It is a rare gift when the Literacy Council benefits from TWO volunteers from the same household.  Meet Mary Lee and Frank Eberle.  This husband/wife team has made a strong commitment to teaching adults how to read.  Already very active volunteering for several other causes, Frank points to Mary Lee as the inspiration for getting them involved with the Literacy Council.
 
As Mary Lee was approaching retirement, she made a promise to herself to pursue her yearning to help others master reading.  While still working full time, Mary Lee recalled a client she was assisting who did not know how to read.  Mary Lee wanted to help her but could not add another volunteer duty to her already filled schedule.  After retirement Mary Lee spotted one of our flyers announcing an upcoming Volunteer Tutor Training.  She showed it to Frank which ignited his passion for reading.  The two signed up and attended the 12 hour training together, becoming Certified Volunteer Tutors for the agency. 
 
Mary Lee has been paired with a student for the past three years.  She shares that their tutoring relationship has progressed to a "good friends" level.  (This is a common "good hazard" that other student/tutor pairs experience.)
 
Since 2006 Frank has tutored three different students.  He feels he has learned even better tutoring skills from his association with each one.  He told us that when he first signed on with the Literacy Council he had some reservations about being capable enough to tutor others in reading.  He did not need to worry.  Frank quickly realized that Mary Lee had "steered" him towards a very rewarding experience.  When he looks back on the progress that each student made, Frank sees those students achieving individual levels of success and that makes him feel so grateful for becoming a tutor.
 
Both Frank and Mary Lee have observed their students' making great strides in learning how to read.  They shake their heads in wonder as they recall that just a few short years earlier, these very same students, ages ranging from 35 to 69 years old, had kept a deep, dark secret about themselves.  Finally, shamefully admitting, "I cannot read."  Mary Lee glanced at Frank as they recounted those earliest days of tutoring.  She stated, "We feel like the ones who are learning... every tutoring session our students teach us something new."  Frank smiles in agreement.
 
Touch a life, help someone learn how to read, write and spell.  For more information on how to become a tutor contact: Joy Brown - Student/Tutor Liaison, 513.943.3742.  Or email Joy at: joy.brown@clermontbrownliteracy.org.  The next 12-hour Tutor Training will take place over three consecutive Saturdays in March, 2010.