Re: Nonprofit helps the poor find their voice
H. C. Covington (ach1@sprynet.com)
Sat, 17 Jan 1998 22:34:24 -0600
Forward by Sonny ...........
-----Original Message-----
Date: Saturday, January 17, 1998 9:12 AM
Subject: Nonprofit helps the poor find their voice
http://www.philanthropy-journal.org/nonprof/voices0198.htm
***Nonprofit helps the poor find their voice
VOICES, a nonprofit that teaches reading and writing to low-income adults
and children plans to open an adult magnet school later this year. Called
RISE, the community learning center will use literacy to develop skills in
parenting, job readiness and citizenship. Leslie Waugh reports.
>From the article....
A lot of well-meaning people advocate on behalf of the poor.
But what happens when the poor speak for themselves?
You hear VOICES.
VOICES, a five-year-old nonprofit organization based in Raleigh, is a group
of writers who teach literacy and communication skills to adults and
children in homeless shelters, low-income housing projects, prisons,
day-care centers and government agencies that serve the poor.
But beyond simply teaching the basics of reading and writing, VOICES uses
literacy to show students how to become better parents, how to find jobs
and how to get along with other people.
....
"I've been influenced as a writer by Charles Dickens and as a Catholic by
Mother Teresa," he says. He concedes he's no Mother Teresa, but in VOICES,
he says, "we're dealing with a lot of people whose voices haven't been
heard or mattered.
They're excluded from lots of opportunities and often are unable to speak
for themselves. What I can do is use writing to give others tools to use in
their own lives.
*****
Peace,
John Freund, C.M.
Vincentian Center for Church and Society
St. John's University Jamaica, NY 11439
http://www.stjohns.edu/vincentianctr AND http://www.cptryon.org/vdp
freundjb@stjohns.edu 718 262 8826 Voice 718 262 8695 Fax