Every Woman Counts:

Breast and Cervical Health Promotion

Learn how to 

• Reduce risk for breast and cervical cancer
• Benefit from early detection
• Access FREE screenings!

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Library branch presentations:

Union City Library            Saturday,  October 17             1-2:30 PM

Fremont Library                Monday, October 26               6:30-8 PM

Dublin Library                   Tuesday, October 27              6:30-8 PM

Newark Library                 Tuesday, Nov. 3                      6:30-8 PM

San Lorenzo                       Wednesday, Nov. 11               1:30-3 PM

Write to Read learners:  Alameda County Library Administration Blg.

Thursday, October 29     6:30-8PM  Conference Room 3

Thursday, Nov. 5              10:30-12  Conference Room 3

Presenter: Paulina Flint de Castro

Health Educator, Every Woman Counts Program

FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL: (510) 745-1480

 This program is made possible by Write to Read’s Health Literacy programs, the Alameda County Library and Every Woman Counts – California Department of Public Health Cancer Detection Section.

JOIN A SMALL GROUP FOR BASIC STUDENTS

Fall Session–2009

September 14 – December 10

Refresh your skills in a comfortable and safe environment with enthusiastic  and experienced teachers. Free.

Please Call 510-745-1480 to Sign Up.

You must be registered to attend.

Centro de Servicios

 525 H Street, Union City, CA

Peer Study Group

6 PM – 8 PM

Sept 21  – Dec 7

Bruce Larson

Union City Library

 34007 Alvarado Niles

Union City, CA

Basic Reading & Writing Skills

 6 PM – 8 PM

Community Room

(No class Nov 25)

Sept 16 to Dec 9

Amy Prevedel, Teacher

Fremont Library

2450 Stevenson Blvd., Fremont, CA

Writing and Spelling Practice

6 PM – 8 PM

Conf. Room 3

Sept 15 to Dec 8

Tierrah McNair, Teacher

New Student Group

 6 PM – 8 PM

Conf. Room 1

(No class Nov 26)

Sept 17 to Dec 10

Amy Prevedel, Teacher

Eden House Apartments

1601-165th Ave.

San Leandro, CA

Basic Computer Skills

10:30 AM –12:30

Community Room

(No class Nov 25)

Sept 16 to Dec 9

John Miller, Teacher

Reading, Writing & Spelling

10:30 AM – 12:30 PM

Community Room

(No class Nov 26)

Sept 17 to Dec 10

John Miller, Teacher

JOIN A STUDENT READING CLUB

Fall Session–2009

September 14 – December 10

Register now for a popular reading group designed for second language learners.

Experienced volunteer tutors facilitate reading and discussion of high interest books where you practice conversation, reading, vocabulary building, writing, and meet very interesting people. Free.

Please Call 510-745-1480 to sign up.

You must be registered to attend.

Fremont  Library

2450 Stevenson Blvd. Fremont

Monday

Marianne’s Reading Club

9 AM – 11 AM

Sept 14 – Dec 7

Tuesday

Marisa’s Reading  Club

10 AM – 12 PM

Sept 15 – Dec 8

Amy’s Reading Club

7:30 PM – 9 PM

Sept 15 – Dec 8

Wednesday

Susan’s Reading Club

10 AM – 12 PM

Borders Book Store

(No class Nov 25)

Sept 16 – Dec 9

Pat’s Reading Club

6:15 PM – 8 PM

 (No class Nov 25)

Thursday

Vrushali’s Reading Club

10 AM – 12 PM

 (No class Nov 26)

Sept 17 – Dec 10

Newark Library

6300 Civic Terrace Ave. Newark, CA

Thursday

Claudia’s Reading Club

6 PM – 8 PM

 (No class Nov 26)

 Sept 17 – Dec 10

Dublin Library

200 Civic Plaza, Dublin

Wednesday

Mazie’s Reading  Club

6 PM – 7:45 PM

 (No class Nov 25)

Sept 16 – Dec 8

Albany Library

1247 Marin Ave.

Thursday

Mary’s Reading Club

10 AM – 12 AM

 (No class Nov 26)

Oct 15 – Dec 10

Union City Starbucks

Saturday

Pam’s Reading  Club

11 AM – 1 PM

Starbucks 

1752 Decoto Rd.

Union City, CA

Sept 19 – Dec 5

Century Village apartments

Wednesday

Claudia’s Reading Club

6:00 PM – 8 PM

Century Village

41299 Paseo Padre Fremont, CA

(No class Nov 25)

Sept 16 – Dec 9

You are cordially invited to join us to celebrate the joy of reading out-loud at Write to Read’s

 3^rd Annual International Literacy Day Celebration

Wednesday, September 9 from 6:30 – 8 PM

Fukaya Room A, Fremont Main Library

 2500 stevenson Blvd. Fremont, CA

Come Share an Inspiring Passage from a Book You Love

Fiction, poetry, children’s story, inspirational writing, or your own work.

Event is open to the public

UNESCO established Sept. 8 as International Literacy Day to promote literacy worldwide.

We are celebrating the event on Wed. Sept. 9

Please call us for more information 510-745-1480

Write to Read Adult Literacy Program

Let us know you are coming to share a favorite paragraph or poem.

Thank you!

Our adult literacy fall session starts on September 14^th. Classes, reading groups and tutoring will be available to all adult learners at branches and at community sites. Watch for the development of our Ashland Literacy Project at Mercy Housing: Ashland READS. See our enclosed Sept. – Oct. 2009 newsletter.

Sign up for a Reading Club. There are several groups starting this month at the Alameda County libraries in  Fremont, Newark, Union City, Dublin and at community locations. All groups are led by experienced volunteer tutors. Don’t miss a good book this summer, a chance to practice your conversation skills and meet new friends.

Call Rachel to register for a Reading Club, (510) 745-1480

Write to Read is offering two tutor training opportunities this summer for prospective tutors in July and August. Volunteer tutors are needed to assist learners at all Alameda County library branches and community sites.

Prospective tutors complete an application form, attend a tutor orientation, participate in a series of trainings starting with 6 hours of basic literacy instruction, roundtable discussions, special workshops in reading (see Kathy St. John’s workshop on Reading Fluency on June 30), writing, spelling and learning disabilities over the course of several months. This incremental learning provides tutors with an abundance of resources, an opportunity to learn the ropes as a learning community and engage in a process that allows for learning, practice and reflection.

Our first summer tutor training will be offered at the Dublin library branch on Monday, July 13th and Wednesday, 15th from 6:00 to 9:00 PM. Prospective tutors must have an application completed to attend. 

The following tutor training opportunity will be offered at the Fremont Library on Monday, August 3rd and Wednesday, August 5th from 6:00 to 9:00 PM.

Make a Difference. Coach someone to succeed in their learning.

Call Rachel Parra for a tutor application. (510) 745-1480.

Write to Read Adult Literacy

In collaboration with

The National Institute for Literacy

presents

Strategies to Build Adult Students’ Reading Fluency

A workshop for adult literacy tutors and practitioners in the San Francisco Bay Area

Thursday, July 30, 2009
6:30 P.M. – 9:00 P.M.

Fremont Library, The Fukaya Room

2450 Stevenson Blvd.

Fremont, CA 94538

Join NIFL Facilitator Kathy St. John to examine a key component of reading that is often overlooked—reading with fluency. 

Fluency is more than a matter of reading well aloud; fluency affects comprehension. Readers who struggle with fluency read in a halting manner and may forget what they read before they reach the end of a phrase. Come and learn strategies that help students read accurately, more quickly, and with meaning.

This workshop is free to tutors, teachers, and literacy practitioners. Call now to reserve your space.

Phone (510) 745-1480

www.write2read.wordpress.com

www.aclibrary.org

Summer 2009 Reading Clubs

July – August

Practice your English conversation, reading and writing skills, public speaking and learn about American culture and experience in an informal small group setting. Small groups meet once per week for 2 hours. These popular groups are great for learners who want to improve their conversational English and enjoy reading and discussing an interesting book. Vocabulary, American idioms, pronuntiation, fluency and friendship are a few of the benefits of joining a Write to Read Reading Club. Some Reading Clubs also practice writing. These groups are facilitated by volunteer tutors. They are free of charge.

Reading Club participants must register before attending any groups at the branch libraries and community locations. Call Rachel to sign-up at (510) 745-1480.

Dublin Library

200 Civic Plaza

Patrice’s Reading Club

Thurs. 6-7:45 PM

June 25 – August 6

LiBi’s Reading Club

Wednesdays, 10AM – 12 PM.

July 1 – August 19

Fremont Main Library & Administration Blg.

2400/2450 Stevenson Blvd 

Mariannes’ Reading Club

Mondays, 9 -11 AM

July 27 – August 31

Vrushali’s Writing Club

Tuesdays, 10 AM – 12 PM

July 7 – August 19

Susan’s Reading Club (Idioms)

Wed. 10 AM – 12 PM

Border’s Books

July 1 – August 19

Kathleen’s Reading Club

Thurs. 10 – 12 PM

July 16 – August 27

Claudia’s Reading Group (Basic)

Wednesday, 6 – 8 PM

Cantury Village Apts.

June 24 – July 19

Newark Library

6300 Civic Terrace Ave.

Linda’s Reading  & Writing Club

Saturdays, 10 AM - 12 PM

June 20 – August 8

Union City Library

34007 Alvarado Niles

Pam’s Reading Club

Sat. 11 AM – 1 PM

Starbucks

June 20 – August 1

Call Today to sign-up for a Reading Club or for more information:  (510) 745-1480.

All Reading Clubs are free of charge.

On Mother’s Day

By Ronnie Zhou         5-10-09

        My mom is seventy six years old. She is living in Beijing.

       On Mother’s Day every year the sights of people buying flowers, picking out gifts and making reservations in restaurants make my emotions flood to the surface. I have never given a gift to my mother because this holiday was not celebrated in China. But as children all over the world rejoice in the bonds of mother and daughter and spread their love to the world, it brings me back to my life in Beijing and the stories my mom used to tell us.

Mother’s hometown is known as the so-called Three Provinces in Northeast China, a place that produces soy beans and broom corns. There is a majestic Changbai Mountain and a charming Songhua River, and in a village called Xiaoshizuizi near the Taizi stream, my mom was born.

In the Northeast, it is said that there are three types of treasures; ginseng, mink fur, and oola grass used to protect cold. It was a very prosperous place.

In September 18, 1931, the Japanese invaded the Northeast. They killed Chinese people. Natural disasters destroyed farmers’ houses and land, forcing them to live in the mountains. After the end of the Second Sino-Japanese War, a civil war broke out; Communist against the Kuomintang, There was fire everywhere. People could not live in peace.

My grandfather had little land. Members of the family worked hard from morning to night and had little to eat. When my uncle was one year old, my grandmother passed away. With no milk and food, Grandfather wanted to put up my uncle for adoption. However, my mom firmly opposed. She took up the responsibility and took care of her little brother like a mom. Brother had grown up, and even to this day, he is still mom’s biggest worry.

At eighteen, my mom married my dad. Not only did she have to work in the fields, but she also had to get up at 4 in the morning everyday to cook for the whole family. In the winter, when she went outside to get firewood, the cold wind ripped her face and wolves howled at a distance. She was so scared. Then her brother in law carved her a calabash gourd necklace and told her it will protect her.

Four years later, my mom had me, and, after a month my grandmother on Dad’s side gave birth to my uncle, so my uncle is younger than me. Besides working in the fields and cooking, my mom also had to take care of her mother in law, and cook some special food for her. In old China women had a sad fate. Every girl had to wrap their feet to keep them from growing because small feet were considered pretty.  It was easy to break bones in their feet because they were wrapped too early as they were three inches long.

Fortunately, my mom only just started wrapping her feet when the northeast was liberated. No more did women need to wrap up their feet, and they could walk with pride and dignity like men. Mom was grateful for the Communist party and said that they freed women’s feet.

Later on, my mom went to Shenyang, a large city in the northeast area. When I was ten months old, Mother took me to Beijing to reunite with my father. As of now it has been a total of fifty four years. These fifty four years have caused a great change. Mom has grown old and her hair turned white. She often thinks of her old home in Xiaoshizuizi, thinks of Changbai Mountain, Songhua River, thinks of their soy beans, broom corns, ginseng and oola grass. She always says that the water of the Taizi stream is sweet.

I am the oldest among my brothers and sister. I have seen, heard, and gone through with my mother many of her experiences. She never had any formal education, but took a class for beginners for three months. Nevertheless, she can write a two-paged essay for her speech, despite the fact that there are some mistakes.  Mom volunteered in the community services for forty years. She was the president there and her community was one of the best in Beijing for many years. The government pays for many of their trips as a token of their gratitude.

She loves to live in the moment. There were a few years when ping-pong became a very popular sport, and I remember my mom took out my bed board to share with other kids in our neighborhood. During the holidays, she invited some teenagers whose parents were still working in Anhui a southern province into our home to make dumplings to celebrate.

 My mother is very tolerant. She said it is okay if we suffer but don’t treat others that way. Mom is also very thrifty. She is generous to friends, relatives, and neighbors, but refuses to spend much on herself. She once said the only thing she had to show for her life was her four kids.

I don’t know how she got through the Cultural Revolution. Every factory and school stopped classes and production at the time. People divided into two groups, each claiming the other opposed the Communist party. They fought each other with pointing finger in the form of press. White terror clouded Beijing. Everybody was trying to find the enemies among them. My father was a vice president in his company and of course Mom always worried for him. On the other side of our street, there was a woman who, before liberation, was the wife of the landlord in the countryside. Red Guard forced her to stand on a ping-pong table to answer questions about what they did wrong before.  If the Red Guards were not satisfied with her answer, she would be beaten by sticks or leather belts. And there was another woman, who was the principal of the Yonganlu School. She took the bus home every day, which was right in front of my yard. There were always people hitting her with bricks and pulling her hair. Finally, she couldn’t stand the humiliation and killed herself. The Cultural Revolution was a nightmare. My mom didn’t want us seeing the scene. Sometimes she bought a piece of cloth to make a shirt for me and my sister at home to prevent us from being threatened.

I feel lucky because my mom is still alive. With her here it doesn’t matter how old I am, I will always be the child. I bought her a house and occasionally send her money. I hope that she can buy whatever she wants, and if she got sick, she’ll be able to see a doctor.  I hope she can happily live her later years.

Today is Mother’s Day. Mom, from the other side of the world, your daughter wishes you a happy Mother’s Day.

EASY VOTER’S GUIDE

Resources for the Statewide Special Election May 19, 2009

I. Videos on the Ballot Propositions in English
II. Videos on the Ballot Propositions in Spanish
III. Order more Easy Voter Guides
IV. Voter Information
V. Reprint the Easy Voter Guide in Your Newspaper or Newsletter
VI. Questions?
VII. Support the Easy Voter Guide Project with Donations

I. NEW! Videos on the Ballot Propositions

The Easy Voter Guide Project has partnered with the Center for Governmental Studies to produce Video Voter Minutes on each of the May 19 Statewide Special Election Ballot Propositions.

Proposition 1A – State Budget
Proposition 1B – Public Education Spending
Proposition 1C – California State Lottery
Proposition 1D – Transfer of Child Development Funds
Proposition 1E – Transfer of Mental Health Funds
Proposition 1F – Pay Raises for State Officials

All of these videos are posted to our LWVC Education Fund YouTube channel. 

II. The Video Voter Minutes are also available in Spanish thanks to support from KDTV Univision 14 and KFSF Telefutura 66 in san Francisco, which will be featuring the :60 videos on air in the coming weeks and on Univision.com.

Proposicion 1A – Presupuesto Estatal
Proposicion 1B – Financiamiento de la Educación Pública
Proposicion 1C – Lotería del Estado de California
Proposicion 1D – Transferencia de Fondos para Desarrollo Infantil
Proposicion 1E – Transferencia de Fondos para Salud Mental
Proposicion 1F - Aumentos de Salario de Funcionarios del Estado

You can also read about the propositions online.

View and print the Easy Voter Guide.

Visit our website – http://www.easyvoter.org/ for more information.

Link to these resources and promote them in your community.

III.  Order More Easy Voter Guides now!

We still have Easy Voter Guides in stock. Order more now online.

You will receive a confirmation email for your order shortly. 

Questions about your order? easyvoter@lwvc.org.

IV.  Voter Info – Register by May 4 to Vote on May 19, 2009

Find info on registration and voter outreach. Read our Frequently Asked Questions

Need local election info? Visit www.smartvoter.org.

V.  Reprint the Easy Voter Guide in your Newspaper or Newsletter

We offer reprint permissions for the Easy Voter Guide. Reprint from the actual In Design files from our handy FTP site. Read more online or contact Elizabeth Leslie for details.

VI.  Questions? 

Contact us at easyvoter@lwvc.org today.

VII. Please Support the Easy Voter Guide Project

We rely on donations to conduct our programs. Donate online today.

Visit our website for information on the League of Women Voters of California Education Fund.

******************************************************************************************************************

The Easy Voter Guide Project is a collaboration of the California State Library, the California Secretary of State’s Office and the League of Women Voters of California Education Fund and is supported by a grant from The James Irvine Foundation. 

The League of Women Voters of California (LWVC), a nonpartisan political organization, encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues through education.