Success Stories

How the First Lady’s Family Literacy Program
Helped Me and My Family

Speech delivered at “A Celebration of Reading” Nov. 8, 2004 – Myerson Symphony Center, Dallas, TX

I would like to thank The Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy and The Barbara Bush Texas Fund for Family Literacy for the opportunities provided me and my family to improve in the very important life-skill of reading.

My name is Mirna Esther Hernandez. I was born in Guadalupe, Nuevo Leon, Mexico. I am from a big family of four sisters and three brothers. My parents, Victor Perez and Enedina, are people with a heart full of love, sweetness, very sentimental, strong personalities and hard workers. Even though I am from a poor family, my parents always taught me discipline, obedience and to be a decent person. Everything they have is because of their hard work. Their forty years of marriage makes me proud of them.

I have been living in Dallas TX, since 1993. I came here with a goal of learning English. I have done many jobs, from babysitting, being a seamstress, a print shop assistant, wife and mother, but I have always found a need for understanding and speaking English.

Three years ago I found a program that was in my community very close to my home. This program provided me with 4 hours of classes daily, and the “Read With Me” program funded by a grant from The First Lady’s Family Literacy Initiative for Texas.

A family educator came to our home and spent about an hour once a week bringing books for me to read to my children, and activities that made the book come alive for me and my young children. She would leave the books and activity with me until the next visit.

I made a portfolio of activities, including puppets, art work, folder games that have been very useful to me as my child’s first teacher and mother.

When I started attending the program I felt like I was in another world. During the first days of class I could not understand most of what the teacher was saying. But my desire to learn was so great that I kept on going to class. My teacher suggested that I read a lot more in English even if it was children’s easy reading or books on tape, so that I could hear the correct pronunciation of what I was reading.

I’ve read a minimum of two books per week to my children and for myself, totaling around 350 – 400 books over the past two years. As you can imagine, my first reading began with many picture books, but with this help I have moved on to reading the classic essays such as “An Only Daughter” by Sandra Cisneros.

My son German, who is now in kindergarten is doing very well in school. On the first day of pre-K he was confused with the children who came to school crying. He could not understand why they were crying. He did not realize that he was used to school, being away from his mom and listening to a strange lady tell you stories. He speaks and does all his school work in English, thanks to him being exposed to a lot of reading and educational activities since he was three years old.

Last school year I went on to study for my GED. I felt a little unsure at the beginning but thanks to my teachers I stuck to it. This became a stressful time for me because now I had two children to care for, prepare them to go to school every day, help them do homework, take care of my home and study for my GED. During the month of March 2003 I did my GED test, in the same month I received my GED Completion Certificate in the mail. I was overjoyed, now I felt that I, my family and my children, are on the way to a better future.

I have experienced many difficult and embarrassing moments in my quest to improve myself. Learning English has been and still is a big challenge. I take these opportunities to continue my education, to make things easier for me and my family. I am currently enrolled at Mountain View College working on developmental classes, leading up to an Accounting degree.

I am proud of being an ex-Family Literacy Program participant. You have been the vehicle that has carried me toward the fulfillment of my goals and making my dreams come true. I encourage my friends and other families to take hold of these opportunities because education is the only way to a better future and a better life. If not for us as adults, do it for the children, who are the future of this country.