Katherine Gekker was born in Washington, DC. She founded a commercial printing company in 1974 and sold it 31 years later. Katherine is the author of In Search of Warm Breathing Things (Glass Lyre Press, 2019); her poems have also appeared in Little Patuxent Review, Delmarva Review, Broadkill Review, Apple Valley Review, and elsewhere. Her poetry has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net.
When she’s not writing, Katherine practices piano.
Frankie’s parents and I went to school together, and I was at their wedding. So I guess you could say that I’ve known Frankie before he was born. When his mother connected us about our mutual poetry interest, I was in. The mission and values of The Good Listening Project align with my own love of poetry and serving others.
She said she wanted a poem about the importance of CPR. As both a nurse and a CPR instructor, she spoke about how the rhythms of certain familiar songs helped her students internalize the rate of compression required.
She worked as an interpreter at Schar and wanted her poem to be “thanks for allowing me.” Her background in a very repressive regime gave her a unique perspective about the gift of being able to live here, although she had felt anxiety for the past few years.
She said she wanted a poem about her mother, who died in October at the age of 90. She painted a compelling portrait of a mother who loved glitter, high heels, and jewelry, while living on a dairy farm.
She said she was going through a “brutally difficult” time because she was semi-estranged from her children, all young adults. She knew that this period would not always last, but she also didn’t know how long this time would go on.
“Art is healing,” she said. She approached my table to show a picture of artwork a friend had created for her to help her through this time.
