Literacy Goals Achieved!
ReadWest Adult Students achieved a total of 721 of literacy goals during the 2018 – 2019 fiscal year. Among our ESL Students, 6 ReadWest Students and 8 First Unitarian Church students gained their US Citizenship this year. Many of these students studied for their US Citizenship Exam with their one-to-one tutor. Others attended a 10-week course offered at ReadWest two times a year. This course is taught by Lynn Simson and was originated by Barbara Kitchens. Both of these women are long-time volunteers at ReadWest. The 10-week course will be offered again in the fall of 2019. Please contact us at readwest@readwest.org for more information or call 505-892-1131.
Pictured below is Cyndy Ratliff, ReadWest Program Coordinator; Marisol, ReadWest Student and new US Citizen; and Lynn Simson, US Citizenship Tutor.
Sunday is Funday
Got time? Got books? We are looking for volunteers to help staff the booth at Haynes Park on August 18th from Noon until 4 PM where we will be participating in the Rio Rancho celebration. We will also be selling used books again this year. If you have a box of books to donate, please drop them by ReadWest. If you want to help staff the booth, please contact us at readwest@readwest.org.
Learn more about Sunday is Funday.
Can You Believe It’s Been 30 Years?
Summer Greetings!
July is the start of another Year at ReadWest. This year is unique as we celebrate 30 years of providing literacy to adults in New Mexico.
Our calendar is filled with commemorative events. This month we rolled out our 30th Anniversary Letterhead and signatures that we will use throughout the year. We will formally get the party started with our Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) Dinner at San Ysidro Chapel in Corrales. Tickets for this dinner and silent auction will go on sale later this fall. In December our Annual Meeting and Luncheon will be a FREE 30th Anniversary Celebration featuring ReadWest Student Success Stories and a special guest. More celebratory events are planned, so stay tuned!
ReadWest experienced many changes last year. Our kind friends helped us settle in a new home after 22 years at our former address. However, one thing did not change. ReadWest Tutor/Student pairs met for literacy instruction continuously. Many group classes were relocated to senior centers and churches while we remodeled. Despite the facility move, ReadWest Volunteers logged 15,678 hours of service during the 2018-19 fiscal year. The Independent Sector estimates a volunteer tutor’s wage at $25.43 per hour. This means the ReadWest Adult Literacy Program contributed $398,691 of literacy service to our community. This impressive contribution was achieved by the dedicated volunteers at ReadWest. Volunteers are indeed the heart of our program. Thank you all for believing in our mission.
If you’d like to support our mission financially, consider joining our special anniversary 360° Donor Circle.
Sincerely,
Muncie Hansen
Executive Director
ReadWest’s mission is to provide quality one-to-one tutoring to adults seeking to transform their lives through enhanced literacy skills.
Corporate Employee Matching Gift Programs
For nonprofit organizations, every dollar counts. Corporate employee matching gifts offer the opportunity to turn one dollar donated by a match-eligible employee into two, three, four, or even five dollars!
In this article, we’re going to explore exactly what to expect when working with matching gifts and how to make the most of this incredible fundraising opportunity.
What are corporate matching gift programs?
Employee matching gift programs are a type of corporate philanthropy set up to encourage employees to give back to their communities. These companies encourage community outreach by making donations to the same nonprofits that their employees have donated to.
These programs have become quite widespread, but many donors have not heard of them or aren’t aware of their own match-eligibility. $4-7 billion in matching gift revenue is left on the table each year, and we want to work with our donors to claim some of it.
The specifics of these programs vary from company to company, but the elements that shape these guidelines are always the same:
- Match ratio: This defines what kind of donation the company will make in relation to the employee’s initial contribution. A 1:1 ratio indicates that the company will donate the exact same amount, doubling the contribution to the employee’s chosen nonprofit.
- Minimum and maximum: The minimum refers to the amount an employee must donate to qualify for a matching gift. The maximum is the total amount that a company will donate in matching contributions per employee annually.
- Employee status: Sometimes, the employee’s role at the company can affect the match that they qualify for. For example, Gap Inc. offers a $1,000 maximum to part-time employees and a $10,000 maximum to Senior VP’s.
- Nonprofit eligibility: Some programs offer different matches based on the nonprofit being donated to. ExxonMobil offers a higher match for donations made to educational institutions than for donations made to cultural organizations.
- Deadline: Every program identifies a deadline when the matching gift request must be submitted by the employee. This deadline can be either a firm date (December 31st is common) or a threshold based on the date of the initial donation (90 days after donation is made).
Thousands of companies offer matching gift programs. A few examples include:
- Johnson & Johnson — Triples donations with a 2:1 match for current employees while also doubling donations (a 1:1 match) for retirees.
- Bank of America — Matches donations 1:1 up to $5,000 annually per employee.
- Home Depot — Matches donations 1:1 up to $3,000 annually per employee.
The impact of these programs can be substantial! Microsoft has been known to match over $48 million worth of employee donations to schools and 501(c)(3) nonprofits in a single year. Did you know that more than 18 million employees work for companies with matching gift programs? You might be one of them.
Want to help ReadWest?
Increasing revenue with matching gifts isn’t too tricky, but we need your help. You can help us reach our fundraising goals by contacting HR at your company to see if they offer an employee match-eligibility program. If your company doesn’t have ReadWest listed and would like to, we can provide our information (Tax ID, address, fundraising contact). We appreciate you taking a few minutes to double your donation!
Spotlight – Todd Clark, Board President
Tell us a little bit about yourself: I was born in Texas and grew up in Little Rock, Arkansas, and Memphis, Tennessee. I served three years in the US Army as a Medic. While stationed in the Panama Canal Zone, I developed a real affinity for exploring new places, cuisines, and cultures. After my discharge, I returned to Memphis where I earned a BA in History from Memphis State University. In 1978, I moved to Western Massachusetts where my first wife and I raised our daughter and son. While I have worked in a number of different fields, most of my work life was as a construction project manager and contractor.
In 2013, my second wife and I started traveling around the country. She worked temporary assignments as a Family Nurse Practitioner and I stayed busy volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, and various local nonprofits. Our first temp assignment was in Gallup, New Mexico. During our six months there, we fell in love with the Southwest. After four more years of travel, we permanently relocated to Rio Rancho in 2017.
Biggest impact books:
Nonfiction – “The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test”
Fiction – “To Kill a Mockingbird”
Favorite genre: Detective novels
Favorite author: Tony Hillerman
What Inspires You: I’m inspired by working to make the world a better place.
Favorite quote: “All animals are equal; but some animals are more equal than others.” – George Orwell in “Animal Farm”
If you could have any one superpower, which would you choose? The superpower that I would choose is the ability to spread my arms and take flight. Whenever I have a dream where I can fly, I wake up with a feeling of contentment and joy!
ReadWest Receives Grant from NM Gas Company
January 29, 2019 – ReadWest, Inc. received a $10,000 grant from the New Mexico Gas Company – an Emera Company – to support its adult literacy services. Pictured below are NM Gas Company VP Operations and ReadWest Board of Directors VP Ray Sanchez, ReadWest Executive Director Muncie Hansen, ReadWest Board of Directors President Todd Clark, and New Mexico Gas Company President Ryan Shell.
About New Mexico Gas Company
New Mexico Gas Company cares. We believe in giving back to the communities where we live and work. Our employees do that through financial donations and, most importantly, by volunteering their time. Our staff participates in many activities that help communities across New Mexico.
For more information, visit https://www.nmgco.com/
Celebrating Our New Home
On January 23rd, approximately sixty people gathered to celebrate ReadWest’s new home at 103 Rio Rancho Blvd NE, Suite A-5, Rio Rancho, NM 87124. Rio Rancho’s Mayor Hull provided a speech, noting that ReadWest had been a part of the city nearly as long as it had been incorporated. After his speech ReadWest Board President Todd Clark and Executive Director Muncie Hansen cut the ribbon. After the ribbon cutting and presentations, everyone was invited in to enjoy refreshments and tour the new facility.
Photos were generously provided by Barnes and Noble representative Howard George who also owns a photography business.
We are excited to announce that Under Charlie’s Covers, Sandoval County’s largest bookstore, has partnered with ReadWest for #GivingTuesdayNM! They have generously agreed to donate 25% of all sales on November 27th. When we asked owner Lara Harrison about why she chose ReadWest, she said:
“Under Charlie’s Covers is committed to helping readers of every age. Adult literacy is an essential building block to future success. ReadWest is providing a crucial service to members of our community and we are proud to contribute to their important mission.”
Executive Director Muncie Hansen was thrilled about the opportunity to partner. “Partnering with Under Charlie’s Covers is a perfect fit for us. We help adults read the books that they sell.” She also noted that it was excellent timing to receive additional funding to help with the challenges of moving into a new facility.
Under Charlie’s Covers is open 10:00 am to 6:00 pm on November 27th. Be sure to stop by and stock up on books for your holiday gifts. Don’t forget to treat yourself to one or two as well!
Can’t make it to Under Charlie’s Covers on November 27th or are one of our out-of-area supporters? You can still make a direct donation or purchase a t-shirt and have it delivered directly to you.
#GivingTuesdayNM is not about just one sector, cause, or community. #GivingTuesdayNM is about New Mexico.
Together we can do more.
You can find the complete list of participating organizations at www.GivingTuesdayNM.org.
Recent Coverage in the Media
In case you missed it, ReadWest has been in the news lately!
The Rio Rancho Observer published an article about the need to find a new home both in their online edition (Oct. 5) and in print. You can find the online article here.
Executive Director Muncie Hansen also made an early morning appearance on KRQE. You can watch the recording here:
You can also read the accompanying article and access it via this link. https://www.krqe.com/news/mornings/readwest-helping-adults-transform-their-lives/1574374613
ReadWest Seeks New Home
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information contact:
Muncie Hansen
505-892-1131
readwest@readwest.org
ReadWest Adult Literacy Program to Move
The 29-year-old charity is seeking a new home.
October 3, 2018, Rio Rancho, New Mexico – ReadWest, Inc., one of New Mexico’s largest and oldest adult literacy programs announced today that it has been given 60 days to vacate its current location in Rio Rancho Jewish Center on Grande Ave. ReadWest has been generously housed there since 1996 at a very modest monthly rent. The current location, which is about 1600 square feet, houses two full-time and one part-time staff, has a training conference room, a library of nearly 4,000 instructional books and materials for volunteer tutors, and six small classrooms where tutors and students can meet safely without distractions. Providing space for the student/tutor pairs to meet each week plays a large part in ReadWest’s success. The experienced staff is on site to help tutors find materials in the resource library. Meeting at a regular time and location helps the student focus on his/her learning. Now the adult literacy agency will be forced to find new accommodations that will likely double in cost at the least.
“I have always been inspired by the many students who have come through our doors and overcome numerous challenges to move forward in life, “ said executive director Muncie Hansen. “Seeing their successes gives me faith that we too will rise to the current challenge and come out even stronger. “
As a volunteer-driven, community-focused nonprofit, ReadWest has taken to its network and issued a “call to action” asking for donations to assist with the upcoming move and increased operating and rental costs. Donations via credit or debit card can be made online at www.readwest.org/donate-new-home. Checks can be mailed to ReadWest, PO Box 44508, Rio Rancho, NM 87174.
Serving Bernalillo and Sandoval counties since 1989, ReadWest, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. ReadWest provides one-to-one tutoring for adult literacy, computer literacy, and English Language Learning. ReadWest has over 333 adult learners enrolled. More than 200 trained volunteers provide free literacy help once a week for two hours. Last fiscal year, ReadWest Volunteers logged 12,719 hours of literacy tutoring. According to the Independent Sector’s estimate of a volunteer tutor’s wage of $24.14 per hour, ReadWest tutors donated $307,037 worth of free literacy instruction to our community.
