Aikin Home » Chaney Journal » Regional Writers

Regional Writers

“What’s in a name?”  As Daisy Harvill, PJC Archivist, questioned in her recent blog entry, our attention is typically caught in the presenting of a name and from that, hopefully, will come a world of responses.  With the topic of “regional writers,” I thought I could not help but stir some interest with names like William A. Owens, William Humphrey, and possibly even Jim Ainsworth. 

I was personally acquainted with Owens and Humphrey and hope to become acquainted with Ainsworth, since he is still with us.  Good story- tellers seem to be what it is all about.  They get our attention and maintain a place of importance because of our interest in their work. 

How many titles can be associated with the authors I have mentioned?  Is the setting overly important to our sampling of their work?

How did some of us come into contact with particular writers or their works?  This is an open ended proposition, but many times it is by way of referral.  Maybe a teacher used a certain work as a part of class instruction, maybe a reading friend made recommendations about a certain writer, thus exposure to writers through a variety of influences.  We undoubtedly all have stories to relate as to how we became familiar with certain writers and their works. 

My exposure to William A. Owens came as a result of an interview with him as a possible National Endowment for the Humanities Grant recipient for study at Columbia University. 

In the early 1970s Dr. Owens had returned to the Paris area to renew his contact with the region, and he took the opportunity to visit with PJC President Louis Williams and others about the grant opportunities.  Dr. Owens always seemed to be interested in giving something back to the institution which had afforded him the opportunity to pursue higher education.  In his role as one of the Deans at Columbia he had some considerable influence with the selection of the grant pool. 

I must admit not having much exposure to the works of Dr. Owens at the time and was very limited in my view of him.  It didn’t take long for a closeness to develop, and it was a friendship to last until his death in 1990.  Many miles and memories were shared during the years of our knowing each other.  Many doors were opened to me with opportunities that were made available, which would not have been other than for the influence of Dr. Owens.  It is through this type of relationship, the personal as well as the world of words, that a telling impact is felt which compels one to reflect on the significance of such a sharing.

Reader comments

It is my impression some individuals are looking for the ‘blog’ area of this site but have not been able to find it.  A number of verbal comments have been made to me personally that they wish to submit in such a way.  Anyway, it has been a week now and no responses are available.  Maybe time will tell…  Hoping to hear from someone out there…