The Donald E. Waterfall Scholarship Fund
Donald E. Waterfall was my father and my first poetry mentor. When you purchase a subscription to this newsletter, you are paying into a scholarship fund in his name, which will support emerging poets.
My father was the first person in his family to finish high school and went on to graduate from the University of Toronto in 1965. Subsequently, he earned a full scholarship to complete his PhD in Philosophy at Princeton University.
A former diplomat, he retired early to return to academia and became an undergraduate sessional instructor in Philosophy at his alma mater. When his grandchildren were born, he prepared education funds for each of them.
Education — and reading poetry, in particular — was really important to my father. We read Robert Louis’ Stevenson’s A Child’s Garden of Verse together. By middle school, my father had already introduced me to both Williams (Blake and Wordsworth) and I had taken a crack at T.S. Eliot’s The Wasteland. Later, he made sure I always had the latest Canadian poetry books on hand.
When my father died suddenly in April 2021, I spent a lot of time thinking about how I could honour his memory. The Donald E. Waterfall Scholarship Fund is one way I can do that.
The whole of every paid subscription for this newsletter will go toward the fund, which will provide financial support and mentorship to an emerging poet who possesses an original perspective and a potent mixture of passion, craft, intuition and attention.
I want to amplify your poems, perspective and voice.
Applications are now open for the inaugural Donald E. Waterfall Scholarship Fund!
About the Fund
This scholarship honours my father’s legacy as a dedicated poetry mentor and champion of education. The fund provides both financial support and a one-year mentorship with me to help emerging poets develop their craft and pursue their creative aspirations.
Prize Details
Duration: October 1, 2025 to October 1, 2026
Financial support from collected funds and donations
One-year mentorship with Cara Waterfall
Eligibility
Open worldwide to poets 18 and older
Writing primarily in English
No previous full-length poetry book publications
Distinguished Judges
I am honoured to have two accomplished writers serving as judges:
rob mclennan is an Ottawa-based writer and publisher with over 50 published books spanning poetry, fiction, and non-fiction. He is the founder of above/ground press and serves as Artistic Director of VERSeFest: Ottawa's International Poetry Festival.
Salima Tourkmani-MacDonald is a Toronto-based poet and performer of Algerian-Canadian ancestry whose work explores themes of family and identity. A graduate of the University of Toronto's Creative Writing program, her poetry has appeared in The Dalhousie Review and Echolocation Magazine.
Application Requirements
Literary CV (1-2 pages)
Bio and publication history
Academic, professional, and relevant experience
Cover Letter (1-1.5 pages)
Your poetry journey
Description of your creative development and mentorship experiences
How this scholarship would impact your work
Poetry Sample
3 original poems
Maximum 10 pages total
Important Dates
Application Deadline: June 1st, 2025 at midnight (UTC)
Scholarship Period: October 1, 2025 - October 1, 2026
Apply here! Looking forward to reading your applications!
With love and intention,
Cara