Catherine Lewis, President
catherine_lewis@vancouverpoetryhouse.com
Born in Hong Kong and raised in Canada, Catherine Lewis (she/her) is a Chinese Canadian writer based on the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh peoples, colonially known as Vancouver. Her debut poetry chapbook Zipless (845 Press) is a finalist for two Bisexual Book Awards. Her work has been longlisted for the CBC Poetry Prize, and published in PRISM international, The Fiddlehead, The Humber Literary Review, Pulp Literature, and Plenitude Magazine. She has performed at the Verses Festival of Words, the Poets Corner Reading Series, and Word Vancouver.
A graduate of SFU’s Writer’s Studio Certificate program, she is a two-time Banff Centre Literary Arts alumna and a Tin House Winter Online Workshop alumna. Catherine holds a UBC Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Information Technology, and has worked as a software developer for over two decades.
She looks forward to serving her Vancouver Poetry House community.
Mohini Takhar, Vice President
mohini_takhar@vancouverpoetryhouse.com
Mohini Takhar (she/her) is a disabled writer and multi-disciplinary artist based in Vancouver, BC. She is the author of the poetry chapbook Pieces of Me. She has performed spoken word at festivals and competitions such as the Verses Festival of Words, Canadian Individual Poetry Slam, Word Vancouver, and Voices of Today. Her work has been exhibited at the Roundhouse Community Centre and published in pulp MAG, The Mighty, Sweet Fist, Goat’s Milk Magazine, and Pearls 40: An Anthology Of Work By Douglas College Creative Writing Students.
She holds an Associate of Arts degree with a specialization in Creative Writing from Douglas College. Now, she is pursuing her Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. She is currently working on her full-length poetry collection.
Takhar looks forward to giving back to the Vancouver Poetry House community.
Amanda Eagleson, Treasurer
amanda_eagleson@vancouverpoetryhouse.com
She/Her Pronouns
Amanda Eagleson grew up in Dubuque, Iowa (with brief stints in San Diego, California and Arnhem, Netherlands). she currently lives, works, and writes on the unceded territories of the Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh, and Musqueam people (Vancouver, B.C.).
Her favourite things in nature are the smell of the earth right before a thunderstorm, lightning bugs (or fireflies if you must), hedgehogs, and octopuses.
It was the inspiration and support of individual poets, organisers, and volunteers within Vancouver’s slam community that kept her writing, reading, publishing, and sometimes breathing.
She hopes to contribute to the community that gave her this gift.