In Memoriam:
DAVID B. AXELROD
Honoring a Life Devoted to the Healing Power of Poetry
by ADAM FISHER / TAMMY NUZZO-MORGAN
I first met David and his then wife Joan in the hospital
after they were in a serious automobile accident. I had been writing a
spiritual diary which I thought might have possibilities of being poetry. I
visited David and Joan and David took me under his wing and was my mentor and
friend for the next forty years. We did poetry workshops in person as long as
he lived on Long Island, and when he moved to Florida, we continued every month
on Zoom. In all those forty years I never heard a harsh word from him. He was
always kind, supportive, and instructive. I was not the only one. There were
many others as well. He took great pains to mentor young people and made an
effort to publish their books. I always thought of him as having a great
mind—he was very knowledgeable about many things and absolutely loved language,
the sounds of words, and their association.
I would not have become a writer if it had not been for David. Through his
Writers Ink Press he published three of my poetry books. He took great care
with my books and the books he published for others. He made sure there were no
typos and saw to it that the type face was appropriate, and the page margins
all lined up. He took great pride in making sure that each book was professional.
David did not have an easy life. He suffered from childhood traumas. He was
also deeply disappointed that he was not accorded the national recognition he
deserved, and the recognition by major poets. He taught at Suffolk Community
College for many years and carried on a decades long fight for free speech in
the classroom. While there he sponsored many poetry events inviting
leading poets to the campus.
Dr. Axelrod won awards and was became as Poet Laureate of Suffolk County and
later was a poet laureate in Floria in recognition of his great contribution to
poetry. He was named a Fulbright Scholar several times, which is very rare. He
was invited to Ireland and other international poetry events. With all those
many honors including winning many poetry contests, he continued to mentor his
students and members of the poetry community.
—Adam Fisher
I have known Dr. Axelrod for over 20 years. I have seen David in action as a
poet, mentor, friend and Poet Laureate of Suffolk County, and Board Member of
the Long Island Poetry & Literature Repository. He was always willing to
take time to encourage novice poets. While he was Poet Laureate, he put
together a project between young poets and mentor poets; I included. Each young
poet compiled a chapbook, which Dr. Axelrod had published. We held poetry
readings to celebrate these emerging poets. This is only one project Dr.
Axelrod has undertaken. His energy in the poetry community is well known. He
truly embodies what a Poet Laureate should be; a facilitator of all those
within the community. I have witnessed his ability to draw out the shyest
person and enable them to be creative.
Dr. Axelrod is the Editor of Writers Ink Press, and has given many aspiring
poets, including myself, the opportunity to be published. Many have Dr. Axelrod
to thank for seeing their work in print. He had insight into poets and poetry I
have rarely seen in others. He sensed the inner skill and is a master at
developing it.
Dr. Axelrod created “The Happiness Institute” a creative-community outreach.
The mission statement for this endeavor is: “To enhance the quality of your
life through a diverse and creative series of programs and services.” If only
more people saw the importance of such institutes; we would be much better off.
Dr. Axelrod carved out time to create himself. He is the author of twenty-eight
books! He is the only American to ever hold two consecutive Fulbright Scholar
Awards in separate areas: Poet-at-Large, the Professor of American Literature.
His CV is beyond impressive. It is the story of a life devoted to not only
poetry, but the healing power of poetry.
—Dr. Tammy Nuzzo-Morgan
Adam D. Fisher is Rabbi Emeritus of Temple Isaiah in
Stony Brook, NY. He is the author of four poetry collections, a book of short
fiction, and two volumes of liturgy. From 2006 to 2014, he served as Poetry
Editor of the
CCAR Journal.
Tammy Nuzzo-Morgan, PhD is the first woman appointed
Suffolk County Poet Laureate (2009–2011). Founder of the Long Island Poetry
& Literature Repository and editor of Wyld Syde Press, she has published
six chapbooks, two full-length poetry collections, a memoir, a children’s book,
and
The Healing Power of Poetry: Living with the Death of a Child. She
teaches at Long Island University.
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