In 1945, Carl and Lilian moved their three daughters and two grandchildren to Connemara farm in Flat Rock, NC. As a young child, Paula spent seven years surrounded by nature, a warm nurturing family and many famous visitors to the house. She later wrote a memoir, My Connemara, depicting those formative years of her life on the farm. As an adult, Paula returned to the area, married Stanley Polega and settled in Jeter Mountain. She devoted time and energy to support the legacy of the Sandburgs and the historic site of Connemara. Flat Rock resident Richard Labunski had a rare interview with Paula in 2015. A short video from that interview with some wonderful family photos can be viewed here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlPEBwv48dA

 

Karlen Paula

 

I love thy face with a love given to fresh flower blooms.

I love thy spoken words as the shimmer of sun slants and the drift of rain.

If I should believe in angels and meet one she would be somewhat like you.

Until I come to know one angel worth cherishing I shall go on in my cherishing of thy face and spoken words.

 

Carl Sandburg 

Connemara, 1946

Stop by our booth at the Hendo Earth Fest on Saturday, April 20th on Main Street, downtown Hendersonville, NC. We’d love to see you!  Click for more information Hendo Earth Fest Info

 

 

 

 

 

Our mission is to support the Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site (Park). You can help us help the Park by donating used books at the Books For Good shop. When donating used books, simply request the Friends of Carl Sandburg as your selected non-profit. A portion of proceeds from the sale of those books will be donated directly to the Friends of Carl Sandburg. It’s easy! The store currently welcomes donations in paperback of fiction, history, children’s, and books signed by the author. The shop is located at 50 Heritage Park Dr. in Fletcher, NC. For more information, go to http://www.booksforgoodinc.com/

The Friends of Carl Sandburg at Connemara, Inc. is an all-volunteer, 501(c)(3 non-profit organization that supports the Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site to promote, protect and preserve the legacy of Carl Sandburg. To learn more about the Friends, our mission, and what we do, just click here

 

 In 2023, the Friends raised nearly $86,000 in 2023 to purchase then donate a new, accessible visitor shuttle van for the Park to accommodate visitors. Not only will this van be used while the front lake dam is re-designed and repaired, but will continue to provide a safe, comfortable way for visitors of all ages and abilities to access the park. A BIG thank you to The Community Foundation of Henderson County with the Rudnick Endowment, The Village of Flat Rock, the Hunter Hometown Foundation, as well as numerous individual donors.

 

Carl Sandburg, "The Poet of the People"

Carl August Sandburg (January 6, 1878 – July 22, 1967) was an American poet, biographer, journalist, and editor. He won three Pulitzer Prizes: two for his poetry and one for his biography of Abraham Lincoln. During his lifetime, Sandburg was widely regarded as “a major figure in contemporary literature”, especially for volumes of his collected verse, including Chicago Poems (1916), Cornhuskers (1918), and Smoke and Steel (1920). He enjoyed “unrivaled appeal as a poet in his day, perhaps because the breadth of his experiences connected him with so many strands of American life”, and at his death in 1967, President Lyndon B. Johnson observed that “Carl Sandburg was more than the voice of America, more than the poet of its strength and genius. He was America.

 

To learn more about Carl Sandburg, his works, and his family, click here to be directed to the National Park Service website.

Our many supporters both individuals and businesses who are committed to the Friends’ mission. They, through farsightedness and generosity, seek to ensure that the Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site will continue to be available for future generations.

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