As we reflect on all that we are thankful for this season, we want to take a moment to thank YOU, our incredible READ USA friends and supporters! Your continued support and fellow commitment to our mission helps us, every day, move the needle closer to solving illiteracy.

We are immensely grateful for every READ USA tutor, teacher, administrator, volunteer, donor, and community partner for your dedication to creating a brighter future for every child through literacy.

We wish you a happy Thanksgiving filled with fun, memories, laughter, and joy!

-Team READ USA

Jeremy Meets a White House Visitor

When Kevin Gay received his first phone call from the White House, he didn’t believe it, he told Jeremy for his new Jeremy’s Journey biography. So, he told President Bush’s assistant that he was “going to be busy for the next year and a half…can you call back then?”

Turns out, it wasn’t his sister, Julie, playing a joke on him (like he thought). It was a legitimate request – the first of several that were to come – to visit the sitting President of the United States at the White House to discuss the transformational model he founded at Operation New Hope.

Operation New Hope, since Kevin founded it in 1999, has helped create a new life for more than 13,000 people who were formerly incarcerated. The organization is focused on providing second chances at life through job and life-skills training and other reintegration services. And due to its success, it caught the attention of President George W. Bush in 2002, which led to grant funding to launch the Ready4Work program. Since that time, Ready4Work has spread to 16 other cities across the country and six cities in Florida. It is what also led to him meeting former presidents Clinton and Obama and former Vice President Mike Pence.

It all started with Kevin wanting to make a difference in his community, a personal mission that mirrored his upbringing by his parents who were “determined to leave the world better than they found it,” Kevin told Jeremy. His dad, who was also the first chairman of the TPC (Tournament Players Championship), which today donates millions of dollars to charity, “passed that philosophy on to me,” added Kevin.

Kevin’s work at Operation New Hope has also garnered international attention. In 2018, he met Dr. Makaziwe Mandela, Nelson Mandela’s oldest daughter, in South Africa. In return, she and her daughter came to Jacksonville in 2019 to celebrate Nelson Mandela International Day, honoring Kevin with the House of Mandela Reflecting Freedom Award for Community Impact for creating a model program for the world.

In addition to his life- and community-building work at Operation New Hope, Kevin has served on numerous community and nonprofit boards and has received multiple awards. For his accomplishments and for crediting reading for much of his success, READ USA honored Kevin as our 2023 READ to be Free Award recipient. And although Kevin is now enjoying a hard-earned retirement, he has continued to stay engaged in Operation New Hope and across the Jacksonville community.

As he told Jeremy, he will continue – just like his father – “doing all he can to make the world a better place than he found it!”

Kevin’s Jeremy’s Journey book is available to pre-order for a $20 donation! Place your order today and READ USA will contact you when the books have arrived at our office.

READ USA at the 2024 TEACH Conference

This past weekend, our Chief Tutoring Officer Tabetha Cox presented at the TEACH Conference to a full room of educators!

The focus of her breakout session, titled “Text Comprehension: From Low Cognitive Complexity to Deep Critical Thinking,” addressed how the connection between reading comprehension and writing should start as soon as a student can put a pencil in their hand. She discussed how educators can use writing as a cross-curricular strategy to build reading comprehension and provided real-world scenarios for teachers to model in their classrooms.

“Writing is very process-focused,” explained Tabetha, “and it starts in kindergarten. My goal was to present teachers with strategies I have successfully used to build reading comprehension through read alouds, group readings, and other means to get a conversation flowing about a topic. As educators we then build upon those discussions and gradually ask students to put those conversations on paper. All of this reinforces and builds comprehension.”

Needless to say, Tabetha’s message resonated strongly with the packed room of teachers! We are grateful to everyone who attended and shared positive feedback with Tabetha and READ USA!

READ USA Board Member Vincent Taylor also served as the Afternoon Keynote Speaker. He delivered his hallmark presentation, “If Instruction Isn’t Engaging, I Quit!” which he has presented to more than 60,000 educators across multiple school districts, conferences, and universities over the years. As a nearly 30-year educator, Vincent has received numerous awards for his work – and he sure knows how to make sure that his presentation – you guessed it – is highly engaging! From music and singing to audience interaction, Vincent kept the energy alive through the very end of this year’s TEACH Conference.

Thank you to WJCT Public Media and VyStar Credit Union for hosting this year’s TEACH Conference, and to the many sponsors and exhibitors who made it a success! READ USA was honored and grateful to participate.

Licorice, Lollipops, and Literacy at Biltmore!

Thank you, Principal Williams and Biltmore Elementary School, for inviting READ USA to join your Family Literacy Night last week!

Although our Literacy Tutoring program runs later into the evening, we adjusted our schedule so that our tutors could lend a hand at the event. Students were able to go from one craft table to another, pick out free books, and enjoy food – all while embracing literacy and books in a fun and interactive way!

Thank you again to the team at Biltmore Elementary School and our teen tutors for making this such a fun event!

#GT: Give the Gift of Literacy and Join the READ USA Book Club

For this year’s #GivingTuesday, you can improve lives through literacy!

For only $30 a month, you are directly giving two children, two books, every month. At READ USA, we do free book events year-round. By joining the Book Club, you make possible the free books that we give to children with extremely limited access and means!

Many children in low-income homes have zero books at home. With no books of choice to enjoy and practice their reading skills, they are more apt to fall behind. As the adage goes, the more you read, the better you get! This is precisely why READ USA provides book choice and ownership to children year-round.

Through the Book Club, your monthly support has a direct impact on the lives of young readers.

Children’s Book: Sallie Bee Writes a Thank-You Note by Courtney Sheinmel and Susan Verde

Illustrated by Heather Ross

Sallie receives a handmade scarf from her grandmother and learns to write her very first thank-you note. She loves showing thanks so much that she begins thanking everyone in town for all the things she is grateful for. She sees opportunities for thankfulness with the crossing guard, the lunch lady, and even her brother for keeping his tarantula, Cuddles, caged all day.

In addition to highlighting the need for thankfulness and gratitude – fitting for November – children learn tips on how to write a great thank-you note. Sallie Bee Writes a Thank-You Note is sure to teach important lessons about kindness and community.

Submitted by Kathi Hart, READ USA Lead Content Teacher