Summer got a little crazy. Schedules and an out of town surgery for Andy got us a little behind on our commitment to provide some funding and awesome exposure for our local non profit organizations that work so incredibly hard to make the quality of life as even as it can be for others who need the help. Literacy is one of the areas of the most urgent need and since inception, Read Muskegon has been an absolute powerhouse for those who need help with basic literacy as well as English as a second language and more. Melissa Moore from Read Muskegon joins us today to get us caught up on how this remarkable organization has grown and who they have served.
While most of us take the ability to read, even basically, for granted, the inability to read and comprehend for countless people in our area and our country is a reality. From the Read Muskegon website, "One in six adults in the United States is functionally illiterate, reading at or below the 4th grade level. In Muskegon County, that translates to more than 23,000 adults. The adverse effects of illiteracy are felt in our economic, education, criminal justice, and healthcare systems. Read Muskegon is breaking the generational cycle of illiteracy by providing customized programs that meet the unique needs of our learners and building community partnerships to maximize our impact." As you can see, it's a much deeper problem than people not being able to read a menu or traffic signs. Read Muskegon has not only been at the forefront of education, they work heavily in advocacy too to help those who set policy to understand just how detrimental it is when we have a large percentage of the population of the area functionally illiterate.
As they have grown from an idea to a remarkable and dynamic organization that reaches so many, they have gone from a corner office in the upstairs of a church to a building on Broadway in Muskegon Heights and another growth spurt is about to hit when they move to the corner of Peck and Broadway in the future. A corner space and a much bigger location will add to the visibility of the group as well as the aesthetics of Downtown Muskegon Heights where there is also a big rebirth going on.
We talk about the growth, programming and outreach of Read Muskegon with Melissa and find out more about the big party coming up that Muskegon Rotary is putting on at the Culinary Institute of Michigan October 26th with a goal of raising $10k for Read Muskegon. CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS TO THE ROATRY HARVEST FEST. With the generosity of Scherdel Sales and Technology and Tabono Law....they are $1000 ahead already!
