Kate Sommer Memorial Poetry Prize

ABOUT KATE

An English teacher at Duchesne Academy of the Sacred Heart for nineteen years, Kate taught, laughed, and encouraged young people to be their whole selves in Room 209, which was formally dedicated to her in 2016. Her commitment to living, teaching, and creating as her authentic self meant hundreds of students flocked to her English classroom during her tenure at Duchesne, where they were met with a warm and fiercely inclusive educator who believed in the power of words. Under Kate’s compassionate guidance and mentorship, students simply thrived.

Magnanimous, funny, and wise, several graduating classes at Duchesne nominated Kate to deliver a faculty address at their commencement ceremony, where she gave her speeches with such impassioned confidence, it was as if the words might manifest themselves right off the page for her students and their futures. Kate did not merely hope for her students. She knew they would lead rich lives full of advocacy, community, and creativity because they had already spent four years displaying those skills at 3601 Burt Street.

Kate self-published The Pine Street Chronicles, an essay collection with creative contributions from her siblings, and wrote short stories that were incisive, quirky, and funny. She was a beautiful equilibrium of abstract and articulate, and wrote on any scrap of paper in any room of the house, leaving tiny notes, reminders, and images on receipts, notebook paper, envelopes. This means that – among other places – her handwriting is preserved on her daughter’s recipe cards, a welcome addition to homemade meals. 

Kate and her husband Leonard forged an incredible bond in their 37 years together that only grew stronger as they raised their children, Emily and James. Like her classroom, Kate’s home was inclusive and safe, one where Emily and James were given the gift of space to discern their own likes, dispositions, and creative endeavors. “You couldn’t ask for a better parent,” says daughter, Emily. 

The organizer of Omaha’s first Race for the Cure and a pioneer in creating the Nebraska Affiliate chapter of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Kate was a cancer survivor and tireless community advocate for women, girls, and those facing a breast cancer diagnosis.

Kate is missed by anyone who had the privilege of being on the receiving end of her smile. There is no doubt about it – Kate would be jazzed that this prize exists.

We invite you to listen to “Godspeed,” a poem written and performed by a Duchesne student the year after Kate's passing.