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Spring Newsletter June 6, 2012

Special Events

Greetings! We are winding down from a very busy school year. Thanks to the hard work of our amazing staff, the dedication of our volunteers, and the generosity of our donors, we estimate that we have impacted the lives of nearly 20,000 children this last year.

And they're off! LAPS FOR LITERACY On Saturday, February 18th, MWFB partnered with the Altrusa International, Inc. of Tucson to host a 5K walk at Reid Park. The Laps for Literacy event raised $4,138 which will help fund Story Town, a MWFB/Pima County Public Library community literacy event held each November. Last year over a thousand Tucsonans attended Story Town.

On the evening of May 23rd, we were honored to host 85 people at our annual open house. Our special guest was Mayor Jonathan Rothschild. He spoke about the new law that will go into effect in 2013 that will retain students if they are not reading at grade level by the end of third grade. He pointed out that one essential solution to support children's success in school is for parents to talk, read, and sing to their baby as soon as he or she is born - or even sooner! He stated that it will take one whole generation, but that our community can greatly reduce the rate of illiteracy by focusing on early childhood language and literacy development. This summer the MAKE WAY FOR BOOKS staff will delve into many behind-the-scenes projects such as developing new professional development workshops and curriculum. We will also be preparing for some new partnerships with other family service agencies in the community. Please stop by for a visit if you are ever in the neighborhood!
Sincerely,

Staff Update
JOB OPPORTUNITIES Want to join MAKE WAY FOR BOOKS' wonderful team? Check out our job opportunities here.

P.S. Many thanks to all of our supporters. If you have not had a chance to make a donation yet this fiscal year, it's never too late!
The MWFB team!

Volunteers at a Glance
STORYTIME VOLUNTEERS

Here's Looking At You

Cat in the Hat, a.k.a. Board Member Jennifer J. Stewart, and Board Member Wayne Peate with wife Lynn Struthers-Peate at Laps for Literacy

This spring our wonderful volunteer coordinator, Diane Altieri, had the pleasure of visiting the vast majority of our Storytime Volunteers at their assigned centers. She was inspired to see the creativity and enthusiasm exhibited by everyone. Diane also observed certain common challenges our volunteers face periodically. In reflecting on her visits, Diane prepared a volunteer workshop with assistance from Julie Friberg, one or our amazing Early Literacy Consultants. The main focus of the workshop was on transitions - settling children down and getting them ready for storytime. Diane and Julie prepared an extensive collection of ideas, book suggestions, poems & finger rhymes, and even some American Sign Language! The volunteers who were able to attend found the workshop to be very helpful and rejuvenating. If you are a volunteer who was unable to participate in the session, please let us know if you would like a copy of the booklet. MAKE WAY FOR BOOKS is dedicated to providing the support and resources necessary to insure positive experiences for our volunteers. Kudos to Diane and Julie!

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MWFB 14th Birthday

Storytime Reader, Barbara Arissa Interested in Storytime volunteering? Visit the volunteer page on our website.

Family Literacy at a Glance

MWFB RAISING A READER MAKE WAY FOR BOOKS became a Raising A Reader (RAR) affiliate this past October. We are currently implementing RAR with families in apartment complexes in low-resource areas and have reached more than 30 families so far. This program is impressive - we have seen how it truly empowers children and their parents to start on a path to literacy. Parents gain the confidence to be their child's first best teacher and children are exposed to great books on a weekly basis. A father in the MWFB program said, "I now know that reading to Sam is key. It's also our favorite time of the day."

Becoming part of the fairy tale at the Festival of Books!

Storytime Volunteers
WELCOME Abby Smith & Joanne Lachney HAPPY BIRTHDAY John Ross--Jan 4 Susan Reynolds--Jan 17 Andi Sanes--Jan 25 Rita Pollak--Jan 27 Charl Maynard--Jan 29 Derek Schull--Jan 30 Gail Franklin--Feb 15 Barbara Arissa--Feb 19 Violeta Phillips--Mar 4 Julie Huynh--Mar 12 Pat Mackey--April 3 Suzy Hunt--April 21 Maureen Bike--April 23 Liz Benham--April 25 Freda Johnson--May 9 Cheryl Ridgley--May 13

Family Literacy Specialist, Violeta Phillips, facilitates a RAR session at an apartment complex. The RAR program is evidenced based - with more than twenty independent studies confirming its overwhelming success. Implemented in more than 30 states, RAR is a parent education and book-bag rotation system. In the MWFB model of RAR, parents attend weekly sessions with their young children. They receive fun and easy tips on how to help their infants, toddlers, and preschoolers develop early literacy skills. Through training and ongoing support, parents and caregivers, even those with limited English or low literacy skills themselves, learn how to engage their child by sharing books. Each week children receive a red bag with four books inside. The books are age appropriate, high-quality, multi-cultural, and bilingual as needed. Children get a different red bag each week or at the next session that parents attend. Snuggled on mom or dad's lap, children begin to

Special Appreciation
THANK YOU $200 Plus Donations
(Received Jan 1 - May 31)

Individuals Perisha Adapa

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Perisha Adapa John and Georgia Bancroft In Honor of Paul and Mary Jan Bancroft In Honor of Paul Bancroft Donie Gignac In Memory of Ed Gignac Community Altrusa International, Inc of Tucson First Things First First Things First Family Support Alliance Harry and Marjorie Stewart Foundation In Memory of Marjorie Stewart Long Realty Cares Foundation Stocker Foundation Stone Canyon Community Foundation Sundt Foundation The Rockefeller Foundation Matching Gift Program United Way Board Allocation United Way Diamond Fund Welcome Club North West In-Kind

$4,138 $97,615 $17,886 $2,000

lap, children begin to associate reading with a positive bonding experience with their parent or caregiver. Parents who were intimidated by reading are excited and confident sharing books with their children. Families develop a joyful habit of reading together. As a result, children's cognitive and language skills then develop naturally through these interactions. The program also helps connect families to the public library in their community. When children complete the program they Angela gets ready to go home with her are given a blue bag. This RAR Red Bag full of books! blue bag is for children to take to the library to get their own books. Families get to know and use their public library. Connecting families to a community resource that provides them free access to books is another important success of the RAR program. If you want to learn more about RAR call our Family Literacy Coordinator, Natalia Phillips-Portillo, at 520-721-2334.

$1,000 $25,000 $15,000 $1,500 $300 $3,000 $13,334 $2,216

Preschool Program at a Glance

(Received Jan 1 - May 31)

Carole Adler Olivia Alicea Paul and Mary Jan Bancroft Debbie George Juanita Havill Barbara Luna Mansfeld Middle School - Student Council Lee Anne Mitchell Kirsten Morales Our Mother Of Sorrows School Judy Parker Valley Of The Moon

MWFB enjoys co-hosting Family Literacy Nights with childcare centers and preschools thanks to the funding from Central and South Pima's First Things First Council. After deciding on specific literacy goals with a center, MWFB and childcare staff collaborate to design an evening of fun, food, fabulous stories, and songs.

Teachers from Little Castle, in collaboration with MWFB, hosting a Family Literacy Night. Catch Executive Director, Mary Jan Bancroft, and First Things First South Pima Regional Director, Eleanor Droegemeier, on "Teachers' Voices" on KUAZ Friday, June 8 @ 8:30 am! Check out Little Castle's event in the surrounding photos. Their staff helped families sign-up for public library cards, sing songs, read books, and act out stories. Little Castle's staff chose to act out one of their favorites, A Splendid Friend Indeed by Suzanne Bloom. One of their goals was to highlight their lending library made possible through First Things First South Pima Council funding.

Mother and daughter enjoy the story performance

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