By Holly Michels

Mar. 27, 2008 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) --
When Dan Guindon graduated from Butte High School, he had the reading skills of a third-grader.

"I worked in a family restaurant and had to read soap containers and I couldn't," he said. "It was dangerous. I slid my way through a lot of things -- school and jobs." That was in 1991, the year Dan's sister convinced him to give Butte's Literacy Volunteers of America a shot.

He didn't like it.

"I thought 'How am I supposed to do something I don't know how to?'" he said. "When I was just learning, I couldn't read a simple children's book." At 18, Guindon didn't have a driver's license because he couldn't read well enough to take the test. That was enough motivation to get him through the program.

"The more I started to learn, the more I liked it." Now Guindon, 45, who has a learning disability, has his license and still gets tutoring weekly.

"It's changed my life," he said. "I don't know where I'd be without this." People come to Butte's Literacy Volunteers of America for many reasons -- to get a general equivalency diploma, driver's license or just to be able to read to their children.

"Anyone that wants to improve their literacy skills is welcome," said Vickie Mihelich, program director. "It's all free and confidential." Mihelich and Karee Gillis, who runs the Even Start program, a literacy campaign aimed at families, serve several dozen families and individuals a year out of the Webster Garfield Complex, 1050 S. Montana St.

LVA matches volunteer tutors with clients who share a common goal -- learning how to read better. Even Start serves parents age 16 and up and their children up to age 7, and provides literacy and education assistance to moms and dads, along with parenting classes and day care.

LVA clients are usually low-income, ranging in age from their mid-20s to 60s. Males and females use the service equally and most clients work at part-time, minimum-wage jobs.

"We have all walks of life," Mihelich said.

Referrals come from almost everywhere -- friends, family and colleagues.

"The common thing is wanting to learn to read better for their own reasons," Gillis said.

Volunteers, clients matched Clients who enter both programs are formally assessed and matched with a volunteer. Most volunteer-client relationships are lasting, Mihelich said. Guindon and his tutor Janet Smigaj, 71, have been together almost 17 years.

"His dedication is amazing," Smigaj said. "We're going to be together until one of us gets sick of each other." Clients that start either program normally have some reading skills, Gillis said.

"We see a lot of kids junior-high age who squeak through the cracks who I could see in 10 or 20 years (using this program)," she said. "For whatever reason, whether it be learning disabilities or moving around too much to get noticed, they make it through school with minimal skills." Even Start parents like 16-year-old Ashley Gabriel commonly work on earning their GED. A former Butte High School student, she dropped out after the birth of her son, Darrell.

"I started in January and I'm working on my GED and passing my driver's license (exam)," she said.

While Gabriel works on fractions, addition and subtraction and learns to use a computer, 3-month-old Darrell plays next door.

"It's a really good program," Gabriel said. "Teens that don't have their GED should come." Funding challenges Both programs face challenges in the upcoming year. Their United Way funding was cut 20 percent, down to $11,168 for the LVA literacy and $2,792 for Even Start.

But Mihelich said even with funding challenges, each group produces several success stories each year. More than 100 clients have earned their GED since the LVA literacy group formed in 1987. A past Even Start participant went on to pursue a nursing degree at a local college. And Guindon is learning geography and math skills, and serves on the LVA board.

"This made everything better for me," he said. "Now I can read what I need to, and even help my niece and nephew with their homework." Reporter Holly Michels may be reached via e-mail at holly.michels@lee.net.

Musical comedy tonight; proceeds to literacy ANACONDA -- The Vigilante Theatre Co. will present its newest musical comedy, "Radio Montana," at 7 p.m. Thursday in Anaconda's Washoe Theatre. Proceeds from the production will benefit the LVA Butte Literacy Program, the Anaconda Literacy Program and the Powell County Literacy Program.

This is the third original play that author/composer Greg Owens has written for the Vigilante Theatre Co.

Advance tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for seniors and children under 12. They can be purchased at the Butte Literacy Program, Books & Books, Hearst Free Library in Anaconda, or the Powell County Literary Program in Deer Lodge. Tickets at the door are $12 for adults and $10 for seniors and children under 12.

For details, call 723-7905, 563-6932 or 846-2242.

For more information Want to find out more about the Butte Literacy Program? Call 723-7905.

The program is located in the Webster-Garfield Complex, 1050 S. Montana St.

It runs from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and includes one-on-one tutoring and 45-minute parenting sessions.

Newstex ID: KRTB-0030-24075908