René Parks - A View from The Abbey
Sun, Sep 20
|Ottawa Center: The Abbey
Join us for a conversation with Ottawa's Poet Laureate, René Parks Wendinger. Doors open at 1:30 PM $10 suggested donation at the door
Time & Location
Sep 20, 2026, 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM CDT
Ottawa Center: The Abbey, 113 E Lafayette St, Ottawa, IL 61350, USA
About the event
René Parks Wendinger has an A.A.S. in Accounting from Kankakee Community College, a B.A. and M.A. in English from Governors State University, and an M.F.A. in Poetry from Lindenwood University. She has presented her academic work to the Midwest Modern Language Association and Sigma Tau Delta International English Honors Society. Her scholarship, creative writing, and art focus on themes central to ecofeminism, healing with nature, and folk stories.
René has worked in education for more than ten years and is currently teaching English and Creative Writing at Streator High School. She started Kankakee Tea Company in 2022, selling loose tea and engaging the public in discussion about the physical and mental health benefits of a daily tea practice. She is the vice president of the Ottawa Art League and a certified yoga teacher and mindfulness coach. She lives with her canine soul twin, Althea, as her constant and best companion.