Hermit Thrush Deborah Bachels Schmidt         Beginnings & Endings 1st I've Never Been to Your Gravesite Connie Post   2nd Saving Sweet Peas Georgette Howington   3rd A Day of Holes Jill Stockinger   HM1 What I Wish For Him Robert Eastwood   HM2 Skid J. Michael Parish   HM3 Opening Night Janet Popesco Archibald         Humor 1st Only in Florida Patricia Doyne   2nd My New Business John Rowe   3rd Makin' Whoopee Janet Posesco Archibald   HM1 Looks Like Twins Nancy Tolin   HM2 The Flea Dorty Nowak   HM3 Chicken Soup for Fanny Claire J. Baker Love 1st The Long Yellow Afternoon Nedra Crowe Evers   2nd A Response to Wild Geese Karen Marker   3rd Nayarit Surprise Jan Hersh   HM1 Naked Ellen Romano   HM2 Snake Farm J. Livingston   HM3 Inky Through The Mirror Kathleen McClung         Nature 1st Nocturne Patricia Doyne   2nd Our Mother in January Karen Marker   3rd March 1st Concert Sandra Simmer   HM1 Amber Afternoon Dorty Nowak   HM2 Crows in Early Winter Johanna Ely   HM3 Wake Up Silly Bud Deborah Grossman         People 1st Tony Unhoused Karen Marker   2nd Flowers for Navalny Deborah Bachels Schmidt   3rd Student Matinee Janet Posesco Archibald   HM1 Not Chinese Enough Eileen Malone   HM2 Innocence Suzanne Bruce   HM3 Hogs Aline Soules         Poet's Choice 1st Entomology Lesson Connie Post   2nd Secret Ballot Jim Cardwell   3rd An Unknowing Search John Rowe   HM1 Riverline Nedra Crowe Evers   HM2 Visiting Mike in Santa Maria Kathleen McClung   HM3 The Old Desk Becky Bishop White Spaces & Places 1st Roquette Mary Eichbauer   2nd After the A's Announced Their Move to Las Vegas Ellen Romano   3rd Mission San Carlos de Borromeo Nedra Crowe Evers   HM1 Coming Home From the Grand Canyon Aline Soules   HM2 Here On This Hill Dorty Nowak   HM3 Sonnet On a Hill Katrina Monroe         Theme:  Sugar & Salt 1st Hunger Dorty Nowak   2nd Talking to the Moon Jill Stockinger   3rd Salt Cellar Aline Soules   HM1 Offerings Ellen Romano   HM2 A Poem for Georgette Johanna Ely   HM3 Minestrone Mary Eichbauer