2023 Volunteer Hall of Fame

The 2023 Literacy Texas Annual Awards celebrated amazing volunteers who give back to their Texas community in an invaluable way.

2023 Volunteer Instructor Excellence

Susan Velasquez | Families & Literacy, Inc.

“Susan is our only volunteer who still works full time! She is new to the area and came immediately to volunteer her time as an instructor.

Her smile lights up a room and she makes students feel welcome and ready to learn. Her presence in her classroom has reinvigorated longtime instructors and helped encourage newer instructors to keep learning and do more for their students. She willingly took the position of instructor liaison for our Board and is excited to be part of a rebranding effort in the organization.

I can’t say enough that Susan Velasquez is an amazing teacher and human being who holds dearly the responsibility of teaching others.”

2023 Volunteer Excellence

Jackie Dean | Books Are Gems, Inc.

“During Covid, when all libraries and bookstores were closed, we initiated a program called “Grab a Bag of Books” for kids, where parents could pick up free books. Jackie stepped up to the plate and sorted over 30,000 books by grade level and gender and placed up to six books per bag.

She took books home to sort and didn’t stop there. There were parents who asked for specific books and Jackie made every effort to look for the books to provide them to the families. She also participated in Saturday Story time by reading to kids, and creating crafts concerning the books being read.”

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