For only the second time in the 65-year history of the Utah State Poetry Society, a Southern Utah writer has received the distinction of being named “Utah Poet of the Year”. Candy Lish Fowler won the honor with her fifty-page manuscript entitled On a Road That Knows Me. It has been a year of noteworthy accomplishments for Fowler. She was awarded second place in the Utah Division of Arts and Museums’ Short Collection/Poetry-Writing Competition. In March, Fowler won all four categories of the national Redrock Chaparral Poetry Forum with independent judges from across the nation. She attended the University of Utah as a Presidential Scholar majoring in Dance with a minor in English. Fowler is a former Modern Dance Instructor who was the founder of Southwest Dance Theatre in St. George, where she wrote original dance plays and was an instructor at Dixie State College. She was a guest presenter at Dance And The Child International (DACI) at the world conference in Salt Lake City. Fowler was a performer in the studio of Virginia Tanner at the University of Utah where she later taught. She also served as a member of the Utah Arts Council. Fowler has won several writing awards in state and national competitions, including the prestigious UTSPS “$hoot for the Loot” three times and the “Wild Card” competition. Her work is featured in Utah Sings (vol. VIII and IX), Chaparral, Panorama, and the Deseret News. She is past president of Dixie Poets and a member of Redrock Writers Guild. Fowler was selected as the Performing Arts Director of the Year by the St. George Chamber of Commerce. She has judged poetry both locally and nationally. The 2015 UTSPS book category was adjudicated by Dr. January Gill O’Neil, Professor of English at Salem State University. O’Neil described Fowler’s book by stating: “there is no easy way into the truth; it is a personal, sometimes painful journey. But it is often marked with moments of light, both vibrant and dynamic. This allows us to walk along––through family, music, culture and travel. These poems are powerful in their passion and pain . . . such a pleasure to read.”

UTSPS will hold two book concerts for Candy Lish Fowler and her 2015 winning manuscript, On A Road That Knows Me. The first concert will be Saturday, October 10th, from 2-4 pm in the Orem Public Library, 58 N. State St., Orem, UT 84057-5508. The second will be held on Thursday, October 29th, starting at 7 pm at Dixie State University’s Eccles Fine Arts Concert Hall, 225 South 700 East, St. George, UT 84770.

Candy is married to Bill Fowler. They have four children and sixteen grandchildren.