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"Like most people, I just assumed that everyone could read.  Public service announcement statistics on illiteracy really opened my eyes to the reality of the problem.  I contacted ProLiteracy America and found out that if I could read I could teach.  I have been a tutor now for almost a year and it is one of the most rewarding volunteer efforts I have ever been involved with.  My students have been so very grateful for the opportunity to learn and my reward has been in knowing that I played a small part in their accomplishments".
-- Carol Plasha, August 2006

"As a person who reads anything put in front of me, I feel a need to spread the skill of reading to those who need help. The Siena Literacy Center is a great, supportive environment in which I can be of assistance."
-- Bill McKnight, October 2010

"The ability to read is basic to modern life. It is also a wonderful gift. I find joy in being able to share this gift with people who want to learn. I also enjoy working with helpful, delightful people."
-- Edie McKnight, October 2010

"Often young adults do not recognize the importance that math plays in one's life on a daily basis. As a math tutor, coming to the Siena Literacy Center 3 years ago, I was concerned that I would encounter an apathy towards learning math because people often do fail to recognize its importance. Much to my delight I discovered the adult learners at the center have a strong desire to improve their math skills making my job as a tutor rewarding, interesting, and enjoyable."
-- Everette Keith, October 2010

"Siena Literacy Center is so much more than its name indicates.  Women and men of varied ages, cultures and ethnicities come to the Center asking for help with reading, math and/or language skills.  Soon learners and tutors alike realize they have found a peace-filled haven where they are respected, loved, supported, and valued for who they are.   I am honored to be part of the Siena Literacy Center Family!"
-- Helen Sohn, OP, December 2010

"Tutoring has given me an opportunity to give back and work with those who need a little guidance and direction to accomplish their goals despite the struggles they have experienced.  Encouragement builds self-confidence and that is what I try to instill in my students.  I am grateful for the opportunity to make a difference in someone’s life."
-- Andrea Tucker, December 2010

"One day while my student was writing, I turned my ears toward some of the conversations in the room.  One tutor asked his student how old her children were – the oldest, I remember, was in middle school.  “That is great,” the tutor said, “because now you’re doing math at the same level he is.”  And the student replied this was the reason she had come to the Siena Literacy Center, to improve her skills so she could help her children with their homework.  It is just one of the reasons I love volunteering here as a tutor, you get a chance to meet so many heroes, like this mother."
-- Candace Stanton-Layne, December 2010

"It has been my privilege and pleasure to have volunteered at the Center for five or more years.  During that time, I have met and worked with many students who wanted to upgrade their reading skills.  There is no better reward than to see a student who has learned sounds and combinations of sounds, put those elements together and read."
-- Willa Mackey, December 2010

"I have been a tutor at the Siena Literacy Center for over four years. For me, this has been an extraordinary opportunity to make a difference. The student I have been tutoring was able to vote for the first time in his life during the presidential election of 2008. Those who tutor at this center combat a problem that is at the root of so many ills in the Detroit metropolitan area: Illiteracy. We are committed to win-one word and one student at a time."
-- Sharon Mills, January 2011