Surprise $35K donation lifts P.E.I. Literacy Alliance

The P.E.I. Literacy Alliance is describing a $35,000 donation earlier this month as a "beautiful legacy."

The alliance lost its core funding in 2014, and nearly shut down in September due to lack of funding.

Earlier this month the alliance launched a Give the Gift of Literacy campaign in an effort to diversify its funding sources. It had set a goal of $25,000, so executive director Jinny Greaves was more than thrilled to receive a phone call, offering an anonymous donation of a mutual fund worth about $35,000.

"[We] really feel this generous donation is a beautiful legacy," said Greaves.

"She talked a lot about her mother who had worked in the literacy field in the 1960s, back when there were one-room schools, and she brought children into her house after school and helped them improve their reading and writing skills."

A gift for all of P.E.I.

Greaves said the woman shared a story about how years later a man approached her mother at a public event, and thanked her for helping him with reading when he was a boy. The man had gone on to be quite successful.

That meeting, said Greaves, was a good example of how improving literacy in society helps not just one person, but also the economy and civic engagement.

"We see this as a wonderful Christmas gift that's not just for the alliance but it's for P.E.I. as a whole, because if we can increase people's literacy skills it's better for everybody," she said.

The Give the Gift of Literacy campaign is continuing until Christmas day. Donations can be made through P.E.I. Literacy Alliance web site.

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