The poetic prowess of a 16-year-old Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Upward Bound student has captured the attention and praise of renowned wordsmith and lyrical master Dr. Eugene B. Redmond.
Desmond Porter, a junior at the SIUE East St. Louis Charter High School (CHS), didn’t discover his love for verses and rhyme until entering high school.
“My parents always stressed the importance of school and making education a priority,” said Porter of his parents, Lance and Kim Porter. “I have always made efforts to study hard and learn as best I can.”
The CHS and Upward Bound BEM student didn’t have a favorite subject through middle school. However, Porter said he was introduced to a myriad of subjects in high school, and one in particular piqued his interest – poetry.
Porter then began taking in a ferocious diet of poetry. “I fell in love with poetry from the onset and engrossed myself in reading and writing it.”
The junior won a high school-wide poetry contest in his freshman year for his poem, “Freedom.” The contest was sponsored by the Eugene B. Redmond 75th Birthday Celebration Committee. The first-place winner of the high school contest received accolades from Redmond, SIUE emeritus professor in the Department of English Language and Literature and co-founder and namesake of the Eugene B. Redmond (EBR) Writers Club.
“He was a very focused and serious young man,” Redmond said. “I am very proud of him.”
Porter also got to read his winning poem at the East St. Louis Poet Laureate’s birthday celebration and his original work was published in the East St. Louis Monitor.
“Dr. Redmond also extended an invitation for me to join his roundtable poetry group,” the CHS student added.
Porter is also a member of several CHS clubs including The Year Book Club, student council, GRIT, STEM Club, Robotics Club and The East St. Louis Project, which seeks to preserve the city’s history through photography and written documentation.
He also is a high achiever in the Upward Bound BEM (Brooklyn, East St. Louis Charter and Madison) Program. One of the program’s primary goals is to expose students to different environments and educational prospects. Porter has visited many colleges and universities with the program and has broadened his educational reach.
“The Upward Bound Program has helped drive my interest of all sorts of education,” Porter said. “I really enjoy the program and look forward to the benefits it brings to me.”
Porter’s mother added that she is proud of the road her son is taking. “It is Desmond’s passion through his love of poetry that he touches the lives of people,” said Kim Porter. “His desire is to plant a seed that will spring up and bring hope to those in need.”
Freedom
Who’s offering freedom for the enslaved kid?
Who’s offering freedom for me, the mentally enslaved with no chains that hold, but sins try to control me?
Who has the key?
The key of freedom?
The key of peace?
The key that I see in my sleep while dreaming of being free?
Free me from my shackles and unleash my neck from the choke holds of sin, for I may breath. For I am mentally bound, and I need my key.
My key of freedom.
My key of peace.
The key I see in my sleep while dreaming of being free.
Photos: Above, Desmond Porter (right) is pictured with Dr. Eugene B. Redmond