Long ago and far away Dougie Padilla was a young poet. He wrote constantly. Then came the Viet Nam war, protests, San Francisco, psychedelics and communes.

Heart failure came… and ashrams and organic farming. Later, there were kids and houses and marriage and businesses and a long career in the art world. Eventually, after he moved his studio to rural Wisconsin, poetry returned quick and sure, wave after wave of poems. Join Dougie for a performance of selections from his sixth book, 40 feet down.

Valley Reads in the St. Croix Valley is presented by ArtReach St. Croix
in conjunction with core program partners including Valley Bookseller
and public libraries located between St. Croix Falls, WI and Hastings, MN.
Valley Reads 2024 is supported by Hugh J. Andersen Foundation.