FROM THE PRESIDENT Greetings! What a wonderful way to celebrate the International Year of Volunteers-by putting out this commemorative issue of Literacy Connections. As we celebrate this special year, we are also celebrating ourselves-what we do and who we are. Laubach Literacy of Canada (LLC) is a wonderful example of a volunteer literacy organization. The International Year of Volunteers is a way of recognizing, for this one year, what we have always done since we began as an organization back in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia in 1970. Our volunteers are the soul and the spirit of LLC, the driving force of the organization. Where we have been and where we are going reflects the goals and philosophy of our organization, and without our volunteers we have no organization. LLC's volunteers drive every level of the entire organization, whether it be student, tutor, committee member or board member. Our volunteers are making a difference in the lives of many others. We are still changing lives everyday by improving the literacy skills of others. We are meeting these goals and reaching out to achieve new ones. The International Year of Volunteers places its focus on us, the volunteers, for a short time. We are pleased and proud to be recognized by the world community, and at the same time, we remember that our goals are long term and our results are long-reaching. When the International Year of Volunteers is over, we will still be doing what we do best-Each One Teach One. Unita Esau FROM THE PRESIDENT In this the International Year of Volunteers, it gives me great pleasure to salute the volunteers without whom the literacy movement as we know it would not have been possible. Since the inception of Laubach Literacy of Canada (LLC) in 1981, volunteer tutors and trainers have been a vital force in the expansion of the number of literacy councils in Canada, as well as in the United States. The growth of literacy programs in North America has also supported the growth and development of New Readers Press (NRP), the publishing arm of Laubach Literacy International. LLC continues to be the largest customer of NRP reflecting the long history that we share. Laubach Literacy International enters the first decade of the 21st century with additional plans for expansion. Our proposed merger with our largest sister organization in the U.S., Literacy Volunteers of America, Inc., means that we will have even greater capacity to stimulate and support literacy programs in North America. It also means that we will be able to speak in a much louder voice for literacy all over the world. Since none of this would have been possible without the active support and involvement of an impressive cadre of volunteers across the continent, we join LLC in recognizing their contributions and pledge our commitment to continue to solicit and support volunteers who do so much to change the lives of those they serve. Robert Wedgeworth |