a newspaper man adjusts his pen

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Aiming in the right direction


We need more people like Kathy Leonardi in this part of town.

The assistant librarian in Washington, Pa., gave up her time Saturday to reach out to some of the poorest kids in this small city.

A Citizens Library employee, Leonardi went to Washington’s Hill District to launch a story hour for the Washington County Literacy Council. Just two kids showed up at the LeMoyne Multicultural Center that morning for the family reading program that received little advance promotion.

Six-year-old Justin Gilbert didn’t mind one bit. He had her undivided attention. More children are expected at 11 a.m. Saturday at what is expected to become a weekly event at the center at 200 N. Forrest Ave. that opened in 1956 to offer black families hope for a better future. The place, though, has fallen on hard times in recent years.

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