FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
The Leadership Cares Foundation
10181 Nightingale Street
Gaithersburg MD 20882
Contact: Ron Yudd (301) 540-5791
Lula Davis (202) 224-7595
THE LEADERSHIP CARES FOUNDATION PRESENTS ITS ANNUAL LITERACY CARES  AWARD OF EXCELLENCE TO LOCAL VOLUNTEER LITERACY TUTORS. 

Washington D.C., October 15th 2003. The Leadership Cares Foundation presented its annual Literacy Cares Award of Excellence to four local literacy tutors that volunteer through Literacy Councils in the greater Washington D.C. area. The awards were presented at a dinner held in their honor at the Capital Hilton Hotel, 16th and K Street NW on Friday October 10th, 2003. 

"This award brings attention to the dedication of volunteers that work tirelessly to provide instruction in reading and writing to countless individuals in our area. It also showcases the continued need for volunteers to step forward and give the gift of literacy," says Lula Davis, Executive Director of the Leadership Cares Foundation. 

The four award winners were Ms. Emma Afzul from the Literacy Council of Northern Virginia, Ms. Sandra Johnson of the Washington Literacy Council, Ms. Julia White from the Literacy Council of Prince George's County and Ms. Lucia Bragan from the Literacy Council of Montgomery County, 

Each award winner thanked Leadership Cares and their Literacy Council and spoke briefly about their experience as a tutor. Ms. Emma Afzul talked about understanding the needs of her students because she felt the same way when she first came to the Untied States. Ms. Sandra Washington talked about encouraging others to get involved as tutors. Ms. Andrianna Stuart accepting for Ms. Julia White thanked her Counsel and spoke about the rewards of teaching another person how to read and write. Ms. Lucia Bragan told the audience about a class she once took and the professor saying if you really want to make a difference go and teach someone to read and write. This experience got her started as a tutor and then a tutor trainer.

Young people interested in literacy issues assisted in running the event. These young people are students at Northwestern High School in Prince Georges County, MD and are participating in the Mentor Cares program. They interviewed the literacy directors on how young people could become more involved in volunteering, acted as escorts for the honorees, operated the registration table and presented the keynote speaker with a Leadership Cares T-Shirt.

The keynote speaker, Major General Alfonso Lenhardt, retired U.S. Army and former Sergeant-at-Arms for the United States Senate, energized and inspired the audience with his call to service. He spoke of the importance of mentoring and tutoring and told the audience that much of his success was based on the fact that others reached out and helped him when he was young. He spoke passionately about how critical literacy is to our democracy and the future of our country. Al encouraged all the volunteers to keep up their important work in mentoring and teaching others to read and write and reminded them that they were truly making a difference.

Ms. Jane Oates, Education Adviser to Senator Ted Kennedy thanked the Literacy groups for their work and spoke about the need to bring more support from Washington to their missions.

A letter from Senator Barbara Mikulski was read congratulating Ms. Lucia Bragan the Literacy Cares Award of Excellence winner from Montgomery County, MD.

Ms. Lula Davis, Executive Director of Leadership Cares presented a check in the amount of $500 to each Literacy Council director for their Tutor Training Programs. 

The evening closed with all the participants signing the 2003 Literacy Cares Student Quote Board that was displayed with quote posters from past events.

Literacy tutors in the Washington D.C. area volunteer thousands of hours each year to help overcome illiteracy and open new worlds to those that struggle with this problem. Tutors receive training and then teach others to read and write. The tutors enjoy a profound sense of accomplishment and know that their efforts have made a significant difference in the lives of their students.

For more information on literacy issues and how to volunteer as a tutor call:
Literacy Council of Northern Virginia-703-237-0866
Literacy Council of Montgomery County-301-942-9292
Literacy Council of Prince Georges County-301-699-9770
Washington Literacy Council- 202-387-9029

For more information about the Literacy Cares Award of Excellence and the Leadership Cares Foundation visit the web site at www.leadershipcares.org or phone 301-540-5791.