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Verse to Voice – Youth Poetry Workshop

A colourful, scrapbook-style flyer for "Verse to Voice: youth poetry workshop." The title is written in eclectic, multi-coloured cutout letters. A photo of Matthew "Testament" Jones, Ontario Poet Laureate, is featured on the right side. The event is scheduled for Thursday, April 30, from 3:30 – 5 PM at the Chill Zone, Mississauga Valley CC Gymnasium. A registration link, macversetovoice.eventbrite.ca, is highlighted in blue. The bottom of the flyer includes logos for the City of Mississauga, TD, and the Mississauga Arts Council.
A colourful, scrapbook-style flyer for "Verse to Voice: youth poetry workshop." The title is written in eclectic, multi-coloured cutout letters. A photo of Matthew "Testament" Jones, Ontario Poet Laureate, is featured on the right side. The event is scheduled for Thursday, April 30, from 3:30 – 5 PM at the Chill Zone, Mississauga Valley CC Gymnasium. A registration link, macversetovoice.eventbrite.ca, is highlighted in blue. The bottom of the flyer includes logos for the City of Mississauga, TD, and the Mississauga Arts Council.

Date: Thursday, April 30, 2026
Time: 3:30 PM – 5 PM EDT
Location: Chill Zone, Mississauga Valley Community Centre Gymnasium
Register: For FREE via Eventbrite

Join Ontario Poet Laureate Matthew “Testament” Jones for a poetry workshop celebrating National Poetry Month and Mississauga Youth Weeks.

Dive into a guided creative writing activity, then learn how to bring your words to life through the art of spoken word performance. The workshop wraps up with a supportive open mic, where participants are invited to share their work in a welcoming space. No experience required!

This is a FREE drop-in session presented as part of Mississauga Youth Weeks. Registration is recommended, but not required.

Supported by City of Mississauga and TD Bank Group.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER
Headshot of Matthew Testament Jones, who sits smiling against a beige background. He wears a black beret, black turtleneck with a silver chain, and a grey blazer.

About Matthew Testament Jones

Mississauga, Ontario native Matthew-Ray Jones, also known as Testament, is a connoisseur of anything and everything involving words. From poetry, spoken word and emceeing to facilitating, hosting and keynoting, Matthew-Ray has been using his natural speaking abilities to inspire audiences for over 20 years. His mother is his hero. She endured many hardships throughout her life and made sacrifices so that Matthew-Ray could pursue his dreams. She provided him with a diary at age 6 that inspired the artist to start his writing journey through self-expression.

Matthew-Ray has performed and taught nationally from coast to coast in Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, Nunavut, and British Columbia. He has performed internationally in Venezuela and Italy and has travelled to six continents.

To date, he has recorded three albums and shared the stage with Talib Kweli, Naughty by Nature, Biz Markie, GZA, Kardinal Offishall, Saukrates, DāM-FunK and more. He co-founded an artist collective called P.E.A.C.E. (“People Everywhere Actually Co-existing Equally”) helping people realize they are ‘a piece of P.E.A.C.E.’ through poetry, HipHop, music, workshops, presentations and trainings.

Matthew-Ray has appeared on Breakfast Television, CP24, MuchMusic, MTV and Rogers TV. He has been written about in Exclaim and Eye Weekly magazines plus numerous national and local newspapers and has made various appearances on radio stations.

A father, artist, entrepreneur and revolutionary, Matthew-Ray uses his passion for words, art and life to motivate, inspire and lead. He trusts in the values of peace, love and unity as his guiding principles as he continues to spread his message worldwide.