More than 400,000 adults in Santa Clara County can’t read this
sentence you are reading right now. They also can’t complete a job
application or manage a checkbook.
More than 400,000 adults in Santa Clara County can’t read this sentence you are reading right now. They also can’t complete a job application or manage a checkbook. These adults are often limited in their ability to achieve personal or financial independence. And if they are parents, they have no way of helping their children with reading and homework.
Lani Yoshimura, Gilroy’s community librarian says, “If you show your kids your love for reading, how much you enjoy it, then your children are going to be readers too. And readers are people who do well in their lives both economically and with personal enrichment.”
That’s why my friend Louise Shields is so excited about working with Vision Literacy as they train and support volunteer tutors and match them with learners. Vision Literacy holds individual and small group tutoring sessions in order to meet the needs of one in four adults in south Santa Clara County who want to improve their reading and writing skills. “This is right up my alley. I love it that I can make a difference,” Shields said as she spoke to the Gilroy Chamber of Commerce at the Hilton on Wednesday morning.
“A lot of people go through life wondering, ‘Where can I go? How can I get help?’ I want people to know that Vision Literacy is here for them,” Shields says. “They can become empowered.” Because many adults are highly motivated to read but might be embarrassed by the stigma of illiteracy, tutoring is kept confidential. “We can help adults not only to read but computer skills as well, so that they can use e-mail, create resumes, and fill out job applications online. We can get parents involved in learning with their kids and help families become pro-literate. By being a volunteer, you can help too.”
Vision Literacy is currently seeking more volunteer tutors willing to give this gift of reading to someone willing to learn.
One of the most inspiring success stories of Vision Literacy is Ruben Dozal Jr., who didn’t learn to read or write until he was 50 years old; he was referred to the program by a teacher at his granddaughter’s school. He is a field worker/laborer turned poet, a writer who captures the essence of his daily struggles with raw sincerity and grace. Dozal has become a published poet and a finalist in the North American Open Poetry Contest.
He wrote these words about his tutor: “Her willingness to help is always there. She does not see color or greed for the words are universal. I am completely blind when we are together. I do not see the wheelchair. The crippling arthritis that has taken over her crippling body. I am the one who sometimes stays at odds just to see this beautiful person giving all her time and attention to me. She is a tutor among tutors and her kindness will be rewarded 10 fold.” Dozal will be at Barnes & Noble in Gilroy as a guest speaker for Vision Literacy from 11am to 1pm this Saturday and 1 to 3pm Sunday.
The next tutoring training sessions are scheduled to be in Gilroy at 42 Martin St. from 6:30 to 7:30pm Oct. 9; in the Morgan Hill Library at 660 W. Main Ave. from 6:30 to 7:30pm Thursday Oct. 11; and in Gilroy at 42 Martin St. from 10:30 to 11:30am Saturday, Oct. 13. Call ahead to reserve a space at (408) 262-1349.
