Profile Written by: Ben Hollingshead, Volunteer
The Words Alive 2023 Rookie of the Year honoree Mary Tibiatowski joined Words Alive this fall and has already significantly impacted the organization!
Mary was born and raised in Kansas City and attended Kansas State College. In talking about what sparked her love of reading, Mary feels lucky to have a family and excellent elementary school teachers who actively encouraged her love of books. When she was 20, she traveled to San Diego with a friend and never returned to Kansas. Kansas’ loss was our gain! Mary initially worked part-time in an accounting firm while raising her two kids, Cynda and Cleis. Her daughter was diagnosed with a rare hereditary condition when she was ten, and as a result, Mary needed flexibility in her working hours, so she became an outside independent controller for mid-sized construction companies. Mary is an avid camper and has done volunteer research work on the Belize coral reef. She also describes her travels to Africa as being the most impactful experience of her life.
Mary is now semi-retired and hopes to be completely retired by the end of this year. She had known for years that she wanted to help promote literacy in our local community, so she contacted California Volunteers, and they pointed her toward Words Alive. Her first role at Words Alive was reading to first graders at Hamilton Elementary. She loves reading to the first graders in her classes and is delighted to hear when the students have shared their Words Alive books with their families. Mary picked up three classrooms as a volunteer reader in the Read Aloud Program! “‘There is no Frigate like a Book to take us Lands away.’ This quote from Emily Dickinson has always been a favorite of mine and speaks to the essence of reading adventures.” In addition to the Read Aloud, Mary has helped create craft kits, worked on administrative data input, and is a Page Turner. Mary is excited to start two new volunteer opportunities at Words Alive: a new program called Words Matter, a training program for reading volunteers, and she will also start volunteering with the Family Literacy program. Mary, thank you for all your hard work, and congratulations on winning Rookie of the Year!
Book recommendations: Mary usually has 3 books going simultaneously: one for her book club, an audiobook in the car, and a Words Alive Page Turners book. She is now reading Ducks - Two Years in the Oil Sands by Kate Beaton for Book Club, Muzzled by David Rosenfelt as an audiobook, and Love Like Sky by Leslie Youngblood for Page Turners.