​If you are lucky enough to know Dr. Katherine Hough (rhymes with "tough"), then you probably know that she is smart, funny, and seems to know at least a little bit about practically everything.  Katherine has been the CBAL Community Literacy Coordinator in Cranbrook since May 2009.  Like many of us, Katherine came to literacy work on a winding path through years of education and community work. 
 
Katherine is a practicing lawyer. Before being called to the bar, she studied Canadian History and Russian. She also has a Masters of Environmental Law and a Masters of Divinity (she is an ordained Anglican priest).  Most recently, Katherine completed her Ph.D. in Criminal Law and Ethics! About 25 years ago, while working as Crown Counsel in Prince George, Katherine worked as a volunteer adult literacy tutor.  She came full circle when she became the community literacy coordinator for Cranbrook.

One of the banner programs in Cranbrook is the Young Parents’ Education Program (YPEP). At YPEP parents of young children can study to complete their high school diploma while their children are looked after at a licensed childcare facility.  One of the important parts of YPEP is Parents and Children Together (PACT). During PACT, parents spend time with their kids and develop their parenting skills.
 
Katherine feels YPEP makes a difference by providing a safe place to learn.  She says one learner who began YPEP was shy, had little help and had difficult relationships.  “She could have been asked to leave for not meeting the expectations of the program,” Katherine says.  “She didn’t appear to be working hard, and she didn’t engage with others.  But by the end of the program year, she was making eye contact, smiling, connecting, because she had found a safe place she could trust.”  That learner returned in September and, as Katherine says, was “off to the races!”
 
Another impactful moment for Katherine is Cranbrook’s annual Creative Writing Project. CBAL works with local schools for the project.  Teachers and school administrators select one piece of work for each grade to be recognised and celebrated at a Family Literacy Day (January 27th) event.  “The pieces aren’t chosen because they are the best, but because they represent the student’s success, their milestone.”  One Kindergarten picture was featured when the student drew a picture of her father, who had died.  “It was the first time she had been able to acknowledge and label the fact that her daddy was gone and to start talking about it and healing.”
 
Katherine says the best parts about her job are working with dedicated program facilitators and staff, and the community partnerships she gets to be a part of every year.  “There are so many people and groups committed to literacy – the process, planning and partnerships,” says Katherine.  There is no question, however, that Katherine is a big part of the successful and valuable literacy work that happens in Cranbrook.

Katie Andruschuk
Community Literacy Coordinator - Windermere Valley

Almost eight years ago, Iryna left her home in the Ukraine. She moved to Canada with her two small children and Canadian husband. Iryna remembers, “It was a beautiful time of year with flowers everywhere and trimmed lawns. It made my arrival special.” Iryna didn’t know much about Canada, but she knew she wanted to live someplace warm. Her husband looked around southern BC and liked the Castlegar area. By chance they bought a house in an old Doukhobor orchard near the only preschool in the area - and it happened to be a Russian preschool!

Iryna was busy those first few months settling into her new home. She felt isolated and a little lonely so far away from her active social life in the Ukraine. She saw an ad on TV for ESL lessons and decided to give them a try. She felt nervous, but knew she needed to learn English to be successful in Canada. Iryna started going to ESL classes at the Castlegar Public Library. Soon she and her children were invited to a Halloween party at Kootenay Family Place. It was nice to meet other families there. She says, “ESL Family Time provided a new community for me in my early years here.”

Iryna has a diploma in hairdressing and another in office management from the Ukraine. Before she moved to Canada, she worked as a secretary at the largest dairy-processing facility in the Ukraine. The ESL classes Iryna attended in Castlegar gave her the English skills and confidence to go back to school.  When her children started school, Iryna went to Selkirk College and earned a diploma in Early Childhood Education (ECE).

Iryna has achieved many things in her eight years here. She worked hard on her English and wrote the CELPIP exam. Her score helped her become a Canadian Citizen. She recently received a Selkirk Excellence Award for Psychology. Iryna is looking forward to using her ECE training when she starts work in September at the Children’s Orchard Russian Preschool. She has met many Russian-speaking Doukhobor and Russian-Ukrainian immigrants; they even have a small social club. 
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Iryna has some good advice for newcomers to Canada, “Don’t hesitate to participate in ESL programs and join the programs that introduce and integrate foreigners into the community. It will help you settle in your new home!”

Carolyn Amantea
Settlement Worker - Trail & Area