GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – May 26, 2023 – The Dollar General Literacy Foundation recently awarded the Literacy Center of West Michigan a $10,000 grant to support adult literacy. This local grant is a part of the Foundation’s largest, one-day literacy donation of more than $13 million throughout the 47 states in which Dollar General operates to support adult, family, and summer literacy programs.
"Partners like the Dollar General Literacy Foundation recognize that adult literacy is foundational to everything we are trying to accomplish in our community—from economic vitality to housing and healthcare to children’s education," said Development Director Libby Crabb Wahlstrom. "We appreciate their commitment to supporting our one-on-one tutoring program, ensuring that adults can receive free high-quality instruction tailored to their own goals and abilities."
The Adult Tutoring Program at the Literacy Center of West Michigan pairs an empathetic volunteer tutor with an English language learner who wants to improve their literacy skills. These pairs build an authentic connection, becoming personally invested in each other's lives. The Literacy Center currently has more than 120 tutor-learner pairs with volunteers donating over 7,000 hours of their time annually. There is an active waitist of about 50 learners who still need a tutor, highlighting the critical need for literacy services in the West Michigan community. The grant from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation will go toward supporting this work.
“It is a joy to celebrate this historic grant announcement during our 30th anniversary year,” shared Denine Torr, executive director of the Dollar General Literacy Foundation. “For three decades, DGLF’s investment in community programs has created meaningful access to literacy skills for adults, children and families alike and exemplified Dollar General’s mission of Serving Others. We believe everyone deserves the opportunity and access to a quality education, and we look forward to seeing these literacy grants inspire reading and build brighter futures.”
The Dollar General Literacy Foundation supports organizations that increase access to educational programming, stimulate and enable innovation in the delivery of educational instruction and inspire a love of reading. Each year, DGLF awards funds to nonprofit organizations, schools, and libraries within a 15-mile radius of a Dollar General store or distribution center to support adult, family, summer and youth literacy programs. The Foundation also offers a student referral program for individuals interested in learning how to read, speak English, or prepare for the high school equivalency exam. Referrals to a local organization that provides free literacy services are available online here or through referral cards found in the Learn to Read brochures that are available at the cash register of every Dollar General store.
