JDC Birdies for Charity Program Helps the Literacy Connection Serve At-Risk Readers

EAST MOLINE, IL (June 30, 2007) Gail Ohman had a clear vision of the problem way back in 1989.

As a reading specialist working in the Davenport public school system, Ohman could see that young children from impoverished backgrounds and dysfunctional families already were well behind their classmates by the time they were called upon to learn to read formally in first grade.

"A lot of the kids came from families where the parents just didn't know that you're supposed to read to little children," Ohman recalled. "Children who have been read to and talked to by their parents have verbal skills that are far more developed. They are ready to learn to read."

When Ohman left her teaching job, she did not relinquish her passion for teaching. She founded The Literary Connection in the Sunday School Room of the Faith Lutheran Church in Moline, where she is a member, in order to provide 1-on-1 tutoring in reading for "at-risk" 1st and 2nd graders. Most attended Washington School across the street.

The Literacy Connection has benefited from the JDC Birdies for Charity program to the tune of $24,000 over the last 12 years, according to TLC officials.

"My church is very important to me and I thought it would be nice for the church to reach out into the community," Ohman recalled. "We started out with five children and three tutors. I knew from my work at the University of Iowa that one hour a week wasn't enough, so we set up the program so the children came twice a week."

17 years have passed and the program has never been stronger. It has served some 500 children over the years. This summer 12 families and 35 children are involved in reading programs at The Literacy Connection, now headed by director Pam Turner.

"The program is still 1-on-1 tutoring during the school year because that's how kids benefit the most," Turner said. "We get the kids who are at-risk in reading. Kids whose dads are in prison, whose mothers have drug problems, who are in foster care or live in great poverty. These kids thrive on having an adult figure in their world."

The tutors come from all walks of life, according to Turner. Teenagers from Moline High School. Local retirees. Businessmen and women from the Rotary Club. Turner said there is a woman in her 80s who began tutoring not long after The Literacy Connection opened 17 years ago.

Though the names change over the years, the experience of the tutors and the children remains consistent.

"It's a beautiful sight to see the children smile and run to see their tutors," Turner said. "Their reading scores improve, too, but we really see the self-esteem skyrocket with these kids."

Ohman said the children aren't the only ones who treasure their sessions.

"I think the tutors have benefited as much as the children," she said.

Since 1994, the JDC Birdies for Charity program has helped The Literacy Connection raise some $24,000, according to Pam Henning, who serves as the liaison between TLC and Birdies for Charity.

Under the Birdies for Charity program, individuals or corporations pledge a minimum of 1 cent per birdie made during the Wednesday pro-am and all four tournament rounds of the JDC, including playoffs, to the charity or charities of the donors choice. At the conclusion of the tournament, the total number of birdies is calculated and the Birdies office sends invoices to donors. Donors remit their checks to the Birdies office, which then distributes 100% of the donations directly to the designated charities.

John Deere underwrites the cost of administering the program so that 100% of all monies collected go to the charities.

Buick will give away a new Buick Enclave to the person who correctly guesses the exact number of birdies made during the tournament, Buick is the Official Vehicle of the JDC and is the Official Car of the PGA Tour.

The tournament provides a 10% bonus to each of more than 400 participating charities through the Birdies for Charity Fund, which is made up of dollars from tournament revenue, individual donors, and the support of corporations through a new Charity Partner Program.

In 2006, the tournament's 6th year at the TPC at Deere Run, 1,974 birdies were recorded, meaning that someone who pledged 1 cent per birdie to a charity would contribute $19.74 to that charity. Many contributors donate to more than one charity.

For more information, please contact Kristy Ketcham, director of the Birdies for Charity program at 309-762-4653 or Pam Turner, director of The Literacy Connection, at 309-786-2362.