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Show 2 Tuesday, May Lakeside LAKESIDE T9, 1998 Mv Review ? HELPING HANDS Having full life must include helping others rtr Volunteer devotes her time to literacy and other programs quite some time. So when she saw the ad for literacy volunteers, she decided this was for her. We didnt have any children, and both Greg and I have a passion for reading and I wanted to be able to share this with others, she said. By SUSAN TANNER HOLMES correspondent -- Standard-Examin- Farmington a the Corliss desire to help and serve those around her. (MWe skidded off the road in a rainstorm and were flung into a field. My friend struggled over to th6 road and flagged a car down. LUckily the man spoke English. , He really helped us, and when we asked him what we could do to help him, he said, Try and help people you come in contact with and then youll be helping me, said Corliss. It helped to mold my life. - JVlold it did. Corliss, who spends two days a week working as, volunteer for the Davis County Literacy Action Council and Project Read, believes you gcdout of life what you put into it. Life is lonely if you dont get out and be with people and get oqj and do. i, Getting out and doing is what Corliss does best. She has been an active volunteer, helping behind the scenes at numerous obedience training dog shows and working with the steward as he is taking the dogs through their skills. She got interested in obedi- ence training when she got a golden retriever. I decided that if I had a large dog and wanted to, be able to enjoy having it be around other people, it needed training, she said. My passion is my dogs. She now has two golden retrievers. I Ier husband, Greg, builds and flics model airplanes and she is a regular volunteer behind the scenes at these occasions, too. Ive never looked at that as doing volunteer work," she said. Its just helping out. Just helping out is a part of Corliss lifestyle. Shed been thinking about stepping into the more formal volunteer arena for radio-controll- Most of us take reading for granted. There are people who read on a lower level who have a problem going to the grocery store and finding what they want. They have problems catching buses because they cant read the destinations. Literacy affects all adults. Its a way to function in the world and earn financially, she said. The work of teaching others has been harder than Corliss anticipated. Its taken more patience than I expected it would," she said. You want them to discover reading quickly and to be able to grasp the things that come naturally to you. Discovery is what reading is all about, Corliss said. When she was in junior high school, she remembers first realizing that she could look for what she wanted and find it in a book. I remember as a teenager thinking about what I wanted to make of my life. She found her profession in the fictional books of Gerry Ames, Surgical Nurse, Gerry Ames, Travel Nurse and many others. It was a chance to have adventure and experience the world in different ways and explore what I thought I wanted in choosing a career, she said. After reading everything she could find on nursing, Corliss had chosen nursing as her career. Now 20 years later, she still enjoys helping and working with people. I dont think people in nursing have to suffer bum-o- they can just change their field of nursing. Ive tried different things and liked all of them and see different things happening with nursing and the medical field. LITERACY VOLUNTEER: Helen Corliss helps John Duce with his reading at the Bountiful library. Corliss spends two days a week working for the Davis County Literacy Action Council and Project Read. I i We skidded off the road in a rainstorm and were flung into afield. Myfriend struggled ocr to the road and He really helped us, and when flagged a car down we asked him what we could do to help him, he said, Try and help peopleyou come in contact with and then youh he helping me. It helped to mold ?ny life. -- d sation. It takes walking with her mother to the public library for the Saturday morning reading program. It takes being a Girl Scout, a Camp Fire Girl, a Jobs Daughter. It takes playing the bugle in the drum and bugle corps and enjoying the piano. It takes organizing your time, so you have time to give. What does Corliss say to people who believe they dont have time to volunteer? You can talk and talk about not having the time, just get started. Even if you give a small amount of time, its important," she said. ut SOUND IT OUT: Helen Corliss helps John Duce sound out a word on the page they are reading. 1 sec nurses as a patient advocate in the medical system and a way to bridge the gap. We want to help people stay out of the medical system and not be in hospitals so much," she said. It takes something special to create a person who enjoys sharing her life with others without the thought of financial eompen- - Helen Corliss' i Theres an old saying that if hand-in-han- With demands to cut medical costs with shorter hospital stays, now nurses need to learn how to show people they care in a shorter time, she said. as a volunteer . you need to get something done, go to the people who are busy, theyll make the time. Ive always kept myself busy and I like havt ing a life thats full. Corliss said, People make time for the things they really want to do. Giving a little is better than doing nothing. Its a contribution and it gives you something back in the process. Live by the philosophy of . giving when you can. Theres a lot of life out there. Find your niche and go for it," she said. Davis County literacy group urges involvement in cause county where there is a need." By SUSAN TANNER HOLMES Standard Examiner correspondent FARMINGTON - Statistics tell us me in five adults have low reading skills, said Irene Janes, Davis County literacy coordinator, at a recent Davis County Literacy Action Council reorgaWe are primarily nization meeting. looking to help individuals 18 and up who are no longer in the school system - those who are low readers who fell through the cracks." ,' ;Our clients are tough. When a tutor quits, often we lose a client. These are delicate people," said Eileen Smart, Director of the Literacy Action Center in Salt Lake. W'e know everyone is so bwsy but we need to keep the program alive. There are a lot of people who cEnt think Davis County has this problem, but there are many places in the Adults will never open up in a judgmental situation they dont like the spotlight," said Peggy Graham, council member. Easy identification is crucial as adults become master reading fak- ers. H - Dave Steele, Adult EducationCom-munit- y School and Instructional Technology director for the Davis School District, said, We need to encourage these people to participate in ways that are inviting, so they wont be frightened. You dont need to have a battery of assessments. Tne Literacy Action Councils goal is to coordinate programs, personnel and volunteers to meet the individual reading needs of adults throughout Davis County. Our clients aren't going to read about us at the library or in the newspa per, said Janes. We need to have community, businesses and family involvement and coordination to find and help these people." tutorPaid teachers for ing is a very expensive service," said Steele. We need to draw upon a resource of volunteers. At the jail we already have 20 volunteers, she said, but more are needed. one-on-o- ne We need to develop ways to work with the work force on issues that keep these people from working properly, said Dave Mullen of Davis County Work Force Services. As they come through our doors they have a lot of issues to deal with: education, literacy, families and being undereducated." multi-proble- Many people just need to know how to fill out a job application or mortgage papers, said Graham. They need to know how to fill in the blanks." Mullen said, A lot of these people are involved in three or four meetings a week, many lack transportation, bus service or day care in order to get to the library to be helped. We need the ability to help these people at work or in areas close to their homes. One of the volunteer pools the group would like to draw from is college students. Last year there were 741,000 volunteer effort hours given by college students, said Steele. The college setting background has great potential. W'e have college classes at our high schools, and 50 percent of W'eber States population is in Davis County. Graham said some major forces in businesses and church areas seem to be trying to ignore the literacy problems. Students Of The Month Jason Griffiths is the Student of the Month at high schools to help train high school students for the clinic. He was a delegate for VICA. Jason has been awarded a four-yePresidential Scholarship to Weber State University. Da-V- is ar Applied Technology Center and Suannc Porter, daughter of North Davis Chamber of Gary and Ramona Porter of Kaysvillc, was named Student of the Month during this months Kaysville Area Chamber of Commerce. lc is an auto- motive tech- nology student from Bonneville High School diking classes at DATC. 1 He came to the program with rlo previous automotive training dnd has shown a great aptitude in this area. He has been attending DATC for two class periods at day and has completed the foundation and is working on Endorsements for this program. JJason volunteered to partici-Cff- c in the Car Care Clinic as a team leader. He also went to Commerce meeting. She is a member of the National Honor Society at Davis High School. She is the recipient r of the Top Scholars Award. Suannc has Standard-Examine- been on the high honor roll every term from seventh to 12th grade. She lettered in academics for three consecutive years. She also lettered in softball and volleyball. She also docs service for her community. In December, she to collect food went for the Utah Food Bank. door-to-do- She is currently working on putting together an activity for a group of Head Start children. Her hobbies and interests include playing the piano, camping, motorcycling, fast cars and animals. She is headed to the University of Utah next year where she will study business, medicine or honors at enlaw on a four-yetrance scholarship. Ann Llison, daughter of Joyce Ehson of Farmington, was named Student of the Month at a recent Kaysvillc Area Chamber of Commerce meeting. She is a member of the National Honor Society, on the high honor roll every term since ninth grade and earned a superior rating in the solo ensemble festival. She has planned and carried out an honors night for students being inducted into the National Honors Society. She has also lettered in academics. ar Ann does community and church service. She has given three parties for children in the Head Start program, decorated the Childrens Justice Center for Christmas, sent notes and stuffed animals to kids in Primary Childrens Hospital, helped to collect socks for the homeless and helped plan and carry out a Hats Off to You" dinner for the elderly in her neighborhood. Her interests and hobbies include photography, tennis, basketball, volleyball, biking, horseback riding, reading and watching movies. She plans on attending Brigham Young University to study veterinary medicine and to go on a mission for the EDS Church. Just because we have a problem dont recognize we doesnt mean its not a problem for us," said Graham. I have a real concern for our single moms whose children are shuffled through the cracks. Susan Robison, council member, said, Ive always had an interest in helping those who had problems reading. I retired from AT&T and saw many people who wanted employment and couldnt get by the test Businesses wishing to form a partnership by providing a positive business en- vironment to help employees develop better reading skills and provide incentives for improvement, as well as those wanting to help council members pinpoint those in need, can contact Janes at 2 or her at 451-232- Tickets now on sale for Layton High Senior Bash LAYTON - Tickets are on sale for the Layton High Senior Bash. The party is for LHS graduating seniors only. Tickets are $10 if purchased in advance and $12 at the door. The ticket price covers all activities and food. Tickets will be on sale today through Friday and May 9 and June 1 during both lunches. drug-fre- e The and alcohol-fre- e party will be held at the high school on June 2 from 1 p.m. to 7 a m. The party includes a continental breakfast. There will also be swimming from 5 to 7 a m. at the old 26-2- all-nig- ht 1 t Layton pool. Grand door prizes in the past have included a TV VCR combo, Double Shot, Diskmans, tennis rackets, etc. There arc hundreds of smaller prizes. There will be music, food and fun all night long. The fun includes Sumo wrestling, volleyball, air hockey, foosball, moon walk, big glove boxing, karaoke and a hypnotist This is one last lime to be together as the graduating class of 1998. This event is being sponsored and chaperoned by the Li is ptsa. |