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 VOYA Winner - Lisa Mertz
Are you lucky?
I am lucky. I grew up with my parents and brother on our family farm in a small town in Pennsylvania. My parents read to us, and provided us with books, newspapers, and magazines. My mother volunteered at the school library. And even though there wasn’t always a lot of money, they told us there would always be food on the table and that we would go to college. It was never a question. I decided the first day of kindergarten that I would be a teacher. By fifth grade I knew which college I would attend.
When I was pregnant, people would ask, "Would you like a boy or a girl?" I would answer, "Healthy and a reader." I had a beautiful daughter but at three weeks old she became ill and had to be hospitalized. One night she was crying and I couldn't calm her, so I picked up the book Peter Rabbit and started to read to her. She stopped crying, fell asleep, and I laid her in the crib. The nurse came in, amazed at what she had just witnessed, and asked how I did it. My reply was, "I'm a teacher. I've read aloud to my daughter since the day of her conception."
And today, I stand before you, a teacher with a degree in Reading, receiving an award about books and the importance of reading. My daughter sits in the audience. The child that received 30 books for Christmas, attends three different libraries, and never leaves home without a book. She was also a RIF kid for 6 years.
Not only am I lucky, but we are lucky. We were raised to be readers, to know the pleasure and importance of books. Unfortunately, every day I work with children that aren’t this lucky. They have not been exposed to the laughter, tears, and experiences held within the pages of a book. They don’t know that reading is the most important thing they will ever learn to do, that if you can read you can learn to do anything you choose.
It became a mission of mine to become a better reading teacher and model for these children the joys and importance of reading. 15 years ago, a fellow teacher and my nominator, Bill Unger, came to me and said, "Mertz, I've got an application for Reading Is Fundamental and I think you should fill it out." Unger has always had a way of talking me into things. It was an exciting day when we received our acceptance, and still is. We were a small school; our population was never over 150. By Title 1 standards, we were considered 100% At Risk and Low Income. It was very important to me to expose our children to as much as possible and make them feel special. We did 3 giveaways a year but I always tried to have one huge event. It would be a whole day event, with a specified theme. We ran Arts Day, Career Day, Multicultural Day, Science Day, and Social Studies Day. It took a year of planning and a minimum of 30 volunteers. My new mantra became, "What can they do? Tell me no?" One year we ran it during a flood with water seeping into the basement. When we moved to a bigger school, logistics became a problem. So we had to start problem solving. We came up with the idea to divide our 3 giveaways into 3 groups of teachers; K-1, 2nd -3rd, and 4th-5th. It was a great idea. Every teacher is now directly involved and we've multiplied our contacts and volunteers. It gives each teacher a chance to share something he's passionate about. For instance, I'm not a racing fan and probably would never have done a giveaway on racing. But another teacher is married to a man that races, and her group set up a wonderful racing giveaway complete with race cars and drivers. The kids loved it. The best way to motivate children is to share what motivates us.
Over the years our staff has changed, our student population has changed, we moved, and our school has tripled in size. Some things remain the same. RIF is still putting books in the hands of children that need them, children the might otherwise never own a book. After 40 years, RIF is still providing a chance for youngsters such as ours, to begin to know success. It is motivating children to read, that might otherwise never have a reading role model.
I am happy to tell you that I work with a staff where every member participates in the program. I have always had a principal that whole-heartedly backed the program in every way, even to go so far as to be pelted with water balloons. I am proud to come from a community that believes in what we are doing and backs us with volunteers, finances, and supplies. And mostly, I am so proud to have my name associated with an organization that does so much good for our country's youth and future.
So because of my good fortune and the people of RIF that are committed to a wonderful cause, every day I get the chance to work with some very lucky children.
Are you lucky?
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