Community leaders and volunteers will join Black Press and the Columbia Basin Alliance for Literacy on Oct. 8 to raise awareness about the importance of literacy and to celebrate the power literacy has in the Elk Valley.
The fifth annual Reach a Reader campaign will raise funds for Elk Valley community-based literacy programs.
Statistics indicate that up to 45 per cent of B.C.’s adult population has difficulty with some daily living tasks - due in part to limited literacy skills. These adults could have difficulty with reading a newspaper, filling out an application form, reading a map, or understanding a lease.
In the Elk Valley funds will help support family and adult literacy programs. Literacy programs help people to gain the skills needed to be successful in their life, work and community.
“As a field we are proud of the work we do, not just because it feels good, but because the work has a meaningful and long reaching impact on the individuals who participate in literacy programs and that in turn benefits the community, the region and beyond”, said Desneiges Profili, Regional Program Manager in a press release.
You can support the Reach a Reader campaign by making a donation in exchange for a special edition of The Free Press on Oct. 8.
Volunteers will be on the street with papers in hand at various locations throughout town.
For more information contact the Community Literacy Coordinator at elkvalleycoordinator@cbal.org or go to Cbal.org/elkvalley.