Literacy Partnership Award

Presented by: Green Bay Packers Give Back
 

This award is given to an agency, corporation, business, or foundation that partners with Literacy Green Bay to advance our mission of adult literacy. The 2021 recipient is The Greater Green Bay Community Foundation. Congratulations!

 

The Green Bay Community Foundation has been a consistent pillar of support for Literacy Green Bay and a strong advocate of our mission. They truly understand the importance of literacy as a foundation for success for individuals, families and the entire community. The Greater Green Bay Community Foundation has helped promote Literacy Green Bay and other local nonprofits in many ways, but most notably by hosting the annual Give BIG Green Bay crowdsourcing event. We are so grateful for their support and look forward to our continued partnership for years to come.
 

Irene Daniell Kress Literacy Advocate Award

Presented by: George Kress Foundation

This award, named in honor of Billie Kress, honors an individual, company, or institution that promotes literacy and our local community. The 2021 recipients are Sue and Ed Tucker.

 

This couple has been a long-time supporter of Literacy Green Bay. Both Ed and Sue are literacy tutors to adult learners. Ed is also a Citizenship Tutor and also serves as a tutor within the TrANS constructional training program. Sue volunteers as a Student Evaluator, providing the important function of testing and evaluating learners. They have shown consistent volunteerism through their passionate advocacy for adult literacy. Thank you, Sue and Ed, for making a difference and leaving your mark in our community.

 

Evie Jensen Spirit Award

Presented by: JBS/UFCW local 1473

This award recognizes the joyful and compassionate spirit of our late friend and first employee of Literacy Green Bay, Evie Jensen. The 2021 recipient is Michael Fox! Congratulations!

 

Literacy Green Bay has been so fortunate to have Michael as a part of our Board. He went above and beyond during his entire term on the board, helping ensure our special events were a success. He was especially crucial in helping us pivot from an in-person Scrabble Bee fundraiser, to a brand new fully virtual Trivia Bee. We could not have made this unexpected change to our biggest annual event with as much ease without his expertise and assistance. We appreciate you, Michael, and all that you have done for Literacy Green Bay. Thank you!

 

Lifetime of Literacy Award

Presented by: Quality Insulators

The Lifetime of Literacy Award honors an individual who has been directly involved with the work of Literacy Green Bay for 20 years or more. The 2021 recipient is Laurie Laurent-Hyland.

Laurie started her journey with Literacy Green Bay in 1997 as a tutor. She was later hired as a staff member in 1999. She has worked in numerous roles throughout the organization, including her current position as computer lab instructor. Passionate, caring, welcoming and friendly, Laurie has been one of our strongest advocates, and a beloved member of our Literacy Green Bay family. Literacy Green Bay wouldn’t be what it is today without Laurie’s influence over the past 24 years! We are proud to present this award to Laurie!

 

Volunteer of the Year Award

Presented by: Wisconsin Public Service

The Volunteer of the Year award honors an individual who demonstrates a commitment to furthering the mission of Literacy Green Bay through volunteerism and has accumulated over 50 hours for volunteering this year. Our 2021 recipient is Kathy Rohde.

 

Kathy began volunteering as a member of the Board of Directors in 2015. In an effort to become more familiar with the agency’s mission, Kathy signed up for tutor training and began meeting with her English language learner in 2016. She and Maria have continued to meet, and recently celebrated their 5th anniversary of studying! In the past year, Kathy has also trained to be a student evaluator and volunteers one day a week at the Literacy Green Bay office completing various behind the screen tasks which are so important to our operations. She also generously supports Literacy Green Bay with financial contributions and advocacy. We are grateful for Kathy’s dedication to our mission!

 

Outstanding Adult Learner of the Year

Presented by: Schreiber foods

This award honors an adult learner within our Adult Tutoring Program and gives recognition of significant achievements as a result of increased literacy. The 2021 recipient is Octaviano Ulloa.

 

Octaviano became a learner at Literacy Green Bay in May of 2018 when he began in our Intro level English class. He quickly advanced through Intro, Level 1, then level 2 and was then assigned a tutor. Although Octaviano was born in California, he grew up in Mexico with little exposure to the English language. After completing high school and one year of college in Mexico he came to the U.S. for better economic opportunities. He has been diligently studying English several times per week in class and with his tutor while also juggling both full and part time work as well as home and family responsibilities. Even during layoffs resulting from the pandemic, he remained positive and showed resilience. He has made incredible strides in improving his English vocabulary, pronunciation and writing abilities. A strong family man who has aspirations of becoming a deacon in his church, Octaviano is proud of his Hispanic heritage and believes that the United States is a family that should come together as “one culture”. We couldn’t agree more. Octaviano we are so proud of you!

 

Outstanding Children First Family Literacy Learner

Presented by: U.S. Ventures

This award honors a GED learner from the CFFL program who models endurance and a positive attitude while on their journey to a brighter future through acquisition of a GED. The 2021 recipient is Lorena Cortes Rodriguez.

 

Lorena originally enrolled in the Children First Family Literacy program in 2013. She has been forced to take many breaks throughout her educational journey to attend to the ups and downs of life’s events, but despite these disruptions, she has always remained steadfast in her determination to complete her GED and embraced her learning every step of the way. Courage – fortitude – positivity: these are the words her teachers and classmates use to describe Lorena. In the past year, she contracted COVID-19 twice, traveled back and forth to Mexico for her husband’s immigration issues and gave birth to a beautiful baby boy, all while continuing to study virtually for her final GED test! Congratulations to Lorena on being the recipient of this year’s Outstanding CFFL Learner!

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English Language Learner of the Year

Sponsored by: American Foods Group

This award recognizes the achievements made by an English Language Learner who is currently enrolled in or who began in our ELL classes. We are proud to announce Saadia Jadoud as the 2021 winner!

 

Saadia came to the U.S. from Morocco in (YEAR) at the age of (AGE) without a high school education or English skills and lacking self-confidence. However she has a passion for community involvement and didn’t want to be unable to communicate in her new community. At the beginning of 2021 she set a goal of being able to have face-to-face conversations in English by the end of the year. She also wants to join the workforce and become involved in volunteer activities in her new community. To enable herself to reach these goals she enrolled in English Language Learning classes at Literacy Green Bay in May of 2019 and has been very dedicated to her studies. She spends 4 to 5 hours per day studying English using textbooks and other resources. Saadia has made significant gains in a very short time, steadily increasing in her speaking and reading test scores. The education and interactions she has had at Literacy Green Bay have allowed her to develop social skills and self-esteem. This is evident by in her willingness to volunteer answers during class, her efforts to talk to her neighbors in English, and to interact with others at stores and restaurants. Saadia’s family is very proud of her and so are all of us at Literacy Green Bay!

 

 

U.S. Citizenship Scholarship Recipient:

Presented by: Green Bay Area Exchange Club

The U.S. Citizenship Scholarship Recipient this year is Olga Wakker! Congratulations.