Launch Five Girls Clubs for Literacy Worldwide

The donations of GlobalGiving members have helped LitWorld grow tremendously in 2011 and expand the breadth of our current projects.  Your generosity has enabled us to help others experience the power of literacy and learning around the globe, and ensure that the work of LitWorld will continue to bring joy as we enter a new year.  We take pleasure in announcing new developments in our Girls LitClub programs:

Earlier this month, members of the LitWorld team returned to Kibera, Kenya, and Rwinkwavu, Rwanda to spend time with LitClub members, give books and school supplies to the community, and share stories, hugs, and laughter. For most club members, participating in LitClubs was the first time they were able to cast aside their troubled home life—poverty, hunger, HIV/AIDS—and focus on their own personal growth as readers, writers, and dreamers.  The challenging lives of the children undeniably shaped their writing, as they channeled their life experiences into profound songs, poems, and journal entries.  Each child was ecstatic to be a part of the LitClub mission—using the power of stories to cultivate literacy worldwide.

Costumes were given to the girls in Kibera, and the community witnessed a transformation: stories were created, and the girls were delighted to step into imaginative roles. A library was built and filled for the community to ensure the presence of books for years to come.

In addition to working with LitClubs for Boys and Girls members in Kenya this summer, LitWorld has continued its mission of global expansion of LitClubs. Girls LitClubs have grown to include 35 domestic and international sites.  They now exist in the United States, Liberia, Ghana, Kenya, Iraq, and the Philippines.  They may live in different spheres of the world, but all LitClub members have the same universal experience—harnessing the power of their own personal stories to build self-confidence and a greater sense of self.