By Marge Lewter
I always liked Mrs. Bush immensely. She was a powerful voice for literacy, among other things. She was not afraid to have her own opinion, even if it diverged from husband – President George H.W. Bush. Presidential. She was undoubtedly the Bush matriarch, and she will be missed.
Michael Horn of Forbes Magazine writes, “With Mrs. Bush’s astute observation – the parent is the child’s first teacher – and the creation of her Foundation in 1989, she literally defined the family literacy movement. The wisdom behind her words carries on today. As Mrs. Bush noted, so many of the challenges in society – homelessness, crime, hunger, drugs, health and more – would improve if more citizens could read, write and comprehend.”
Horn continues, “Being involved in a child’s education also has positive spillover effects for the parent in higher levels of self-confidence and self-efficacy. We also know that parental literacy and higher levels of education have positive impacts on the overall family. For example, higher levels of parental education typically lead to positive family practices, such as positive guidance, family routines, daily reading times and language – as well as experience-rich environments.”
The Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy has the express purpose of providing access to educational opportunities for young children and their parents. Thank you, Mrs. Bush.
In closing, I share some of the wise quotes of Mrs. Bush:
●“The home is the child’s first school, the parent is the child’s first teacher and reading is the child’s first subject.” (From the Barbara Pierce Bush online memorial)
● “Believe in something larger than yourself. Get involved in some of the big ideas of our time. I chose literacy because I honestly believe that if more people could read, write and comprehend, we would be that much closer to solving so many of the problems that plague our nation and our society.” (From her Wellesley College commencement address, 1990)
●”To us, family means putting your arms around each other and being there.”
●”The darn trouble with cleaning the house is it gets dirty the next day anyway, so skip a week if you have to. The children are the most important thing.”
●”Never lose sight of the fact that the most important yardstick of your success will be how you treat other people — your family, friends and co-workers and even strangers you meet along the way.”
Library News:
●May 1: This is your last week to enter the photo contest with $25 prizes in each age group: children, teens and adults. Winning photographs will be displayed at Food Country during May. The theme for this year’s contest is Historical Treasures of Craig County. Submit photographs to [email protected] or bring them to the library.
●Tuesday, May 22, at 6:30 p.m. Everyone is invited to the Brick Hotel for the Friends of Library Annual Meeting and Author Program. Our guest speaker will be Dr. Mary McDonald from Catawba who will share excerpts from her latest book, The Magnet. Nominations for Board of Trustees will be taken. If you would like to participate in library leadership, please consider serving on the board or simply join Friends of the Library as part of our support team! Refreshments will be served.
