Cowboy poet to speak at Langdon Center

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 28, 2009

GRANBURY, TEXAS—Talking with John Pelham, author and poet of “I’ll Always be a Cowboy,” is a lot like chatting with an old friend or someone you’ve known all your life.

His books of cowboy and country poetry give you an insight into his life, his likes and the cowboy way.

Tarleton State University’s Dora Lee Langdon Cultural and Education Center will host “An Evening with Country and Cowboy Poet John Pelham” at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 12 in the Concert Hall. He will be reading his newest book, “Clotheslines, Front Porches and Barbed Wire Fences.”

Pelham, who attended Tarleton State University, Texas A&M University and Mississippi State University, currently serves as president of the Tarleton Alumni Association.

His program, which is sponsored by Tarleton Alumni Relations and the Langdon Center Partners for Enrichment Society, will be a presentation of his book, but also his identity, which he says he isn’t a real cowboy, but always dreamed of being one.

His career as a university extension educator led him to work with farming and ranching families in Texas and Missouri and his later education in rural sociology solidified his cowboy and country roots.

He began writing poetry in 2001, with “When Momma and Daddy Sold the Farm” and has been writing ever since. He is sometimes able to write an entire poem in 30 minutes and likes to vary the rhythm and style of his compositions. His wife, Rita, nurtures and encourages his pastime. They reside in Granbury.

The event is free and open to the public, and books will be available for purchase. For more information, call (817) 279-1164, e-mail langdoncenter@sbcglobal.net or visit www.tarleton.edu/langdoncenter.

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