Jon Freeland is a local poet in Jefferson City. He's lived here for many years and studied at Columbia College where he graduated from in 2008. Jon married wife, Jo, in 2007, and they have one child together.
Freeland is very active in the art community and has found his voice and passion within poetry and spoken word. He attends many open mic nights and has also facilitated poetry slams in town before the pandemic at local venues such as Gumbo Bottoms. Freeland has previously performed in three features in Belle with the Osage Arts Community as well as being published in "Reported for Duty: Veteran's Anthology," "365 Days Poetry Anthology: Volume 3" and "The Gasconade Review Presents: Strange Days, Stranger Nights."
Father, husband, friend, teammate, and coordinator of staff support working with the those with intellectual and developmental disabilities by day, Freeland enjoys disc golf, gaming, music, candles, listening, ambiguity, puns and aggravating the people he loves.
Even though the world is just now opening up, poetry never stopped, never paused. Many local artists including Freeland used poetry to help navigate the pandemic. In elementary school, he had the experience of self-bounding little research books. His book was about wolves and now sits on a bookcase in his best friend's house today. He used to consider it the closest he would ever get to being an author. But from that experience, a dream was created.
"Over the years, I've listened to lyrics such as when Dustin Kensrue lamented, 'we live in but a shadow of the real.' I imagine myself in so many places - maybe that's what makes it appropriate that I've put these shadows all in one place where everyone can watch them hide in plain sight," Freeland said. "Like European Eels, these poems are here for all to see while hopefully preserving some questions, because everyone deserves answers and wonder simultaneously and forever."
That is what Freeland hopes to capture with his first full-length poetry book entitled, "Lost Eel Questions." Whether you like playfulness with words, tasteful rhyme, hard subjects, honest pictures, portmanteaus or just a short devotion, Freeland tried to put something in here that anyone could chase and be satisfied with not fully catching.
Freeland will be having a release party and public poetry reading from 4-6 p.m. Sept. 25 at Gumbo Bottoms Ale House to launch his new book. He'll be reading with Tim Tarkelly, Jason Ryberg and John Dorsey. An open mic will also happen after for other artists to share their works.
Leann Porrello is the cultural arts specialist with the Jefferson City Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department.