Literacy Mile Information

The Valley Community Learning Association is hosting its 6th annual fundraising event, the Literacy Mile, on Saturday, June 19th from 12 – 2 PM at Festival Theatre, 366 Main Street in Wolfville. The Literacy Mile is an opportunity to raise awareness of and support for the literacy needs of Annapolis Valley residents. There will be hot dogs and refreshments for sale, live music, a silent auction, and activities for the whole family. Money raised from our Literacy Mile event will go toward supporting local literacy programming.

Organizers would like to invite everyone to gather at the Festival Theatre, and then walk a mile for literacy. Walkers will have a chance to chalk their donations on the sidewalks. Donations from businesses and organizations will be marked in chalk as well.

This year the Literacy Mile will be preceded by the Provincial Learner Celebration, which will take place from 10am to 12pm. The ceremony is an opportunity to showcase the great breadth and diversity of adult learner achievement in community-based programs across the province. While smaller ceremonies have taken place at individual networks for many years, this is the first province-wide event of this kind to be held in Nova Scotia. If you would like to attend the Provincial Learner Celebration, please call in advance, as seating is limited.

The Valley Community Association is a non-profit organization that helps adults achieve their personal learning goals. Beginning in Kings County in 1989 as the Kings County Learning Association, they now provide a forum for learners, community groups, instructors, tutors, publicly funded agencies and businesses to enhance the literacy levels of our fellow community members and new immigrants in both Kings and Annapolis counties.

For a small organization, the VCLA is having a major impact on the lives and futures of many Valley residents. In the last year, well over 250 learners participated in our diverse programs. Volunteer tutors worked one on one and in small groups, helping people study for their GED so they can find work, improve literacy skills so they can keep their job, read to their children, study the Drivers Handbook to be able to get their driver's license, or just be able to read their own mail.

For more information call 679-5252, or toll-free 1-866-898-7323 or email: vcla@eastlink.ca.