metro » GO ALL IN with a CD from Talmer Bank And turning the page on illiteracy. Vivian Henoch | Special to the Jewish News D ear Reader … Imagine how it would feel if the words on this page looked like nothing more than a jumble of letters. Imagine — if only for a moment — living your life with the inability to read beyond the level of a fourth-grader. Just imagine not being able to read to your own child. Feeding the community’s need to read while raising funds for literacy programs to benefit thousands of school children and adults alike, Bookstock — Metro Detroit’s Biggest & Best Used Book Sale — returns to Laurel Park in Livonia, Sunday, May 15, through Sunday, May 22. A project of the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC), which serves as its institutional home, Bookstock marks its 14th year generating more than $1 million in proceeds to benefit reading programs in schools and adult educational projects throughout the city of Detroit as well as Wayne and Oakland counties. BUILDING BETTER READERS As you browse through Bookstock for your pleasure in May, note that one of many projects, which your purchase supports, is JCRC’s work on behalf of literacy — work that goes on year-round throughout the community. Literally, tons of books are col- lected, sorted and sold each year, thanks to more than 800 volunteers who work together to organize and staff the sale. After the sale each year, charities are invited to collect the unsold books and put them back into the hands of readers through their nonprofit organizations. Bookstock’s partner organizations include Akiva Hebrew Day School, BBYO, Brandeis University, Delta Kappa Gamma, Frankel Jewish Academy, Hadassah-Greater Detroit Chapter, Hillel Day School PTO, Jewish Community Center of Metropolitan Detroit, JCRC, Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit Women’s Philanthropy, National Council of Jewish Women, Oakland Literacy Council and ORT America. 1.10% APY* 11-month CD 800.456.1500 talmerbank.com * Annual Percentage Yield (APY) of 1.10% is accurate as of May 2, 2016. The minimum balance to open a CD and earn the advertised APY is $1,000, which must be deposited in a single transaction. Maximum allowable deposit is $250,000 per account. Offer applies to personal accounts only and may be discontinued at any time. Deposits must be new money (funds not currently on deposit at Talmer Bank and Trust). A penalty may be imposed for early withdrawals. At maturity, the CD will automatically renew at the rate in effect on that date, unless you instruct us otherwise. Visit talmerbank.com for current rates, terms and account requirements. 2096650 18 May 5 • 2016 Taking Stock Of Bookstock … BEYOND BOOKSTOCK The literacy programs and coalitions that benefit from Bookstock are far-reaching, enlisting hundreds of volunteer tutors, educators and nonprofit organizations throughout the region. Two programs established through the partnerships Bookstock has forged include: • Detroit Jewish Coalition for Literacy (DJCL), a project of JCRC, annually recruits, trains and mobilizes volunteers as tutors for grades K-3 at 40 schools through- out Detroit and Oakland County. Through Bookstock funding, DJCL has worked with the nonprofit Southwest Solutions to estab- lish tutoring partnerships with Bennett, Durfee and Earhart elementary schools as well as many others under Detroit Public Schools. Programs are being planned at Harms and Priest elementary schools. • NCJW, a Bookstock partner, runs a “Back to School Store” each fall. Last year, its Backpack Project donated nearly 1,000 filled back packs to homeless children. NCJW volunteers also tutor at Coleman E. Young School in Detroit, where they have purchased supplies for the tutors as well as some materials for the library. Launched in 2012, the Bookstock Fund now sponsors a variety of micro-grants to schools as well as reading programs, book clubs and learning curriculums. With a recent grant to Michigan Reads, Bookstock funds bought 1,200 copies of the book Annie’s Ghosts: A Journey into a Family Secret so that the students could participate in the program. A VISIT TO BENNETT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL Walk through the bright blue doors of Bennett Elementary School on Mullane Street and immediately you know what brings volunteer tutors to class each week with their arms filled with books. It’s the kids! Hungry to learn. And the teachers — giving them their all. And the need for all to succeed. Located in the heart of Springwells Village — a vibrant, culturally rich neigh- borhood in Southwest Detroit and home to nearly 17,000 residents — Bennett Elementary serves more than 500 students in grades pre-K-5. Additionally, the school provides a hub for community activities, English as a Second Language tutoring and other adult classes and workshops. Between 70 and 80 percent of the stu- dents at Bennett are fluent in Spanish or Arabic, with English a second language spoken in their homes. For many of these children, learning to read can be a struggle. With the goal to build a bridge between the Jewish community and a close-knit Latino community in Detroit, the DJCL found a perfect match at Bennett through the advice of Ruby Robinson, supervising attorney with the Michigan Immigration Rights Center. “Bennett has been exceptionally welcoming to our volunteers,” says Sue Birnholtz, DJLC chair. Working with Community School Site Coordinator Kaity Nicastri, Birnholtz implemented a work- able program, setting a regular schedule Volunteers welcome! For more information on Bennett School or other programs of the Detroit Jewish Coalition Literacy, call Sandy Lippitt, literacy programs coordinator, at (248) 642-2649 or slippitt@jfmd.org. For more about Bookstook, call the Bookstock hotline (248) 645-7840, ext. 365 or visit bookstock.mi.org. for tutors two days a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays in two shifts, 10-11:30 a.m. and 1-3:30 p.m. “This is the first year of the program and it will continue,” Birnholtz says. “As the months have flown by, our tutors have become real adjuncts to their classes and deeply committed to the students. Some of the tutors are spending the full day at the school.” It’s mid-morning in Mrs. Elizabeth Mohammed’s third-grade class, and we find her students building pyramids, count- ing in Arabic, drawing murals depicting ancient Egypt — getting ready for the school’s Multicultural Fair. The third-grade class next door — wield- ing paint brushes and cutting yarn — is weaving the story of Ethiopia. In both class- rooms, the children are animated, engaged and working beautifully together. It’s easy to fall in love with the children here. “When the tutors walk through these doors, the children run up to them,” says Mrs. Mohammed. “They can’t wait to get started, and they thrive on the one-on-one attention. At the start of the year, many were unable to read at the third-grade level. Now all of them read through their books. Their motivation and their fluency have improved by leaps and bounds, and I attri- bute that 100 percent to our tutors.” * Vivian Henoch is editor of myjewishdetroit.org, where this story first appeared. Bookstock Special Days Monday Madness, May 16: The first 1,000 shoppers will receive giveaways and one shopper will get a $500 Visa gift card. Teacher Appreciation Day, Tuesday, May 17: Teachers will get 50 percent off with a valid ID from 3-9 p.m. Bookbuster Special Days, Wednesday, May 18, and Thursday, May 19: Buy three books and get the fourth book free (least expensive item) from 3-9 p.m. Half-Price Finale, Sunday, May 22: All remaining books and media will be sold for half price.