 From
the Executive Director, Roanne Patterson
Greetings.
As the Executive Director of Literacy Volunteers of Eastern Orange
County, Inc. (LVEOC) I need to share a frightening secret with you.
In ours, one of the world’s richest nations, 23% of all adult
Americans are illiterate. If you are not appalled by this shocking
statistic I suggest that you need to take a look at this horrendous
inequity for the sake of the world in which we live.
In Newburgh, the situation is far more critical: one third of all
adults cannot read their child’s report card or the instructions
on a prescription bottle or the names printed on an election ballot.
They come from every generation and from every ethnic group. They
are both native-born and immigrants. And they are frustrated, embarrassed,
and ashamed.
To hide their humiliating secret, they wear reading glasses they
don’t need, carry pens they cannot use, and clutch unread
newspapers like a shield. Their inability to read denies them equal
participation in our nation and robs our economy, government, and
society of the potential benefits of their full involvement. We
all suffer. Democracy - government of, for, and by the people- cannot
work for this country if its citizens cannot read.
So what can you – a confident reader – do to help?
Check out our volunteer donor page for ways that you can help. We
need you financial support and/or your volunteer time. You can make
a big difference in someone’s life for only 90 minutes per
week!
You have the power to guarantee that there are more readers in
our world. Thank you!
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