St. Charles Writers Group 30th Anniversary
June was a whirlwind! I celebrated a fairly major birthday, attended my first Dave Matthews Band concert, and also celebrated the 30th anniversary of the St. Charles Writers Group on June 28, 2025. The celebration coincided with the group’s Annual Summer Reading. The library staff got us a cake, SCWG notebooks and pens for each attendee, and even had cute writer-themed raffle prizes. Two dozen members read or performed meaningful pieces. Below is the speech I gave, “My History with the St. Charles Writers Group.”
Hi, everyone. Thank you for coming to the St. Charles Writers Group Annual Summer Reading and 30th Anniversary Party! I am Lisa Macaione, the second-ever facilitator for the group, and coincidentally this happens to be my 200th writers group meeting!
If you read the St. Charles Writers Group’s page on the library website, you’ll get a brief history of how it came to be: “The group was founded in 1995 after the St. Charles Public Library sponsored an Illinois Arts Council’s Short Term Artists Residency (S.T.A.R.) in poetry, which was led by Rick Holinger. In 2017, Holinger retired from the Writers Group after 21 years. The group is facilitated by Lisa Macaione.”
That’s merely the outline. Since I wasn’t part of the group when it began, all I can do is tell my point of view. Therefore, I had ChatGPT write up a short history of my time with the St. Charles Writers Group. Just kidding!
Flashback to 1995. Approximately ten writers (according to this 20th Anniversary chapbook I have), started attending the St. Charles Writers Group. I was a sophomore in high school, writing poems in my school notebooks and soaking up my English classes. At that age I wouldn’t have been eligible for the group yet.
By the year 2000, five years later, I was a student at ECC studying for an Associate in Arts degree. I took every English and creative writing course I could, and I won my first poetry award. I remember seeing announcements for the group meetings in the Kane County Chronicle or maybe the St. Charles Republican—anyone remember that one? I was curious about the group but too intimidated to join.
I went on to get my Bachelor’s in English, then my Master’s. After graduation I ran into a former ECC professor, Pat Parks, who suggested I could teach college courses and then hired me. (Years later I’d discover that Pat is good friends with Rick!) I became a college English instructor, married, had kids, and for a time lived in Yorkville, Illinois, where I started a creative writing group at the public library in 2015. I missed being creative; I missed the camaraderie of a writing workshop.
Then came the plot twist–on October 11, 2016, Denise Blaszynski from the library contacted me about an open writing group facilitator role that I could apply for. It was in my hometown—I knew that group! They had a great reputation! It felt like kismet, especially since my husband and I had decided to move our family back here to settle permanently. I wrote a wordy cover letter (Me? No!), sent that over with my curriculum vitae, and waited.
Pam Salomone contacted me for an interview to take place on January 7, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. I was told I would facilitate a mini- group manuscript critique. I was sooo nervous! I walked into the old Huntley Room, the one downstairs which was low-ceilinged and sepia-toned like an old photograph. Or is that my memory of it?
I had to critique pieces from Virginia—always delightful! But then they made me critique Rick’s work, can you imagine how intimidating that was?! Somehow, I survived, and I remember how sharp the group was, how interesting and warm. It was fun! In the end, I must have flattered Rick well enough, because I signed the contract on February 3, 2017!
My first meeting was on February 11. Rick was there to help with the transition. He said many poignant words, and emotions ran high. He also welcomed me so kindly, gifting me this red “cowgirl” hat for when I needed to lasso the members back into the paddock, a green pen (his signature color) for critiquing, and a martini glass for after meetings. That’s gotten a lot of mileage!
My first solo meeting was February 25. Rick provided me with a topic he had scheduled. Thirteen people attended, including Doug, Virginia, Treva, and Jamie. It was Gary’s first meeting, too! It means so much to me that you’re all still here.
The next meeting I got to prepare my own topic, “Mary Oliver on Imagery.” I started with my favorite poet to give me confidence. Since then, we’ve had topics on everything creative writing, from the micro like “Using Bad Adjectives and Adverbs Badly” to the macro such as “Intro to Poetry.” We’ve covered all the major genres, have had impressive guest speakers (mostly due to Bruce’s connections), and writing exercises that have gone on to inspire larger works.
On February 22, 2020, the group had its last meeting in that old sepia-toned Huntley Room in the basement. The library was getting remodeled, so it was arranged for us to meet at the St. Charles Police Station in the interim. Instead, COVID happened.
We lost ONE MEETING. I don’t give myself credit for this. A kind local man called Bill the Baker used to work in corporate America and was familiar with a little-known program called Zoom. He started offering free virtual baking classes to kids in the area while school was canceled, and my kids joined. It’s because of him I pitched the idea to hold the writers group over Zoom, and I believe we were the first library group to do so. We were back in action from our guest bedrooms, dining rooms, and basement offices on March 28, 2020. I cut the scheduled topic and announced we’d have an open forum simply to talk. We talked about how scared we were, how alone we felt. In the hours of our meetings, we were neither scared nor alone anymore. Some of us wrote a lot, some a little, but it wasn’t only about the writing. We needed the group more than ever.
We met regularly over Zoom for more than a year. Eventually, library got renovated and people could meet in public again. Our first meeting back together in person was July 24, 2021—four years ago, at our Summer Reading, just like this one! We wore masks that couldn’t cover up our tears of joy. We had made it, and boy, did we celebrate.
And here we are on the 30th Anniversary of the St. Charles Writers Group. I can’t adequately express how honored I am to be the facilitator. My experience has grown; the group has grown; I have published and accomplished goals, as have you, but more than anything, we’ve gotten to know and care for this cast of characters. We laugh, hug, cheer each other’s victories. We also roll our eyes occasionally and can be harsh about punctuation or dialogue tags, but it all comes from the heart. Each one of you wants the others in this group to succeed. I see how you catch up before the meetings, on break, go to lunch after. This has become more than a writers group. It’s community. It’s neighbors. It’s family.
For all the members who have stayed or we’ve gained, we’ve lost members, too. Writers move away, and it’s always a pleasure when someone comes back for a visit or sends a friendly email. Some simply stop coming, and I wish them well in whatever they are doing. And sadly, some have passed away. Those writers will live on in our memories and through their words on the page.
Today, we celebrate the past, present, and future of this brilliant, epic troupe, the St. Charles Writers Group. Please join me in cheers, and, as it says in this book, “Here’s to another 20 years.” Or thirty!
