LEADERSHIPCARES™ PRESENTS ITS SIXTH ANNUAL LITERACYCARES™ AWARD OF EXCELLENCE TO LOCAL VOLUNTEER
LITERACY TUTORS. 

Washington D.C., April 4, 2007. The LeadershipCares™ Foundation an organization that works with young people teaching leadership and life skills presented its sixth annual LiteracyCares™ Award of Excellence to four local literacy tutors that volunteer through Literacy Councils in the greater Washington D.C. area. The awards were presented at a dinner held in their honor at the Hamilton Crowne Plaza Hotel in Washington, D.C. Friday evening March 30th, 2007. 

"This award brings attention to the dedication of volunteers who work tirelessly to provide instruction in reading and writing to countless individuals in our area. It also showcases the continued need for volunteer tutors to step forward and give the gift of literacy," says Lula Davis, Executive Director of LeadershipCares™. 

Teenagers concerned about literacy issues planned and assisted in executing the special event. The teenagers are students from Northwestern High School in Adelphi, MD and are participating in the MentorCares™ program.  Ms. Erica Benson and a team of MentorCares™ students interviewed the Literacy Directors and award winners to help write this press release and a story about the event for the school paper.

The winners represent literacy councils from Washington D.C., Montgomery County, Prince Georges County and Northern Virginia. The award winners were selected based on their extraordinary contributions to adult literacy and tutoring.

The 2007 LiteracyCares™ Award of Excellence winners are:

Mr. David Benson from the Washington Literacy Council
Ms. Marcia Sloger from the Literacy Council of Prince Georges County
Mr. Ed Snider from the Literacy Council of Northern Virginia     
Ms. Melinda Frederick from the Literacy Council of Montgomery County

Award winners thanked their Literacy Council and LeadershipCares™ and then spoke about their experiences as volunteer tutors and trainers.

Ms. Marcia Sloger spoke about her first student and how the experience changed her life and the life of her student. She spoke about how her work made her feel so much more useful and that she loves tutoring and wouldn’t change it for anything.

Mr. Ed Snider thanked his colleagues and his wife Leigh. He told the audience that he had worked with students from all over the world and that volunteering was a very rewarding experience. He also told the audience that tutoring was like lighting a candle in the darkness for those that cannot read or write and that everyone should do something to eliminate the darkness of illiteracy.

Mr. David Benson thanked the team from the Washington Literacy Council and also reminded the audience to “just do it” by getting involved in tutoring.

Ms. Melinda Frederick, who has been a tutor for over 20 years in Montgomery County, spoke about how personally rewarding the experience has been and that tutoring has allowed her to make a real impact helping her students get better jobs, apply for citizenship and to become more productive.

When asked about what teenagers can do to get directly involved Patti Donnelly, Literacy Director for the Literacy Council of Northern Virginia said that they could help by being aware of human service needs and to create more awareness about adult literacy within their communities.

Ms. Dekebra Arrington, a senior at Northwestern and a four-year MentorCares™ participant was the Mistress of Ceremonies.  Ms. Arrington, who enjoys helping others, shared literacy statistics with the audience and then spoke about the accomplishments of each of the award winners. She then presented the LiteracyCares™ Award of Excellence to each local winner.

The MentorCares™ students also announced plans to gather the local Literacy Directors and their key staffers for a luncheon conference to share and exchange ideas on a regional approach to solving the illiteracy problem. 

The speakers energized and inspired the audience with their passion for literacy and volunteerism. Ms. Diane Butts, Television Manager for Voice of America's Africa Division, spoke passionately about the importance of everyone being able to read and write and encouraged the young people in attendance to make a difference for those in need.

Mr. Vincent Gray, Chairman of the District of Columbia City Council and a lifelong champion of youth and family issues, delivered an inspiring keynote encouraging people of all ages to get directly involved in the literacy issue. He reminded the audience that literacy affects all aspects of life in the District of Columbia and that everyone needed to reach out to those that struggle to read and write.  

Congratulatory letters to the Maryland winners from Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) were read during the event.

Ms. Lula Davis, Executive Director of LeadershipCares™ and the students from the MentorCares™ program presented checks totally $2,000 to the Literacy Council Directors to support their tutor training programs. 

The evening closed with the annual tradition of all participants signing the 2007 LiteracyCares™ Student Quote Board displayed with student quote posters from past years.

Literacy tutors in the Washington D.C. area volunteer thousands of hours each year to help overcome illiteracy and open new worlds to those that struggle with this problem. Volunteer tutors receive training. The tutors enjoy a profound sense of accomplishment and know that their efforts have made a significant difference in the lives of their students.

For more information on literacy issues and how to volunteer as a tutor call:
Literacy Council of Prince Georges County-301-699-9770
Washington Literacy Council- 202-387-9029
Literacy Council of Northern Virginia-703-237-0866
Literacy Council of Montgomery County-301-610-0030

For more information about the LiteracyCares™ Award of Excellence visit the web site at www.leadershipcares.org or phone 301-540-5791