 
The students at Loma Vista Middle School were treated to some of his work at no charge and all for their benefit when he held a poetry reading promoting positive values in an assembly last week.
With gangs, graffiti and violence getting so much attention in society today, McGowan said he wants children to realize they don't have to be a product of their surroundings.
He sees this as an opportunity to give back to the community.
"If you go through life with a chip on your shoulder, it's going to be a rough life," McGowan said.
McGowan started doing the readings at Rosemary Kennedy Elementary School in Riverside six years ago.
Now that his son is at Loma Vista, and after a discussion with Assistant Principal Elizabeth Bartholomew, he has decided to continue trying to reach out to the youth in the community.
"After the first one I was hooked. I had a first-grader come up and hug me out of the blue (after the reading)," McGowan said.
Bartholomew said the school prescreened the poetry to see how well it would fit with the values the school wants to promote and was pleased with what he had written.
"I'm amazed at how well the kids are behaving," said Bartholomew, after the first assembly.
"They're really engaged."
McGowan started writing at the age of 13 and hasn't stopped; he created a small pamphlet with 18 poems for the students at Loma Vista.
"Unfortunately, I feel a lot of kids are missing out on this," McGowan said. "I think there's a lot of untapped talent out there."
Reach Patrick O'Neil at 951-893-2101 or poneil@PE.com |
