Long Island

have moved east from New York city to Long Island, which in parts is just so picturesque!
Tuesday I spent with the international headquarters (LOL) of a home visit literacy program which is doing wonderful things with little people through their parents, exactly what i was looking at doing. The program is very carefully researched and delivered, and follows a strict protocol, but its success rate is amazing, the evidence supporting it is undeniable.
So after having my heart broken to bits in Brooklyn it was nice to see this program.
Brooklyn's literacy programs work really really well and are making huge inroads, but the stories of their visits, and knowing that there are thousands more children just like the ones helped who may never be seen and will slip through the cracks just tore me up. I can't help them all, but it took me several days to get over the melancholy that hit me after the visit there. Garfield would call it a deep blue funk...whatever it's called, it was so sad.
All these little children have exactly the same potential as any other child, and we have to believe that every parent wants the best for their child, because they DO...but they need to know the hows. And any parent knows that's not easy. Imagine being behind the eight ball in some way to start with....
So anyway, it was nice to see a positive program that works well, and the staff there have a conference next week (damn should have come for THAT as well!!!) so were flat out organising that so I was extremely grateful for their generosity in time and information sharing.
While I was with these people, Martin caught up with the host mother of a Faith student (we incredibly got off the train in her home town - that was planned before we knew anything about her!!!) so Dianne took Martin around the countryside a bit, which he enjoyed.
We then headed to Centereach, where we still are tonight.
The Centereach library is .... wow. Just wow. Architecturally brave, and program / marketing wise very very strong and deliberate, the library's children's section is enough to blow you away. :) They do a lot of family literacy programming including home visits (yaaay) and so I have more reports to write!!
The librarian I have been corresponding with invited me out to their county's CYS annual dinner. Martin came along as well, and we heard from David Ezra Stein, a children's picture book writer who has just been given a literary award. Great night out, and 87 people attended...that's a big county!?
So I'm back to Centereach tomorrow, then a few days of uncertainty....LOL...then Scranton PA on Saturday and Oneida in upstate NY by Sunday night.
Martin has a rental (Camry this time) with GPS so we're having fun not getting lost. And Vicki, I haven't tried to punch it out yet!!!