WILMOT, N.H. – In memory of Donald Hall, who died on June 23, the Wilmot Historical Society (WHS) is offering a limited number of DVD recordings of the poet reading his poems and recalling life on Eagle Pond Farm in Wilmot. One of Wilmot’s most famous residents, Hall was a former English professor and served in 2006 as Poet Laureate for the United States.
In the DVD, Hall shares an afternoon of poetry and personal recollections on a Sunday afternoon, May 8, 2011, in front of an appreciative gathering of fans, friends, and neighbors. The WHS feels fortunate to have hosted and recorded the event at that time with the cooperation of the 1st Congregational Church of Wilmot, UCC and the Andover Beacon staff.
Just as in “A Life Together,” the award-winning Bill Moyers’ interview of Donald Hall and Jane Kenyon made in 1993, this recording captures Hall’s well-known sense of humor, joie de vivre and candidness.
The cover photo, taken by professional photographer Leslie Tuttle of Wilmot, NH, and Jamaica Plains, MA, pictures Hall in front of the South Danbury Christian Church where he and his wife Jane attend services for many years.
U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen, in cooperation with the White House, provided the disc label photograph of Hall receiving the 2010 National Medal of Arts award from President Obama in March of 2011.
The DVD package was designed and produced by R.C. Bradshaw & Co. Inc. of West Lebanon,  and includes excerpts from an obituary written by Hall’s friend and editor emeritus of the Concord Monitor, Mike Pride. “We are pleased to offer this recording to the public,” said Elizabeth Kirby, WHS president. “Many people worked to make this project a success, and we appreciate Mr. Hall’s earlier permission to produce a limited number of copies. Proceeds from the sale of the DVD will benefit the Wilmot Historical Society’s ongoing work to preserve Wilmot’s history.”
The $20 DVD is available from the Wilmot Public Library and the Wilmot Historical Society, Morgan Hill Bookstore in New London, and online at www.morganhillbookstore.com.
More information is available from Lindy Heim at 526-6376 or by email at lindy@nullheimfamily.org.