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Wednesday, September 26,2018
dawsonnews.com I DAWSON COUNTY NEWS I 5A
Longtime literacy advocate retires
Joe Hirsch, left, is presented an award by READ board member Bil
tion Sept. 11 honoring his work on the READ board.
Allie Dean Dawson County News
Nickerson at a celebra-
By Allie Dean
adean@dawsonnews.com
The name Joe Hirsch is syn
onymous with public service.
That is, according to every
one in Dawson County who has
seen firsthand how Hirsch’s
volunteerism has impacted the
community.
Hirsch recently retired from
work on the board of READ, or
the Reading Education
Association of Dawson, after
seeing it through its inception
in 2004 to its achievement of
Dawson County being desig
nated a Certified Literate
Community just last year.
READ is a nonprofit that
works to analyze literacy needs
in Dawson County with the
help of local businesses,
churches, social services, the
local school system and local
government to reach, influence
and support those who want to
improve their education.
The group works hand in
hand with the Adult Education
Center, a division of Lanier
Technical College, in
Dawsonville to facilitate the
GED program and provide
assistance to those who wish to
obtain their GED but lack the
resources to do so.
At a retirement celebration
Sept. 11, Sandy Lipkowitz, for
mer executive director of
READ, said that since she met
Hirsch she has referred to him
as Mr. Dawson County because
of his involvement in every
thing.
Hirsch was instrumental in
forming the organization,
which was originally called the
Dawson Literary Council. He
was treasurer of READ from
2004 to 2010 and served as
chair for several years after
that.
He has also served on the
boards of Legacy Link, Georgia
Cares, Avita Community
Partners and the Georgia
Council of the Blind and is a
longtime Lions Club member.
His work with READ has
included supporting the non
profit’s various initiatives, from
gifting local third graders with
dictionaries and eighth graders
with Thesauruses to volunteer
ing as a teacher and tutor at the
adult education center, teaching
English as a second language
as well as some English and
math.
Lipkowitz said Hirsch is one
of the most giving and benevo
lent people she’s ever met.
When her mother died in 2009
just a month after she had
accepted the position as execu
tive director, Lipkowitz said
that Hirsch stepped in to help
her husband man a READ
booth at the Rock Creek Park
4th of July fireworks so that
she could plan her mother’s
funeral.
When she walked into the
church where her mother’s
funeral service was going to be
held down in Rome, Ga.,
Hirsch was there.
“This new friend who was so
caring and loving was there for
somebody he barely knew,”
Lipkowitz said. “And he’s been
there for me ever since with all
of the challenges of being exec
utive director. I feel very
blessed that our paths crossed.”
Sue Tennant, the first execu
tive director of READ, also
praised Hirsch’s work on the
board.
“If we had a penny for every
thing that he’s done in terms of
volunteering we wouldn’t need
to have a fundraiser,” she said.
“When something needs to be
done in Dawson County to
make Dawson County better,
Joe Hirsch is going to be there.”
Hirsch said the main focus
the board had since its incep
tion was achieving the Certified
Literate Community status,
which took nearly a decade of
work. The organization was
able to reduce the illiteracy rate
of Dawson residents by 50 per
cent within those 10 years to
receive the designation, which
is awarded by the Technical
College System of Georgia and
the Georgia Council on Adult
Literacy.
Another thing he said he was
proud of is the many GED
classes that have graduated as a
result of READ’S efforts.
“One student was 77 years
old, and he’s still living in
Dawson County. (It was) some
thing he wanted to do all his
life,” Hirsch said. “With the
GED program people were
encouraged to go on to techni
cal school, to Lanier college...
to see these people go on to
better themselves, continuing
education and improving them
selves In this environment that
we’re in, so many companies
will not hire you unless you do
have a high school diploma or
GED.”
Lipkowitz echoed his words,
and said that it takes years for
some students to earn their
GEDs. She said she had recent
ly run into a former student
working at a local business.
'From here on out
every student that
applies in Dawson
County for our schol
arship will be apply
ing forthe Joe Hirsch
scholarship.'
Christine Becnel
READ executive director
Obtaining a GED had been part
of her drug court requirements.
“She struggled, she passed
language arts, social studies,
science but she couldn’t pass
math and she had taken it five
or six times and she was just
beside herself,” Lipkowitz said.
“Before she took it that last
time (a board member) came
into the testing center and said
a prayer with her and she
passed her test. When she
found out she passed it she
dropped to her knees and cried.
I saw that a lot.
“Those were the kind of
experiences that we got to
share with some of our stu
dents. She was a totally differ
ent person than when I first met
her, and she said getting her
GED that day, passing that
math test, was the greatest day
of her life.”
Christine Becnel, the current
executive director, closed the
celebration by announcing that
the organization had renamed
its scholarship in honor of
Hirsch.
“From here on out every stu
dent that applies in Dawson
County for our scholarship will
be applying for the Joe Hirsch
scholarship,” Becnel said.
For more information about
READ or how you can volun
teer, visit www.readdawson.
com or email Becnel at Chris
tine @readdawson.com.
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