Bruce Ballard, Author of Invitations

Come meet author Bruce Ballard, in conversation with writer Daniel Tamulonis, about Bruce’s journey with Parkinson’s disease (and other life experiences).

Bruce will read excerpts from his new book, Invitations: Fiction and Poetry from a Life of Writing, chat with Daniel about his writing and his life, and take audience questions. Copies of Bruce’s book will be available for purchase and signing following the event.

Please note: Hudson Valley Books for Humanity is located on the ground level. Sunday parking all around town is free.

About Bruce Ballard

Dr. Bruce Ballard is a native New Yorker who spent many years teaching English in the U.S.A. and foreign countries. After finishing undergraduate school, he joined the Peace Corps in 1975 and taught English in South Korea. He later earned a Master’s degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages and a doctorate in Applied Linguistics, both at Columbia University. For three years he served as the Director of the Intensive English Program at a branch campus of Southern Illinois University in Niigata Prefecture, Japan.

After coming back to New York, he traveled around the world to teach Business English to Fortune 100 investment banks. Later on, he landed a job at the Bronx Charter School for Better Learning, where he trained teachers how to teach students using the school's unusual pedagogy, which paid off when the students achieved top scores on New York State’s annual exams. He retired in 2022 and now spends his time reading books, writing poems and stories, and exercising daily to combat Parkinson’s Disease.

About Invitations

Dr. Ballard’s book, Invitations: Fiction and Poetry from a Life of Writing, consists of poems and short stories he wrote over the past dozen years, ever since he and his husband moved to Ossining. Most of the poetry is about his life with Parkinson’s disease, which he was diagnosed with in 2012. The short stories are a mix of topics, many of which overlap with the poetry, exploring related themes concerning illness, death, and joy.

About Daniel Tamulonis

For Daniel Fergus Tamulonis, puppetry, the Peace Corps, theatre, music, children, and teaching filled and continue to fill his life. Writing has been part of all of these paths. His short story, 'Slung Mugs', was published by The Society of Misfit Stories/Bards and Sages. _Paper Lanterns_, a journal out of Dublin, published his short story, 'Verona, after ...'. In 2019, Tamulonis was selected as a mentee in The Association for Writers and Writing Programs (AWP) Writer to Writer Fellowship, working with mentor Mark Jude Poirier.

In 2020, he was selected for a writing residency at the Bethany Arts Community where he continued his research on a historical novel then in progress. In August 2023, Tamulonis was selected to participate in the Highlights Foundation's Whole Novel Workshop on a partial scholarship to continue work on that same historical novel, now complete. Tamulonis recently retired from a long career of teaching Kindergarten and First Grade in the Bronx.