FURTHER EDUCATION SOCIETY'S NEWSLETTER    ~   JANUARY 2007   ISSUE 6

Raise a Reader

Elaine Cairns & Laureen MacKenzie, reading to Amy, Noah and Scott.

“I didn’t have a love of reading at a young age. My mother was illiterate and was thus unable to read with me as a child. It wasn’t until I began school that I really gained an appreciation for reading and the opportunities it had to offer. Throughout my career learning and reading have been crucial to my success. Without a firm grasp of literacy skills I never would have had the confidence or ability to accomplished my career goals or to enjoy life as much as I do.” - Sue Lee, Senior Vice President of Human Resources & Communications, Suncor Energy.

For some parents being read to as a child is something they never experienced and something they long to share with their own children, but are unable. This photo shoot was such a delightful reminder of the privilege it is to be able to pick up a book and read to a child. It is a privilege so many of us take for granted. Watching the children engross themselves in the story reminded us of the curiosity of a child and their natural desire to learn, explore and discover the surprises awaiting them inside the pages of a story. It is our passion and desire to help adults recapture that love of learning, that desire to know what happens when you turn the page of a book… and to share those special moments with their own children.

To watch adults learn to read again is to watch them recover a lost piece of their childhood — to see something awaken in them that was long forgotten. It is more than an “essential skill” it is a chance for a new beginning for them and their children… it is to see hope reborn. It is our dream that every child in Canada has the opportunity to crawl into someone’s lap and have the miracle of the written word come to life for them.

Sadly, this is only a dream as many parents in Canada cannot even read a note from the teacher, or understand the dosage on a medicine bottle, let alone share a story with their child.

This is what we at the Further Education Society, partnered with Calgary Herald’s Raise-a-Reader Campaign are fighting so hard for. On September 28, 2006, we at FESA joined thousands of volunteers nation-wide and managed to raise $2.24 million dollars for literacy organizations across Canada. In Calgary alone, $156,343.87 dollars were raised.

We, at FESA, are proud and grateful for Suncor Energy and their generous support of Calgary Herald’s Raise a Reader Campaign, as well as General Mills and Scholastic Canada for their wonderful donation of hundreds of books to use in our programs.

Finally we would like to thank all the other sponsors, volunteers, and especially the Calgary Herald for their passion and dedication to the field of literacy. For more information or to donate please visit: www.raiseareader.com