Lee — The First Congregational Church of Great Barrington (FCCGB) has chosen the Literacy Network (LitNet) as the recipient of a $1,590 donation. In place of donating holiday flowers for the church’s altar in December, congregants were invited to donate Virtual Christmas Flowers in the form of a monetary contribution towards the church’s chosen charity.
On January 18, longtime church members Chuck Hamilton, Don Hagberg, and Lin Bredenfoerder hand-delivered the check to LitNet staff at the LitNet offices in Lee. As a mission-based church, the FCCGB gave to 15 different organizations between October and December 2023, whether in the form of monetary donations or donated goods. “This is the most we have ever raised through one of our Virtual Christmas Flowers donations,” said Hamilton of LitNet’s gift. Forty people contributed to the fund and the individual contributions ranged from $15 to $100.
The idea to choose LitNet as the recipient was Bredenfoerder’s idea. As an employee at Guido’s Fresh Marketplace, she was inspired to support LitNet after it was one of the store’s Round Up at Checkout recipients. “I can’t imagine what it would be like to come to this country and not know English—you can’t read, can’t work, can’t become a citizen.” She said the FCCGB is invested in strengthening their relationship with LitNet.
LitNet offers free, one-on-one tutoring in the areas of English for non-native speakers, U.S. citizenship test preparation, high school equivalency test preparation, and adult basic education. LitNet served 330 individuals in 2023, over 80 percent of whom were immigrants from South and Central America working on their English language skills. The FCCGB’s donation will support LitNet Executive Director Leigh Doherty and LitNet Director of Tutoring Miguel Silva in attending the 2024 TESOL (Teaching English for Speakers of Other Languages) conference in Florida.
“We are so grateful to the members of FCCGB for thinking of LitNet for their Virtual Christmas Flowers program,” said Doherty. “This donation will go towards a crucial professional development opportunity for the LitNet staff. It will help us to stay up to date with the most current trends in teaching English so that we can provide the best support possible for our immigrant community members.”
