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About Us
in
Hastings Ontario |
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History of the Stellar Literary
Festival |
Durham Region is alive with all kinds of wonderful celebrations,
festivals and events. While music,
children and ethnic culture are
popular themes, Stella Ducker noticed there was no event
to celebrate the best
of Durham Region's poets, authors, writers,
readers, story tellers, filmmakers and songwriters.
Stella brought up the subject with
Garth
Riley, who agreed there was a need for such an event and
the
duo started to lay the groundwork for a festival a few years
ago. Although it wasn’t meant to be at that time and
the plans never
progressed beyond the initial stages, Stella was ever hopeful and
determined to meet someone
who would help her with her vision.
In September 2006, while working on another event, Stella began
sharing her goal of one day establishing a literary festival in
Durham Region. Listening to her that night were her husband, Graham,
and two friends, Winnie Chapman and John Duarte. They looked at each other
said, “Let’s do it”.
The foundation for the
inaugural Stellar Literary Festival was presented in the fall of
2007 in the beautiful setting of the Oshawa Valley Botanical Gardens
in downtown Oshawa.
Encouraged by the reception of the first Stellar Literary Festival,
plans for the 2008 and 2009 with
a two day
event, June 13th at the
Oshawa Valley Botanical Gardens and
June 14the Parkwood Estates.
Word quickly
got around about the Oshawa Stellar Literary Festival, an invitation
was extended to also hold a Stellar Literary Festival in August
2009. The inaugural was successfully launch and are returning
for our 2nd Annual Stellar Literary Festival August 22nd 2010!
With the great assistance of Chester Stocki, and the poets & writers
in that area, it's bound to
be a success!
The rest, as
they say, is history in the making. |
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FESTIVAL PRODUCER /
TALENT / MARKETING /
WEBMASTER |
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Stella Ducker,
Original Founder
Stella has devoted
herself to promoting Durham Region & Canada's musical talent
through the Stellar Showcase, which she founded in 1998. She
recently expanded Stellar Showcase to include authors, writers
and poets saying “if musicians need promoting, so do writers.”
She operates
and broadcast on an internet radio to promote talented
musicians and soon, poets.
Stella is a founding board member of FAMEd.ca (Film Arts Media
Entertainment of Durham) and has been involved in film
production and background acting for local and international
film. Stella is involved in various aspects of local
television broadcasting and has directed province-wide shows. |
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Stella has volunteered at
Rogers Community Television for the past 10 years, where she
worked as a camera operator, in audio and mobile production,
as floor director and production director. She was named
Rogers Volunteer of the Year in 2001 and received the Ontario
Volunteer Award in 2001 and 2004. Stella was a nominee at the
Durham Region 2003 Women of Distinction Awards.
Stella was active member of
Oshawa's Downtown Action Committee (communications
sub-committee) and has been
a volunteer for the Oshawa Jazz & Blues Festival since its
inception and worked on the Oshawa Celtic Festival. She's a
member of the Writers' Circle of Durham Region (volunteered on
the Chapbook committee), the Canada Cuba Literary Alliance
(volunteer as Photo Editor), the Ontario Poetry Society, the
Canadian Poetry Association and was appointed as chairperson
for the Durham Region chapter
of the Canadian Federation of Poets.
Stella was involved with the St. Marks Players production of
‘Where's The Minister?’ and kept everyone 'on book' and
assisted in the sound engineer (thanks to her Rogers TV
training).
Stella is a Co-founder and the Editor for the Stellar Showcase
Journal, which is published quarterly online and in print and
receives submissions and has subscribers around the world. |
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LOGISTICS / TREASURER
ACCOUNTANT
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Graham Ducker,
Co-Founder
Graham is a retired teacher and principal,
a published author and poet, speaker, instructor and an artist. One
of his paintings was used as the cover for his poetry book.
In February 2005, Graham was honoured as the Featured Poet of the
Canadian Federation of Poets and was invited by the association’s
president to judge its rhyming poetry contest. He was named the
Ontario Poetry Society Member of the Year for 2006 and presented
with the award by society founder Bunny Iskov. Graham is currently
the Oshawa branch manager of the Ontario Poetry Society and leads
monthly poetry meetings. In 2006, he was also the winner of the
Lichen Arts & Letters Preview Epistolary Fiction Contest. |
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Graham operates his own business, J. Graham Publishing, and has
co-founded the literary Stellar Showcase Journal for poets and
writers, both online and in print.
He is a member of FAMEd.ca (Film, Arts, Media, Entertainment of
Durham), the Writers' Circle of Durham Region, the Durham Folklore
Society, the Canadian Federation of Poets, the Canada Cuba Literary
Alliance, the Canadian Authors Association and Toastmasters
International.
Graham has volunteered at Rogers Community Television a camera
operator and dabbled as an actor in the St. Marks Players production
of Mike Kashmanian’s ‘Where’s the Minister?’
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Stellar
Literary Festival Co-founder & Videographer
Chester Stocki Featured on
Hollywood.com |
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Chester Stocki
being interviewed on Rogers TV
Poster
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Chester is on record as being the FIRST
Canadian independent film produced 1971
"The Proud Rider"
Chester Stocki: Director / 1971 / Released / CFP
Distribution
Chester Stocki: Screenplay / 1971 / Released / CFP
Distribution
Chester Stocki,
Co-founder / Vice President of
FAMEd
Chester creates real estates commercials of
residential
homes & commercial buildings for sale.
He also produces short movies.
Chester is very active promoting the film industry
and the music community in the Durham Region / GTA.
Video-Pro-Motion
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