literature 221 Sigma Tau Delta Souvenirs Dr. Michael Claxton, assistant professor of English, arrived on Harding’s campus in the fall of 2003, straight out of his doctoral program at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and eager to teach. “The only thing I knew about Harding was that it was a long way from Georgia,” Claxton said. Not long after his arrival, Harding alumni Tim Nance, a 2005 graduate, and Andrea Zahler, a 2004 graduate, approached Claxton with the prospect of chartering a poetry club on campus. These three poetry buffs created Souvenirs. Souvenirs was a more rowdy group than some thought. The weekly meetings in the Honors House were crammed with students quothing the raven and making wisecracks about Beowulf. “I’ve been deputized by Dr. [Jeff] Hopper to keep the chaos at a low roar,” Claxton said. Claxton was surprised that a “non-required poetry event” had met for so long. “The fact that we’re still alive five or six years later really impresses me,” Claxton said. “We’ve had this succession of really enthusiastic poetry fans. It’s kept this club going.” While not for everyone, the audience that attended the meetings every Thursday night was diverse. “It’s not limited to English majors,” Claxton said. “We have art majors. We have nursing majors. We have people from [the] foreign language [department] – from all different types of disciplines.” Claxton said Souvenirs often escaped the Honors House for a day trip to an area used bookstore. They also threw Christmas parties in the winter and hosted cookouts in the spring. Claxton also spearheaded the English honor society Sigma Tau Delta. Club meetings were rare, but the group traveled once a year to The Rep Theater in Little Rock. Last winter they organized a used textbook drive through Better World Books to benefit Invisible Children Inc., a non-profit organization that assisted children and others coping with the civil war in northern Uganda. “I think it’s important for students to be involved in societies and groups that connect them with other professionals in their field of study,” junior Jordan Bailey said. “I think [Dr. Claxton] does a really good job of being an overseer and keeping things organized.” As the sponsor, Claxton was responsible for reciting an annual top-ten list at the English department’s fall literary festival. Recent lists included the ten worst topics for senior symposia and the ten worst English major pick-up lines. While Claxton was passionate about the English department, he admitted that the Harding basketball teams threatened his allegiance to his more literary leanings. He often attended the girl’s game, raced over to the Honors House for Souvenirs and then returned to the Rhodes for the second half of the boy’s game. “It’s a good time,” Claxton said. “The Rhodes Field House is a lot of fun.” Between poetry, book drives and basketball games, Claxton found his niche. Nick Michael involvement Claxton Participates In English Clubs Row 1: J. Bailey, M. Smith, C. Mannen, E. Williams. Row 2: J. Maris, H. Pruitt, J. Benskin. Row 3: C. Damron, E. Daw. Row 4: K. Jackson, C. Neil, M. Claxton (Sponsor), C. McKeever. Row 1: A. Stilwell, R. Rupel, J. Roosevelt, K. Cross. Row 2: S. McSwain, K. Curtis, E. Daw, J. Benskin, J. Roper. Row 3: K. Cameron, V. Wagner, K. Cavender, L. Jones, N. Boone, L. Jones. Senior Jessica Briggs plays the moon in the Souvenirs performance at the Literary Festival on Sept. 11, in Cone Chapel. The group performed the Pyramus and Thisbe play from Shakespeare’s ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. Nick Michael
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