Volunteer literacy nonprofit has positive impact for Washington County

HAGERSTOWN, Md. ( DC News Now ) — A nonprofit in Hagerstown is helping residents with their reading skills.

Thanks to volunteers with the Literacy Council of Washington County , learning to read is helping many people get jobs and is making a positive difference in the lives of residents.

According to Leah Green with the Washington County Literacy Council, far too many residents in Hagerstown lack basic reading skills, an impediment to getting a job or even being able to follow directions on a bottle of prescription medication.

Green said many in her literacy program “didn’t have a good chance in life or they quit high school.”

“Well, you know, things happen,” Green said.

Gary Mango devotes time to Washington County’s Literacy Council. He moved to Hagerstown from Prince George’s County, where he was a volunteer tutor.

“I like to see people succeed,” Mango said. “I have a couple of degrees but I wouldn’t have gotten this far unless people had helped me, so I figure I give back some.”

Mango said he never realized how “rewarding” the work was.

“The people are really appreciative and I met a lot of interesting people and heard a lot of interesting stories, so it’s been good for me too,” he said.

Literacy Council President Becky Hein relates how she tutored an adult with a kindergarten reading level.

“He went from not having a job at all to being a supervisor for a cleaning crew,” Hein said. “So just the self-esteem that we give people is just huge in terms of what happens in their lives.”

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