The Community Youth Poet engages young people through literature, poetry, and spoken word. They lead projects that empower youth, amplify their voices, and encourage peer-inspired learning, while sharing their work at Saanich events. The Youth Poet also participates in a mentorship with an established local poet.
Bennett Gilleland (2026)
As Youth Community Poet, Bennett strives to make space for young poets to promote their work, improve their craft, and get acquainted with Saanich’s poetry community. He hopes to plan a poetry market where poets can sell their work and perform, as well as writing workshops, poetry readings in the park, and collaborating with visual artists. He also hopes to create a new body of work to commemorate queer history and additionally be a consistent, and welcoming presence at Saanich’s upcoming poetry events.
Poet, spoken word performer, and journalist, Bennett Gilleland, has been obsessed with poetry ever since he heard of Rudyard Kipling in middle-school. It started a love of writing that followed him from his home in Toronto, to Alberta, and now to Saanich. He began to write poems seriously in 2021 as a student in the English and Writing department at UVic. His catalogue has evolved from comedic and performative poetry to themes of addiction, mental health, and queerness.
Since moving to the island, Bennett has been active in its literary community, getting published in The Martlet, Island Writer Magazine, Sundew, The Warren, Essence, and was winner of This Side of West’s 2024 Prose and Poetry Contest. His spoken word performances have stretched to most venues in Saanich and Victoria like Planet Earth Poetry, Brickyard Pizza, Reynold’s High School, Gigi’s Café, Vertigo Lounge, and culminating in a feature poet reading for the Victoria Poetry Project.
For more information about this program, or to contact the Community Youth Poet contact: communitypoets@saanich.ca.