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Woman

to Woman

Angela McKeever:

Hurricane Poet

“ t was scary!” Angela McKeever says. “It was very
scary up there presenting my private thoughts
and fears for the first time for others to critique
I and judge, and my legs were shaking like a rabbit
in a wolf’s den behind that podium. But to para-
phrase Woman’s Life Founder Bina West, ‘…Women
fail because they’re too afraid of others’ opinions,
and the only thing to do is to just go ahead and do
it.’ So, I took a deep breath and did just that…I just
did it!”
McKeever was born and raised in Gary, Indiana, but
moved to Indianapolis in 1989 and has now been in
Indy longer than she was in Gary. As a working single
mother, she worked hard to put herself through col-
lege later in life to obtain a degree in human resources.
She has now been working for the State of Indiana as
the deputy director of administrative services going
on 20 years. “I have a 30-year-old daughter, a 14-year-
old son, and three adorable grandchildren who light
up my world,” she says.
Woman’s Life visited with McKeever to learn about
her fascination with the spoken word — especially
poetry.

WL: When did you realize you enjoyed writing?
McKeever: I have always secretly loved writing,
and I love making words rhyme. In high school, I
took a writing class where we were instructed to try
our hand at writing poetry. I was thrilled that two of
my short poems were selected to be printed in our
yearbook. I read poetry as a child and have always WL: How did you get the opportunity to read your
preferred poems that rhyme to those that don’t. I’d poetry for the first time?
have to credit “The Raven” by Edgar Allen Poe as McKeever: My long-time friend, Alecia Barnes, is a
the one that first piqued my interest in poetry. I also member of Woman’s Life Chapter 805 Indianapolis,
took a speech class in high school and put it to good Indiana. Alecia had asked me if I was interested in
use when I took a writing class in college where we performing at their Open Mic Night event. I wasn’t so
were required to read the stories we wrote in front sure, but once she and Chapter President Millie Lou-
of the class. issaint informed me that the funds raised would be
Although poetry is my first love, I have written sev- going to Outreach Inc., which provides life-improve-
eral articles, a few of which have been published in a ment services to homeless teens and young adults in
local magazine. I also saved quite a few stories from the Indianapolis area, I knew it was for a great cause.
my college writing class. The story from college that It was also the perfect opportunity to check a
received the best response was a piece about not drink- long-standing item off my bucket list: to perform one
ing and driving. The opening left the class stunned. of my many poems in public. So, I gathered up the

12 WOMANSLIFE.ORG FALL 2023