Last week, we introduced our new AmeriCorps Tutor Leaders, and this week we are making another introduction: Meet our new VISTA members!

Ronnie Gadio (Right, above) and Elijah Lane (Left, above), both students at the University of North Florida, officially began their new roles at READ USA this week through the AmeriCorps Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) program.

This paid service opportunity will give both Ronnie and Elijah professional hands-on experience while adding capacity to READ USA, helping further position the organization to scale and grow.

And for those of you who might recognize Ronnie’s name: yes, he is the same young man who previously served as a READ USA tutor when he was in high school, who used what he learned as a tutor to help his father learn English! We are thrilled to have Ronnie “back” with READ USA, but in an entirely new capacity!

Ronnie is now a sophomore at UNF, majoring in Business, and his past experience as a READ USA tutor will serve him very well: Ronnie’s VISTA role is Tutor Recruitment Associate! Who better to help READ USA engage and recruit local teens to become tutors than a former tutor himself?!

In fact, Ronnie appeared on River City Live earlier this year to help READ USA—you guessed it—recruit tutors! You can watch that segment and hear directly from Ronnie HERE.

Elijah, a junior at UNF majoring in Business Intelligence, will serve as a Volunteer Recruitment Associate, helping READ USA to create, implement, and evaluate volunteer recruitment strategies.

Similar to the Tutor Recruitment Associate, both positions are measured over four phases during the year-long service opportunity, with both Elijah and Ronnie creating new strategies, tools, and resources for READ USA to use in perpetuity to strengthen our volunteer and tutor recruitment efforts.

As with other AmeriCorps programs, both Ronnie and Elijah will be eligible for an education award upon successful completion of their service in January next year and receive additional benefits as AmeriCorps members.

Please join us in welcoming Ronnie and Elijah to their VISTA positions at READ USA!

A Legacy of Service: Celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day!  

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., left behind many legacies, and one that continues to resonate strongly across America to this day is his legacy of calling people to serve their communities and fellow man.

In fact, it will be 58 years ago next month that Dr. King delivered one of his many famous sermons at Ebenezer Baptist Church, where he explained that true greatness comes from serving others, stating:

“Everybody can be great, because everybody can serve. ... You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.”

To continue honoring Dr. King’s dedication to serving others, people across the nation will come together this Saturday, January 17, for a Day of Service.

Our AmeriCorps Tutor Leaders have volunteered at the MLK Breakfast for several years now. 

Locally, hundreds of volunteers will come together through the United Way of Northeast Florida to support projects ranging from food distribution to garden installations, home repairs for seniors, and more. Per the United Way, each project in Duval, Clay, and Nassau counties was “selected in collaboration with the community to reflect its most urgent needs.”

You can be a part of Dr. King’s legacy and join your neighbors during this Saturday’s Day of Service!

In partnership with AmeriCorps, a READ USA funder, the United Way has assembled these organizations and projects needing community support:

It’s also not too late to join the 39^th Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Breakfast this Friday, Jan. 16! Click here to purchase tickets to attend one of the most inspirational annual community events in Jacksonville.

And if you do go, say hello to our READ USA AmeriCorps Team Leaders who will be volunteering at the event! We look forward to seeing you there!

#FastFact Wednesday: National Mentoring Month   

Children’s Book: The Mitten by Jan Brett  

Written and illustrated by Jan Brett

In The Mitten, Jan Brett retells a folktale about a young boy named Nicki who loses his white mitten in the snow. One by one, a variety of forest animals discover the mitten and crawl inside to stay warm. As the mitten fills up—with a mole, rabbit, hedgehog, owl, badger, fox, bear, and finally a tiny mouse—it stretches more and more. When the mouse’s tickling whiskers make the bear sneeze, all the animals burst out, and Nicki later finds his mitten stretched wide but still intact.  

Jan Brett’s illustrations play a very important part in the story. The border illustrations offer visual foreshadowing, encouraging children to make predictions before turning the page. This helps build critical thinking and inference skills as children learn that pictures can provide meaning beyond the main text. Parents can pause during reading to ask, “What do you notice in the border?” or “Who do you think will come next?”

The Mitten introduces children to folklore traditions and offers an opportunity to talk about how stories are passed down across generations and cultures. This can help children understand that stories come from many places and reflect different traditions.

The Mitten is an engaging, multi-layered story that makes it an excellent read-aloud choice for young readers.

Submitted by Melanie Poag, READ USA Content Assistant