Project Read UpdateProject Read: the Adult Literacy Program of the San Francisco Public Library

Summer 2009 Volume 26, No. 2

On Monday, July 13, Project Read Program Manager Randall Weaver and San Francisco City Librarian Luis Herrera took to the stage at the American Library Association Annual Conference in Chicago to accept the Public Library Association’s Advancement of Literacy Award for 2009. The awards ceremony took place during the PLA President’s Program, which also featured

special guest speaker Cokie Roberts—news analyst with NPR and ABC.

This prestigious national award is a testament to the dedication of our adult learners, the commitment and focus of their volunteer tutors, and the Project Read staff who have helped make our program a vibrant and successful learning community for over 25 years.

Project Read Accepts National Award by Randy and Brian

Beulah, Nina, Molly, and Joshua (Photo by Brian Castagne)

The views expressed are those of the authors - not necessarily those of Project Read or the San Francisco Public Library.

In This Issue:Project Read Wins Award ................. Page 1Screen Actors Guild Performance .. Page 1Learner Writing ............................. Pages 2-4Welcome, New Tutors ......................Pages 4Learner Accomplishments ............... Page 5June Event ...................................... Pages 6-7Remembering Dolores ..................... Page 8Thank You ............................................ Page 8

Contributing WritersBernard CarwaringW.R. ChaunceyMattie FootéAlexandra GumasMohammed NazamGrover Reece

Staff WritersRandy and Brian

PhotographersJoe Stevens, Brian

Project Read StaffRandy Weaver,Program ManagerBrian Castagne,Computer Lab/Families for Literacy CoordinatorHeather Ellis,Learner-Tutor CoordinatorLeon Veal,Outreach CoordinatorSarita Charitar,Administrative Assistant

Project ReadSan Francisco Public Library

100 Larkin StreetSan Francisco, CA 94102

(415) 557-4388www.projectreadsf.org

projectread@sfpl.org

Screen Actors Guild at Wednesday Night Readers by Brian

On March 25, Carla Hatley of the Screen Actors Guild BookPALS Program (www.bookpals.net) brought live theatre to Project Read. This is the second time that Carla has assembled a team of professional actors to donate their time and skills to perform excerpts from a play being read and discussed by our Wednesday Night Readers Book Club. This time, talented actors Martin Ganapoler, Molly Good, Joshua Klein, Nina Nakao, and Beulah Stanley performed scenes from The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers. They then joined us for a spirited and illuminating discussion of the play.

Wednesday Night Readers Book Club facilitator John Gildersleeve tells us, “A couple of times during the performance, I stole a glance at the book club group. They were rapt. Without sets, costumes, or props, the actors breathed life into Carson McCullers’s words and created a world amid the harsh lights and blank walls of a conference room. That’s the power of art.”

Molly, Joshua, Martin, and Carla (Photo by Brian Castagne)

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First I would like to thank my God for His grace and mercy toward me and my life. I thank my God and your God.

I am a retired senior person enjoying my life and having the splendid opportunity to improve my education. It is my honor and pleasure to thank my tutor Laurie Heron for tutoring me through Project Read. I thank her for her support, coaching, guidance, and wisdom. I’m so grateful for the gifts she has given me—learning about syllables, long sounds, short sounds, pronunciation, and working towards writing letters on my own. She even helped me learn to read music notes for my Beginning Voice class at City College. She always asks if I understand and if things are clear. If she doesn’t know words from our sessions she looks them up and explains them to me right there and makes the meaning clear. If I still don’t understand it she’ll do more research and call me at home. She will explain it to me and tell me that we’ll study more about it when we meet again. She is a very special and thoughtful tutor who even came to see me in the hospital and brought a plant that had pretty flowers that really lifted my spirits up. To know that she would take the time out and come see me makes

me thankful. Laurie is the person I most appreciate in my life right now.

She is fast and quiet like a bird hopping to a branch. Her friendly face is okay with me. Not all smiles in life are real but her smile is the flower. It blossoms before my eyes. We are courteous to each other and it pays to be respectful—we have been working together for over a year. Laurie is an honor to Project Read in the way she contributes kindness, sympathy, encouragement, and knowledge. I really and truly appreciate her for improving my reading, spelling, and writing. I follow steps one at a time. I make sure I ask questions and understand things before I go on to the next step. By working with Laurie I am learning to be a tutor too. Someday I would like to tutor in a classroom and help the little children do math.

From the bottom of my heart I thank you Laurie for being patient with me and keeping me on track with my goals. Thanks a million for binding with me and learning together. This flower Z means that I appreciate you and this ˇ dove represents the faith and spirit I have in you.

A Person of Honor by Mattie Footé

Learner Writing

Tutor Danielle Bogni and Bernard Cawaring(Photo by Brian Castagne)

The Story of Then and Now by Bernard Cawaring

For many years, my mouth got me in trouble. Sometimes, I was undisciplined in my speech and made comments I should not have made to other people. Sometimes I said things I later wished I had not said, and a lot of the time, I was grumbling, complaining, and speaking negatively. This made me and everyone around me miserable.

I came to realize words have power and my negative words were not helping me enjoy my life. Over time, I became able to stop speaking negatively, and I saw some improvement, but not as much as I wanted.

I sensed someone speaking to my heart, “Bernard you have stopped saying negative things, but you have not started saying positive things.” I knew these words were full of positive, life giving, life changing truth. So I began to make a list of scriptures that reflected the

positive changes I longed to see in my life. I then started speaking those words aloud, sometimes several times per day, and the results were amazing.

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Orchids are beautiful flowers and when I was young my wish was to own one potted orchid. When my younger son was going to school he had an afternoon job at the grocery store delivering groceries. One night he came home with a small potted orchid with no flowers. A lady who he delivered groceries to was growing orchids and she said to my son, “Take this orchid and give it to your mother. She will be happy.” After one year the orchid had a small flower blooming in November. The second year it had two flowers. In the third year it became crowded in the small pot and I transplanted to a bigger pot so it could have lots of room to produce more flowers. I continued to do the same every time they were crowded. I fertilize the orchids all the time and water them but they don’t like too much water either. In my backyard I have 25 pots filled with orchids. Orchids are my babies. They keep me busy and I enjoy them.

Learner Writing

My Orchids by Alexandra Gumas

Alexandra and her orchids (Photo by her tutor Joe Stevens)

It’s November 1, 1950 at about 3:30 in the morning. The men would start meeting by my daddy’s barn. They would have coffee and the first guys there were Mr. Hill, Mr. Johnny Red, Uncle Little Baby, Uncle Johnny Cunningham and my daddy, Sidney. He was the captain of the hunt.

Sidney addressed the hunting party, “Good morning men. Hopefully everyone has a red jacket, coat or cap. It makes it easier for us older guys to see you all. It’s a very cold morning, it should be a good day for hunting.”

“Well men, have you decided who is going to hunt, have you all made up your mind who is going where? The old hunters have the first choice, you have to be a quarter of a mile apart. The cow horn is your communication. In the hunt if you need help take two long blows. Little Baby will take some of you in his truck. I’m going to ride Ole Ted and the dogs will be with me.” The man riding the horse is the one who makes the drive, which is when the dog looks for the deer.

In the area of the hunt there are 300-year-old red oak, pen oak and white oak trees. This is the food that the deer have along the river. Uncle Buddy decided to stay and cross the creek to the Persimmon tree cut. One of the hunters said that is one of the best spots. Uncle Buddy said, “We have killed some big bucks there.”

It’s 4:30 in the evening, I hear Uncle Buddy’s horn blow five short times just before dark. Five short blows on the horn means he killed a deer. Sidney said, “You boys take the tractor and go see what Uncle Buddy has done.” My brother and I went to see. When we got there we saw that he killed an eight point, big bodied buck.

We got back to the camp and everybody was happy. The buck was butchered and the “blind man,” the youngest hunter, was blindfolded. He is the one who divides the meat. He points to a mess of meat and calls a name. Since Uncle Buddy killed the buck he got a ham, the horns and the hide.

Blind Man’s Hunt by Grover Reece

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Welcome, New Tutors

Learner Writing and Welcome, New Tutors

At first when I came to Project Read I was scared and glad at the same time to go to a place to learn to read and write. The first time I came to the orientation I listened to Heather, Brian, and Leon and I left. I came back after a year and then I stayed.

My first tutor was Emilie. She taught me the sounds of letters and how to put them in words. Slowly I was getting there. Emilie moved away and then I got Dee. She

and Emilie were totally different. When I start to say the word and I’m puzzled Dee helps me break it down. She gives me the sounds. Some letters sound the same—k and c, e and i. There are a lot of good people here at Project Read. I can come here and relax. I don’t need to be scared. Nobody hits me when I don’t understand. I am given an opportunity to learn.

Opportunity to Learn by Mohammed Nazam

The following San Franciscans have completed the comprehensive Project Read Tutor Training and are now eagerly engaged in making our society more literate, informed, and participatory.

I had the idea of picking up a book at the age of 44 years old—when reading was the only thing that I could not do. I heard about Project Read at the San Francisco Public Library. I signed up and talked to a lady named Heather. She also told me about the Adult Learning and Tutorial Center at City College. So I went back to school. I started to learn how to read. I could read a little and in no time I could read a lot better. So I stopped going to school but I kept on reading. I could

not spell that good so I went back to school and Project Read. I found that I like to be in school learning how to start a way at making my life better. The joy of reading a good book is a kind of happiness. I had no idea of the kind of joy I had missed out on for most of my life. I have no plans to stop reading! I have read over 130 books since July 2007—thanks to all of the help I had from the people at school and the library.

The Joy in Reading by W.R. Chauncey

March 2009 TrainingMaria Alas

Denise AlterAnneliese Caldwell

Carrie CastaldoErin Chow

Jessica DabiriCarole DeitrichDan Duncan

Patsy EngSandra LeglerBob McCoyLauren Metz

Matthew MurrayCeleste SmithRaksha Varma

Matthew WeldeRachel Zisook

May 2009 Training

Jocel DumlaoCourtney Haile

Timothy HastingsKaty Lewis

Nura MaznaviCarmen MeleroMike MurrayMira Ringler

Joan Shelbourne Kwansa

July 2009 TrainingMichael AndersonJohn Joseph Cook

Shari FigiDaniel Finnegan

Drew HimmelsteinLaurie Jacobs

Pooja JhunjhunwalaVivian Kobayashi

Robert KunzIrene McKinna

Mina RadhakrishnanJessica RaygozaKim RutledgeMichael SanoAlbert Wald

Martha WasaczJennifer Wilson

Natacha Yarbrough

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Learner Accomplishments by Brian and Those Terrific Tutors

In May 2009, Learner Muawattia Mabry and Tutor Annie Leuenberger took a few moments at the end of one of their Wednesday night sessions to reflect on their three months of learning.

Annie: What do you feel you have accomplished in this time?

Muawattia: Getting on the Internet, setting up my own e-mail account, doing my seven words a week practice and…just coming here. I learned that the more I do during the time I’m not meeting with Annie, the more we have to work with when we meet.

A: What have been some challenges for you?M: Learning how to deal with not learning to read and

write as quickly as I want to. But I know if I work hard and don’t give up, I won’t be in the same situation I was ten years ago when I tried Project Read.

A: How is your mission different now than it was 10 years ago?

M: I wasn’t ready. I was more scared and stubborn back then to face what I didn’t know. I felt like I should have already known how to read and write. I didn’t want to face the unknown. Now, as a single father, you have to put on your hat, tie up your shoes and help yourself. Who wants to help someone who doesn’t want to help themselves? For me, it is better late than never.

Eula P. Lee Ross has been successfully working on many goals. She has created several independent writing exercises and then revised them in detail with her tutor, Mary Joe Power. She has completed three Dr. Seuss books, The Cat in the Hat, The Cat in the Hat Comes Back, and One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish. One of her goals was to be able to read to her grandchildren. Her grandchildren were not available on a recent weekend so she read two of the Dr. Seuss books, The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle, and Peek-a-Who? by Nina Laden to two neighbor children. They enjoyed it so much that they came back the next week with two of their friends. Eula made a very impressive presentation at the June 4th Tutor-Learner Recognition Event.

Kevin Dickens earned a C in English 93 and an A in Sign Language at City College of San Francisco.

Tutor Trudy Patch tells us that Don Jue has produced excellent papers for his classes at City College and that his overall writing skills have improved significantly due to his consistent hard work.

Samuel Warrior’s tutor Whitney Lewis tells us, “Sam has been faithfully and diligently working on his phonics skills using the Ultimate Phonics computer program. Not only has he learned to sound out and read words that follow the phonics rules, but he also is reading “sight words” (ones that don’t quite follow the rules) and he’s doing so at an intermediate level. I’m so proud of his accomplishment. His hard work is paying off.”

Jimmy Diaz’s tutor Derek Henkel tells us, “The quality of Jimmy’s writing has improved during the past year. He is able to write about a wide variety of subjects with more ease and fewer grammatical and spelling errors. He utilizes the full writing process by making corrections to his initial drafts and producing well written and thoughtful final drafts. He has a passion for writing and continues to develop and strengthen his skills through hard work.” Additionally, Jimmy has been working independently in the Computer Learning Lab several times a week to improve his spelling, phonics, typing, and Internet skills.

Monetta Chukuma tells us, “I have been working on phonics and basic typing skills. I enjoy working with my tutor, Jim Hunger, and I feel I have made a lot of progress in my studies.”

Learner Accomplishments

Muawattia Mabry and Annie Leuenberger (Photo by Brian Castagne)

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Tutor and Learner Recognition Event Text by Randy and Brian, Photos by Brian

Tutor and Learner Recognition Event

On the evening of June 4, Project Read learners and tutors, library staff, program supporters, and family members gathered at the Main Library for the annual Tutor and Learner Recognition event. Shedrick Ferguson, Jr. and his tutor Nina Krieger were outstanding MCs. They warmly greeted the standing-room-only audience, introduced the speakers, and recounted their own experiences at Project Read. Chief of the Main Library, Kathy Lawhun, officially welcomed everyone on behalf of the San Francisco Public Library and highlighted a few of the many rich resources available through our comprehensive and innovative library system.

The evening’s featured speakers included Project Read learners Fallery Gourrier, Eva Hopkins, Queen Amie Kurbally, Eula P. Lee Ross, Leroy Papillion, Royal Scott, Kenny Soles, Mario St. Rose, and Lanette Scott. They each spoke movingly about the many ways their tutors and the Project Read program have helped them achieve their literacy goals, experience personal growth, and access new opportunities.

The Project Read staff presented Volunteer Awards to tutors Christopher Balme, Lucille Cuttler, Linda Hom, and Denis Williams for 5 years of service and to Jason Siroonian for 10 years of service.

The evening concluded by presenting a special Learner Achievement Award to Dayana Salazar for her completion of both an Associate in Science Degree and a Surgical Technology Certificate from Skyline College. Her tutor, Jason Siroonian, recounted many instances of Dayana’s continued determination and commitment to furthering her knowledge, building a new career, and being a role model for her three children.

Nina and Shedrick Kathy Lawhun

Queen Amie

Heather and the audience

Laura and Leroy

Randy Marianne

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Tutor Learner Recognition Event continued

Tutor and Learner Recognition Event

Lucille and Lanette

Mario Jason Dayana

Lanette and Leon

Celeste Royal Eula and Mary Joe

Eva and PatFalleryDrina and Kenny

Remembering Dolores Thank YouJohn Gildersleeve and Mary Hilton for leading

the Wednesday Night Readers Book Club meetings

◆ Friends of the San Francisco Public Library for their generous ongoing support ◆ Tutor contacts Vivian Altmann, Renee Feldman, Susan Fink, JoAnn Lopez, June Nakajima, Terri Ryan, and Bruce Suehiro for providing invaluable support to the entire Project Read community ◆ Eva Hopkins, Pat Rutland, Edward Jetton, and Chloe Barr for speaking at the March 2009 tutor orientation ◆

Debra Allen for speaking at the May 2009 tutor orientation ◆ Leon Edward Thomas IV, Cheryl Yanotti, Royal Scott, and Celeste Smith for speaking at the July 2009 tutor orientation ◆ Gino Squadrito and Jennifer Patankar of LaserCom Design (www.lasercomdesign.com) and Kami Griffiths of the San Francisco Community Technology Network (www.ctnbayarea.org) for their exceptional skill assisting in the layout of this newsletter and patient instruction in navigating Adobe InDesign CS2 ◆ Genanne Walsh for her eagle-eyed proofreading prowess.

We have received the sad news that Dolores Toussaint passed away unexpectedly on Thursday, July 16. Dolores had been a dedicated Project Read learner since 2004.

Dolores was a warm and thoughtful person who would often leave cards and treats for people on holidays and special occasions. She was a vital part of our Saturday morning crew and would take the time to check in with others to see how they and their families were doing. Dolores was dedicated to her tutoring sessions and had a great rapport with her long time tutor Denis Williams. Dolores would put in extra time after tutoring sessions to use the computer lab. She got a kick out of some of our computer games and used e-mail to keep up with family news, download and print photos, and coordinate the details of family events—including her niece’s graduation from the University of California at Santa Cruz. Dolores was devoted to her family and provided long term care to several members.

We have many fond memories of Dolores and will miss her very much. It is hard to believe that we will no longer sip coffee and enjoy an easygoing chit-chat with her. Our thoughts are with her family and friends.

Non-Profit OrganizationU.S. Postage

PaidSan Francisco, CAPermit No. 9030

Project Readand the Friends of

San Francisco Public Library100 Larkin Street

San Francisco, CA 94102

Address Service Requested

Randy Weaver, Program ManagerBrian Castagne, Newsletter Editor