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Alan Patteson, longtime Jonesboro businessman, will be the reader Saturday (May1) for Stories in the Forest, a program sponsored by the Women’s Advisory Council of the St. Bernards Development Foundation. The program is to begin at 3 p.m. at the St. Bernards Fun Forest at The Mall at Turtle Creek.
Because of the upcoming Cinco de Mayo celebration planned by the Hispanic community in Jonesboro, the May stories with have a Hispanic flavor. Patteson will read two books in English and Spanish.
One is With My Brother (Con Mi Hermano) by Eileen Roe. In this book, a small boy treasures the time his brother spends with him. His older brother is his role model, and he hopes one day to do the things his brother does so well – play ball, deliver papers, and go to school. It’s a simple, repetitive story that is written line-by-line in English and then Spanish.
The second is It’s Not Fair! (No es justo!) by Rebecca Gomez. Written for a bilingual beginning reader series, the book is about an extended Hispanic family with three young children. Little Charlie goes through the ups and downs of childhood with help from his siblings, his parents and his grandparents. In this book, Charlie really, really wants to go to Mexico with the mother for vacation. But it’s Luis’s and Pilar’s turn to go there, and Charlie thinks that’s not fair! In the end, his extended family gives Charlie a special at-home vacation.
In addition to giving parents some quality time with their children and exposing children to some favorite books of local residents, Stories in the Forest has an educational focus, with printed materials available for parents. The program is an outgrowth of the St. Bernards Women’s Advisory Council’s tremendously successful Kidz Fun Fair.
The Women’s Advisory Council is a group of about 120 area women who have joined together in an advisory role to give input on important healthcare issues impacting women and children. They encourage educational as well as service outreach efforts designed to make Jonesboro a better place to live, work and raise families.