|
|||
 |
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||
Demonstrations of the TelecomPioneers' newest education program,
Power Up To Read, generated positive reviews from those
attending the 2007 TelecomPioneers Annual Meeting at the
Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, CA. Power Up To Read is a high-
tech educational program focusing on improving the reading
skills of 4th and 5th graders. It is a multimedia program
delivered through the Internet, on CD, or in print.
“Developers of the program noted that grades 4 and 5 are pivotal
years in literacy development and this is often a period when
the achievement gap widens,” said Steve Kohn, Vice President of
Verizon TelecomPioneers and Chairman of the TelecomPioneers
Education Committee. “During these years, the focus of
instruction shifts from ‘learning to read’ to ‘reading to
learn.' Children at this grade level are expected to rely on
their reading skills to gather information about other subject
areas. But if reading skills are poor, they often fall behind in
other subjects. Power Up To Read enables Pioneers to provide
positive direction at a very critical point in the education
process.”
Power Up To Read is delivered through the telling of two folks
tales. One is an African Ashanti folktale titled: ““Hungry
Spider and Turtle.” The second book is: “Why the Sun Travels
Slowly Across the Sky,” and it is a Hawaiian legend. Each of the
folk tales is supported by additional information that provides
scientific lessons behind the stories. Additional testing will
be conducted throughout the spring, with an internal launch
scheduled for June. Public release is tentatively scheduled for
August.
|
||||
|
|
||||
|
|
||
Three members of the Kinnard Chapter each received an Individual
Pioneer Excellence Award at the 80th TelecomPioneers Annual
Meeting in Anaheim, CA, for going above and beyond the call of
duty to answer the call of those in need. Life Member Leni
Herr was recognized for helping increase membership,
volunteer participation, and fundraising. She re- established a
disbanded Pioneer Club, founded the chapter website, and
invented an educational game called Lingo. Life Member Sarah
DePaolo and Pioneer Partner Tom DePaolo are the first
husband and wife team to be recognized with Individual
Excellence Awards. Both help organize the annual Sports
Jamboree. Sarah makes Hug-A-Bears and cancer caps, and Tom
delivers them. They are also very involved in fundraising.
In the photo, Sue Epler, Kinnard Chapter president, accepts
the awards on behalf of Leni herr and the DePaolo's, who were
unable to attend the annual meeting.
|
||
|
|
|
|
||
Our Life Member Spotlight is on... Fort Pitt's Talking
Book Volunteers!.
In Western Pennsylvania there are 10,000 customers in 36 counties who depend upon 12 dedicated Life Member Pioneers in Pittsburgh who arrive every Wednesday morning and begin the task of repairing Talking Book cassette players. Those who are visually impaired use this equipment to listen to material they cannot read. The group has been in existence for at least 25 years. Since the Telephone Pioneers were designated the official "Talking Book Repair Group" for the Library of Congress in 1960, Pioneers like the volunteers in this group have repaired more than two million of the special cassette and record players. Bill Adams, who has volunteered for 23 years seems to speak for his fellow volunteers when he says, "It's all about making a difference. We do it because we know we are helping someone. If we were being paid we wouldn't be here. We wouldn't want to do this for money, none of us."
(Photo: standing in back, left to right: Frank Noah, Jack
Goerl, Fred Dolin, Jerry Sestrich, and Burt Kennedy. Middle Row:
Bill Adams, Bill Mancini, and Paul Tumalo. Seated: Fritz Selden
and Tom Masterson.)
|
||
|
|
|
|
||
Last fall, the EB8 LM Club of the Nova 5 Chapter, located in
Bronx, NY, collected almost 5,000 school supply donations,
including bookbags, dictionaries, calculators, notebooks,
pencils, glue, and rulers. These supplies were given to needy
children through Little Sisters of the Assumption Family Health
Services (LSAFHS). "The response of the Pioneers was
overwhelming and is a manifestation of the charitable and
compassionate spirit that lives in each member," said Elsie
Sanchez, program director of the LSAFHS.
|
||
|
|
|
|
||
By: Deb Foley, president, W.J. Denver Chapter
I received a call from a gentleman called "Pat" a couple weeks ago. Pat lives in Rhode Island, but in a round about way, found my number through an operator in Maine. Pat was a driven man. He wanted to say "thank you" so much to the Pioneers for a Heart Pillow he had received six weeks prior when he received open heart surgery. Pat told me his Heart Pillow was the best thing he could have received. It helped to soften the blow each time he coughed or laughed. He just couldn't say thank you enough. Before we hung up, I told him I was glad he was on the mend and then he said to me, "I have a Verizon phone, Verizon DSL, Verizon cell phone and now I have a Verizon Heart." That made my day complete! Many thanks to the Woonsocket Club in Rhode Island and their continued efforts to make Heart Pillows to comfort people like Pat. |
||
|
|
|
|
||
During a break in the 2007 TelecomPioneers Annual Meeting awards
ceremony, actor Gary Sinise delivered a moving tribute to
disabled veterans. As spokesperson for the proposed American
Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial, Mr. Sinise spoke with
passion of the need to support this project. “It is important to
remember that of the 26 million American veterans living across
the world today, three million are permanently disabled from
injuries suffered in our nation’s defense,” Sinise said. “For
their sake, it is precisely this value and cost we seek to honor
and uphold in our proposed design for the American Veterans
Disabled for Life Memorial. It cannot be stressed enough how
important it is to recognize the sacrifices that our country’s
disabled veterans have made on behalf of us all.”
The Disabled Veterans' Life Memorial Foundation was created in
1998 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit to raise the estimated $65
million in private funds needed to design, build and permanently
maintain the Memorial. The Memorial will command an impressive
location adjacent to the National Mall and within full view of
the Capitol Building. The Memorial’s proximity to the Capitol
will serve as a constant reminder to America’s representatives
of the true cost of conflict.
Mr. Sinise asked the TelecomPioneers for fundraising support.
For more information, contact your chapter president and visit
the Memorial's website at
http://www.avdlm.com/.
|
||
|
|
|
|
||
The Verizon TelecomPioneers would like to express its
appreciation to the Verizon Foundation for providing customized
bookplates to the chapters' Education Committees. These
bookplates are being placed in all the dictionaries and books
the Verizon TelecomPioneers distribute to schools and non-profit
organizations. These bookplates are a terrific reminder to the
recipients of our donations of Verizon's commitment to
education.
|
||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Our Estore manager would like to hear your recommendations on new products. Please e-mail bruceyennie@verizon.net with your feedback.
|