Room to Read Blog

Guest Blog: A Tribute to Dads, A Yak Bell, and a Challenge

This guest blog is by Crystal Wilson, one of two chapter leaders of Room to Read's Seattle Chapter (Seattle was our first Room to Read chapter, started in 1999!).  Crystal has been leading the charge for Room to Read in Seattle since 2007 with much passion and inspiration.  But, she was inspired herself by two sisters half-way across the country who started a Room to Read fundraising campaign in honor of their dad and Crystal wanted to lend her passion to their efforts as well.  Read on to learn more and see her challenge and announcement to us all in honor of Father's Day!

***

Father’s Day is a great time for me to reflect on why I’m a donor to and a fundraising chapter leader for Room to Read (GO SEATTLE!).  And to honor my Dad with a Father’s Day gift (you must read to the end).

I first learned about Room to Read in April, 2006 and immediately started donating.  I love their approach, their business acumen, and their positive, get-it-done attitude.  It wasn’t until a while into my involvement with Room to Read that I realized that what really got me involved was my Dad.  In spite of his background and upbringing (perhaps because of it) he married one of the strongest willed, smartest, prettiest, and most independent women I’ll probably ever know.  And I remember how often he reminded me how great she was.  Although I know he would have loved to have had a son with athletic skills, he adored me and valued the person I was – in spite of my complete lack of athleticism!  He raised me to believe that I could do anything I wanted to in life and that being a girl was just what I was but certainly didn’t dictate any path in life.

I remember being inducted into Honor Society in middle school.  Immediately after the ceremony, he pulled me aside and told me how the induction speeches talked about the honor student and how “he” did this or that.  He…. He…. He….  My Dad said, they kept saying “he” and there were WAY more girls up there than boys.  And then he said, “Fix that!”

After some time with Room to Read, I realized I was involved with the organization because my Dad’s voice was still in the back of my head saying “Fix that!”  Room to Read is fighting illiteracy and gender inequality in education in the developing world head on and through them, I am able to help contribute to “fixing that” by donating money and time in  working with the local chapter to raise funds.   

Last week I heard a story about Robyn and Alyse, two sisters who are honoring their Dad by raising funds for Room to Read.  Their goal is to raise $24,000 to establish six libraries so their Dad can ring the “yak bell” – a tradition Room to Read has when a big announcement is made (and yes, it truly is just a loud bell typically worn by a Nepali yak).  

Check our more of their inspiring story here:
http://yakbell.wordpress.com/. 

Wow, their Dad sounds like one heck of a guy! In their story, you can feel their love for him, not just for how they talk about what he did in raising them but in how they obviously love and value him.  Their story is completely different from mine except for the love and support they got from their Dad.

My Dad died not long after that Honor Society induction but I still hear his voice every day.  He’s the source of most of my inappropriate comments and many of my bad jokes but he’s also the source of my determination to make the world a better place.

So in honor of my Dad, in honor of the many Dad-like influences in my life, in honor of the men in my life who continually impress me by their dedication to and support of their daughters and sons, and in honor of these two sisters and their love for their Dad…I’m making a $24,000 challenge donation.  That means, I’ll match what Robyn and Alyse raise in honor of their Dad so we can build more Room to Read libraries! 

We challenge you to honor your Dad’s by donating to Room to Read in support of these sisters.  Because raising a child, is as much a man’s responsibility as it is a woman’s.  Because of the tremendous influence your Dad (or Dad-like influences) have had in your life.  Because Father’s Day is a great time to say thanks, pay it forward, and give more kids the opportunity for education and advancement. And because I want to be there when Robyn and Alyse’s Dad rings the yak bell! 

Guest Blog: Notes from our Chapter Leadership Conference

Right now, Room to Read is conducting its annual Chapter Leader Conference (the 9th annual), which gives the Room to Read staff the opportunity to bring our chapter leaders up-to-date and to present our vision for the years ahead. It also provides a key forum for chapter leaders to share best practices across their chapters.  Our Boston Chapter Co-Leader, Barb Heffner, shares her impressions of one of the sessions on our Girls' Education program which ties in nicely with this week's celebration of International Women's Day.

***

When I attended my first Chapter Leader Conference last year, I was ill-prepared from a tissue-stocking standpoint. There are so many moments when a Room to Read program staffer shares a story of an individual student, which makes Room to Read’s work come alive (and makes me reach for my Kleenex!)

Emily Leys kicked off the first session which immediately started the tear-jerking moments. Emily is a senior global program officer for Room to Read, leading the Girls’ Education Program -- a personal favorite of mine. Emily has been with the organization for nine years, and she’s just a ball of fire. She graciously gave us an hour of her time and then left directly for the airport, for a trip to Vietnam!

I always value the stats about the difference that girls’ education can make. For example, one study shows that educating an additional 10 percent of the girls in a country boosts the GDP by three percent.

We tend to oversimplify the Girls’ Education program, for shorthand, by describing it as a girls’ scholarship program. But that’s a terrible injustice because it’s so much more than that, and the program’s tremendous success depends on its holistic nature. It includes exam preparation and tutoring, remedial education, transportation where needed, life skills workshops and mentoring. In a nutshell, the program is designed not just to educate a girl in the conventional sense, but also to support the student and equip her for success in life.

The program has been underway for a sufficiently long time now that Room to Read is beginning to see its first graduates! And the success rate has been terrific, with about 98 percent of girls advancing to the next grade. 

One program graduate is now a Room to Read employee in Cambodia, working as a mentor for younger girls. She is bringing the benefits of education full circle, providing the next generation of students with a vibrant role model from their own community.

Another student who has graduated demonstrates the lengths some girls will go to to advocate for themselves. This girl – a member of India’s untouchable caste – was always highly self-motivated. When both of her parents died, she began living with an aunt, who initially did not support her desire to continue her schooling. This young girl went on a hunger strike for three days to show her auntie how very much she wanted to continue her schooling. (Emily was quick to note that Room to Read does not endorse hunger strikes! This occurred before the student became involved in the Girls’ Education program.)

Under the Girls’ Education program, this girl was able to continue her schooling through secondary school. As part of the program, some health care professionals visited one day as part of a career education session. The student was inspired by this visit, and having graduated, she will shortly start university. She aims to be a doctor!

Stories like this one recharge volunteer chapter leaders like me. Time and again, we are reminded that by sheer chance, we were born in a country where education for girls is a right. It is so rewarding to support an organization that is trying to extend that right to deserving girls in the developing world.

-- Barb Heffner, Boston Chapter Co-Leader

To learn more about our Chapter Network, click here.