Chester resident publishes poetry collection

Chester resident, educator, and Dominican-American author Dayanara García is proud to share the release of her debut book, “Faced With Vitiligo: An Anthology of Spoken Word Poetry.”

Published on July 8, the collection chronicles García’s personal journey living with vitiligo, an autoimmune condition that causes the skin to lose its pigmentation. Through poetry written in English and Spanish, she explores the emotional stages of living with a visible difference, from disbelief, embarrassment, anger, and frustration to acceptance, empowerment, and self-love.

For García, writing the book has been both a labor of love and a therapeutic experience. Poetry provided an outlet to process emotions that had remained unspoken for years and ultimately transformed a deeply personal experience into a message of resilience and self-acceptance.

Making the publication even more meaningful is the involvement of her daughter, Elizabeth García, a Chester Academy senior, who wrote the book’s poetic foreword and designed its cover. Their collaboration turned the project into a special mother-daughter achievement, bringing together two generations of creativity and storytelling.

As a poet and longtime Chester resident, García hopes her work will contribute to the celebration of diverse voices and encourage others to embrace the beauty of their own unique identities.