Once Upon a Great Time - Ninth Annual Storybook Breakfast Best Yet!

The Adult Literacy Center presented a very special event, the Ninth Annual Storybook Breakfast, on Saturday, March 29.  The event, which was held at the Best Western Hotel in Bethlehem, was geared to children aged 4 - 8, and allowed children to meet some of their favorite storybook characters. The morning's theme was classic children's literature, including Cinderella, The Littlest Pirate and Peter Pan. 

Volunteer Pirates Phil Weber, Peter Eibl (both from PPL) and Dave Klinetook some time off from swashbuckling to pose for pictures withJenniferChobin, Breadyn Chobin and Jadyn Bronico.

Attendees were greeted by pirates, a fairy godmother, a princess and a prince, casting a spell on parents and children alike, even before breakfast was served! 

Kitty Jones, a professional actress and storyteller, presented Cinderella, inviting the audience to play minor roles in the story.  Melanie Zimmer blended the arts of puppetry and storytelling to animate The Littlest Pirate.  JoAnn Basist, actress and vice president of The Civic Theatre of Allentown, along with some very talented students from the Lehigh Valley Charter School for the Arts, presented Peter Pan in a way that delighted the audience.

Children were able to exercise their creative side at the Crafts Station.  A popular addition to Storybook Breakfast, the "Book-aneer" Book Swap, allowed children to bring up to five gently used books that they had read and perhaps outgrown to "swap" with books brought by other children. Every child who brought books

left with "new-to-them" books to read - at no cost to Mom and Dad!

Interactive performer Kitty Jones enchants     her audience with the story of Cinderella.	Cindy and Julian Rosenfeld   enjoy a book they discovered     at the "Book-aneer" Book Swap.
E.C. Hanna (John), R.J. Hayward (Slightly, a Lost Boy), Joey Barone (Smee, the Pirate), Robert Stinner (Michael), Drake Nester (Captain Hook), JoAnn Basist (Peter Pan) and Lauren Basist (Wendy) brought the timeless story of Peter Pan to life.

Finally, a Tricky Tray Raffle allowed parents and children alike to choose from dozens of enticing gift baskets, and each child received a goodie bag bulging with books and "treasures"

donated by generous community-minded companies and individuals. 

ALC is proud to have had The Morning Call as our Presenting Sponsor.  We wish to thank all of our generous sponsors, including The Sylvia Perkin Charitable Trust; Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network; UGI Utilities, Inc.; PPL; Best Western Lehigh Valley; Campbell, Rappold & Yurasits; Capital BlueCross; and Highmark BlueShield for making this fun-filled event possible.  In addition, the performers, volunteers and the Storybook Breakfast Committee, whose efforts have helped raise funds essential to providing the programs that increase literacy in the Lehigh Valley, must be credited for making this Storybook Breakfast the best yet.

ALC Students and Teachers Prepare for Graduation

Late spring will mark an occasion that is often taken for granted by most of us in the Lehigh Valley.  On Wednesday, June 18, 2008 the Adult Literacy Center of the Lehigh Valley will celebrate our annual graduation ceremony at the Barristers' Club on Walnut Street in Allentown. 

ALC students who have taken and passed their GED® test, as well as ESL (English as a Second Language) students who have reached the Advanced ESL level and are eligible to move on to the GED program will be able to participate in this important milestone.  They have all worked very hard and deserve our heartfelt congratulations! 

New Additions to the ALC Board of Directors

The Adult Literacy Center of the Lehigh Valley proudly announces three new members of the Board of Directors:

Mr. Ismael Arcelay has served as Special Assistant to the Mayor of Allentown since 2006.  In this position he is responsible for constituent relationships, capacity building, project management and other special projects with the Mayor and Police Department.  Formerly his career spanned the realms of communications, including technical communications such as web design/architecture and graphics. Mr. Arcelay holds the A.A.S. in Architectural Engineering from Delhi State University and the B.A. in Computer Science from DeSales University.  Community activities include:  Councilman, City of Bethlehem, 2001—2004; Northampton County Personnel Commissioner, 2001—2002; Northampton County Elections Commissioner, 1996—2001; Lehigh Valley Human Relations Commission, Human Relations Award 1996;  Board Member, Council of Spanish Speaking Organizations, 2002—2005; Rotary Club member; Lifechurch Elder; Board Member, Latino Leadership Alliance of the Lehigh Valley; President, Northampton County Latino Democratic Caucus; and Northampton County Human Relations Committee.

Judge Alan M. Black graduated from Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1960 with distinction and earned a J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1963.  He served as Solicitor for the City of Allentown from 1974 to 1977.  Judge Black was formerly Chairman of the Lehigh County Court Procedural Rules Committee and a mediator and arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association.  Currently, he is on the Board of Governors of the Civic Theatre of Allentown and a member of the Allentown Rotary Club.  His past community activities include founding Board member of Confront, Inc.; President of the ALC; Secretary and member of the Lehigh County Mental Health/Mental Retardation Board; Board member of the Program for Women and Families, Inc.; President and Board Chairman of Temple Beth El; Vice President and Board member of the Jewish Day School of Allentown; and wrestling coach, Salisbury Youth Association.  Judge Black is a member of the Domestic Relations Advisiory Committee of the Joint State Government Commission and has led seminars on civil trial procedure and family law.  He was elected Judge of the Court of Common Pleas for Lehigh County in November 1997.  He has served as Administrative Judge of the Civil and Family Division of the Court, and in 2007 served as President Judge.  He retired from the bench in January of 2008 and currently sits as a Senior Judge. 

Mr. James F. Feher has been with The Morning Call since 1993.  In his career with the newspaper he has served as a Preprint Sales Representative, Major Account Sales Representative and Advertising Sales Manager, Major Account/National Advertising.  He assumed the position Vice President of Advertising in January, 2007.  His primary responsibilities in this position are to lead the advertising department in exceeding advertising revenue, to develop and implement advertising department sales and training strategies; to develop and launch new products and publications; and to oversee 150 employees including sales and sales support teams.  Mr. Feher holds a B.A. from Moravian College, and took part in both the Tribune Leadership Development Program (2006) and the Pennsylvania Newspaper Association Executive Training Network (2005).  His professional affiliations include past service on the Board of the Downtown Bethlehem Associations and service as a former Board Member of the Lehigh Valley Ad Club. 

The McCrossan Literacy Learning Center Dedicated

On September 25, 2007 the Adult Literacy Center formally dedicated the McCrossan Literacy Learning Center.  This facility, which offers computer-based literacy instruction, has been enthusiastically received by our students.  The learning center is named in memory of Linda V. McCrossan, Ed.D., who was the founder and executive director (1977 - 2006) of the ALC.  A small reception was attended by the ALC Board of Directors, Friends of the ALC, community leaders, students and staff.  All who attended were privileged to hear "A Student's Perspective", the inspirational story of our Program Ambassador, David Zinni.  David is a former student of the ALC and now attends LCCC. 

ALC "Literacy Changes Lives"  Golf Tournament

ALC's "Literacy Changes Lives" Golf Tournament

The Adult Literacy Center's Third "Literacy Changes Lives" Golf Tournament, held on September 17, was our most successful to date.  The Green Pond Country Club in Bethlehem and the beautiful weather provided the perfect backdrop for a day enjoyed by over 70 golfers from all around the Lehigh Valley and beyond. 

The day's success was due in no small part to our Presenting Sponsor, KNBT, and our Silver Sponsors, PPL Corporation and Corl Communications, Inc.  In addition, many local corporations, merchants and individuals contributed valuable goods and services that helped to make our tournament a memorable event.  Our thanks go out to all whose participation helped raise funds that will enable ALC to continue to provide and enhance essential literacy programs for the residents of the Lehigh Valley.  Kudos to Warren Armstrong and the entire Golf Committee!

Planning is underway for the 2008 Tournament.  If you'd like to join the Planning Committee, please call Carol Jones at 610.435.0680.