Today we’d like to introduce you to Julie Striewski.
Hi Julie, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
As an elementary educator for over 20 years, I have noticed many families ask what more they can do to help their child succeed in reading, but then become discouraged when they can’t afford services. I have seen parents desperate to help their child succeed but not know where to turn. As a tutor, I have also seen families who can only provide outside support for a short amount of time, when the child needs long term intervention and explicit instruction. Noticing this disparity, I wanted to find a way to help families who urgently needed this additional support, but did not have the means to provide one on one tutoring sessions for their child. This led me to create Lighthouse Literacy, a nonprofit that helps make literacy support more affordable for Central Oregon families. My hope is to give more kids the opportunity for reading success and confidence!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
My main challenge was learning the ins and outs of creating a nonprofit! I needed to learn what documents to file, where to find them, and how to fill them out correctly. Each step took a lot of time and patience, which can be hard when you are ready to just jump in and get started! There were so many fun pieces that I thoroughly enjoyed, such as creating a logo, developing the website, and watching the idea begin to take shape. Other pieces needed a lot of research, trial and error, and sometimes going back and redoing things until I got them right. Getting Lighthouse Literacy up and running has been amazing, inspiring, difficult, tedious, fun, exciting and a lot of hard work all at the same time! But each step inched me closer to my goal of helping families give their child the gift of reading.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Lighthouse Literacy?
I believe every child can find their way to reading success, but sometimes they need a little light to help them get there! Lighthouse Literacy is a Central Oregon nonprofit I created to make specialized reading support more accessible to local families. We help connect kids who are struggling with reading to explicit literacy instruction, while scholarships help make that support more affordable for families. What makes us a little different is that we are truly rooted in our community. Local businesses and community members help support local children. I love the idea of neighbors helping neighbors and that a donation made right here in Central Oregon can make a difference for a child right here in Central Oregon. But Lighthouse Literacy is about more than improving reading skills. I want kids to enjoy reading as confident readers and I want parents to feel like someone is in their corner and helping carry some of the load. And I want our community partners to know that they are part of the success along the way. Our name really says it all. We may not be able to make every child’s path easy, but we can help light the way!
I am so proud of finding a way to help people in my own community. I have always donated my resources to organizations that I love, but whose impact wasn’t necessarily in my immediate community. I love that Lighthouse Literacy is Central Oregon based and at the end of the day I can say, “Yes, I am working hard to help families in my own community!”
What I would love people to know is that we are here for you! There is a way out of the confusion, heartache, and frustration of trying so hard to help your child succeed in reading. I want to share that load with parents and take something off the shoulders of families who are already doing so much. I want parents to feel like they don’t have to figure everything out on their own. We are here to light your way to reading success.
Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
Knock on wood, I feel I have been blessed with so much luck along this journey. I have amazing family and friends who helped me along the way in so many different ways, such as printing materials, taking pictures, listening to ideas, offering moral support, and encouraging me after exhausting days visiting and contacting businesses. Sometimes I stop and wonder at how I was lucky enough to collect such an amazing group of people around me! This road has been a rollercoaster of emotions, and having people in my life who believe in what I’m doing helps me keep everything in perspective. I am beyond lucky, and Lighthouse Literacy would not be where it is today without their support and encouragement!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.lighthouse-literacy.org
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lighthouseliteracyOR
- Other: Email: info@lighthouse-literacy.org
Image Credits
Megan Graves
