The St. Louis creative community grieved collected with the passing of Michael Castro, the city’s first Poet Laureate. He passed away on December 23 after a battle with colon cancer at the age of 73.
This weekend, Castro’s family will host a public memorial, celebrating his life and legacy with life reflections, poetry and music. The event will take place at 3 p.m. on Sunday, January 20 at Central Reform Congregation.
“I’m deeply saddened that he passed away, but we celebrate the life that was,” said poet and educator MK Stallings.
Castro spent nearly five decades as a prominent member of the St. Louis literary scene – almost as soon after he arrived in St. Louis from New York City to attend graduate school at Washington University.
He received his undergraduate degree in English literature from the State University of New York at Buffalo and his doctorate in American literature with a focus on Native American mythology and culture from Washington University in St. Louis.
He was one of the founding poets of River Styx literary journal and poetry reading series at Duff’s, which grew out a series of jam sessions featuring poets and musicians in the early 1970s.
Castro started and hosted several poetry programs for radio station KDHX.
He authored more than one dozen books of his own poetry and co-translated volumes of contemporary Hungarian poetry. His 2018 collection, “We Need to Talk,” contained work spanning five decades of writing.
In addition to his work as a poet and translator, he was a beloved professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis and Lindenwood University.
“He’s always been present, he’s always been supportive. He’s always made space for younger poets,” Stallings said.
Castro also served as the city’s inaugural Poet Laureate from 2014-2017.
One of his last public appearances was at City Hall for the installation of his successor, longtime friend Shirley Bradley LeFlore.
“He was always with the poets,” Stallings said. “And he was also recognized by his peers as being a word warrior within the city of St. Louis.”
The public memorial for Michael Castro will take place from 3 p.m.-7 p.m. at Central Reform Congregation, , 5020 Waterman Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63108.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to any of the following non-profits to which Castro was involved:
- 7th Grade Poetry Foundation – 7GP.org/donate
- Urb Arts – urbarts.org; mail: 2600 N. 14th Street, St. Louis, 63016
- Gitana Productions – gitana-inc.org; mail: P.O. Box 300322, St. Louis, MO 63130
Please note “Dr. Michael Castro” in donations. For more information about the celebration, visit the Facebook event link at: https://www.facebook.com/events/789373888072773/?ti=icl.
