Mustangs Players Read at Noyes Home

Tuesday, July 8th, St. Joseph Mustangs Pitcher Aron Harrington volunteered with United Way Reading Adventure and the Noyes home in efforts to prevent students from losing reading skills over the summer.

The decade long program aims to maintain and foster children’s reading skills and excitement for reading. Partnering with four different organizations to bring in volunteers on a

weekly basis.

One of the five volunteers contributing that day, Harrington worked with a small group of school-aged children to read together, having them engaged with prompted questions and

related activities. Harrington stressed the importance of reading and how it’ll set them up for success in the future.

“It’ll pay off a lot for them down the road in the future. You learn a lot by just knowing how to read,” Harrington said.

Not only does Harrington believe it’s crucial to instill kids with the benefits of reading, but he also emphasizes giving back to his community that supports him.

“The community of St. Joe does so much for the Mustangs,” Harrington said, “It’s nice to give back and show my love for the community. St. Joe is just a really different place when it comes to baseball. And I mean, I just love it here.”

Harrington isn’t the only one that emphasizes giving back to the community in any way that you can, organizers for the event share that as little as 45 minutes could help those in need.

Organizer for the United Way Reading Adventure, Jodi Flurry, discussed the programs mission to prevent summer reading loss among school-aged children by connecting them with volunteers for weekly reading sessions.

She encourages members of the community to volunteer, noting that a 45-minute weekly commitment can have a meaningful impact.

“Through both organizations, United Way and the Noyes Home, and so many others, you can volunteer just like Reading Adventure. It’s brief, but you can really make a difference.”

Flurry also stress the importance of young children being able to have positive male role models, highlighting how the children often look up to athletes.

“When they see athletes or ball players, they gravitate toward them,” Flurry said, “I also love to see men come out and volunteer because for a lot of kids in our community, they don’t

have a positive male role model in their life.”

The Summer Reading Program continues to play a critical role in supporting literacy development for children and teens in the St. Joseph community. By partnering with local organizations and volunteering, the risk of summer learning loss decreases, and they are able to foster positive relationships with male role models. As the program moves forward, organizers emphasize the ongoing need for volunteer support and community involvement to ensure its long-term success and sustained impact.

- Laken Montgomery