A Story About One Mom, One Child, and the Power of Reading

The other day, I met a young woman who wanted to learn more about RISE Augusta. We chatted casually at first, but before long she began to open up and share her story. By the time she finished, I was not only deeply impressed by her strength and determination, her story has stayed on my heart ever since.

At first she was a bit defensive and bombarded me with questions.  She explained that she was going back to school to become a preschool teacher. Not because she thought it was easy. Not because she had extra time, but because she has a two-year-old daughter.  She told me she wanted something better for her child than what she had growing up.

As we talked, she softened and tears came to her eyes.  What she shared stopped me in my tracks.  She graduated from high school, but only reads at a third-grade level.

She had a steady job and worked hard, yet every time a full-time opportunity opened up, she was passed over. The reason was simple and heartbreaking.  The paperwork, the training manuals, the written tests, they all required stronger reading skills than she possessed.

For a long time she had felt angry at her parents. Angry they didn’t make her read more. Angry that no one noticed she was falling behind. Angry that she made it all the way through school and no one realized how much she struggled.  Everyone just thought she was “slow.”  As she reflected on the past, she confessed that her parents probably struggled too.

Literacy gaps aren’t caused by a lack of love. More often, they grow out of limited resources, fewer supports, or struggles that simply go unnoticed. In families facing generational poverty or low literacy themselves, parents may want to help but aren’t always sure how. Many children don’t even understand why learning feels harder for them — they just quietly fall behind, and the cycle continues. 

What struck me most about this woman was her determination and why she was pursuing Early Childhood Education as a vocation.  She was not going to let the cycle continue in her life and she was going to make sure her daughter had what she needed to be successful!

She enrolled in classes even though it is a struggle for her.
She’s working to strengthen her own reading skills.
She’s chasing a career that will help other children learn early.

Every night, she sits down with her little girl and reads. 

Even when she doesn’t know every word.
Even when she has to sound things out.
Even when it feels slow or awkward.

Because she understands something powerful happens when you read to your child.  It’s not about perfect pronunciation. It’s about connection, confidence and possibilities. 

Before she left, I handed her a stack of children’s books to take home. Nothing fancy, just bright covers, silly stories, and pages waiting to be loved. She held them like they were treasure, because to her, they were.

Literacy isn’t just a school issue. It’s a life issue. It doesn’t just impact one person. It shapes entire families. Across Georgia and across our country, far too many children and adults are quietly struggling to read. Some hide it well. Some develop workarounds, but the barriers remain.