Library Services

Marian
November 1996

Learning to read is a personal issue for Marian Swisher. "No one read to me as a child and I had difficulty learning to read." She might never have learned to read had it not been for the "Saintly Nuns" in her elementary school in her hometown of Dayton who had the patience - and persistence to deal with a child who was "somewhat dyslexic." As a child, Marian had difficulty writing her letters. The only way she could remember which direction a "D" faced was to add a face to the letter, complete with eyes, nose and smile. Once she attained the skill, reading became a lifelong source of pleasure for Marian. Now Marian shares that pleasure with learners in the Library Literacy Connection program.

What makes a successful learner? According to Marian, "A curiosity about words is an absolute essential." She adds that the learner must have a reason to learn to read. With that in mind, she tries to make reading practical to her learners. "Once we (a learner and Marian) walked around the library parking garage reading the signs. It was an example of how useful reading can be." Marian adds, "learning to read is a difficult task. There are many distractions." In the year and a half she has tutored with the Literacy Connection, Marian has tried a number of what some might suggest are unorthodox techniques to short circuit the distractions and make learning interesting. Along with learning treks through the parking garage, Marian has made tapes so that her learners can listen to lessons in their cars and used Dr. Seuss books as a teaching tool. "I'd make letters out of Jello and let them eat them if I thought it would help," said Marian, perhaps offering a clue as to what the future holds for her current learner.

Not wanting her children to experience the same sort of difficulty she had with reading, Marian made sure she read to all five of her children. She shared her love of reading with her children and they enthusiastically embraced it. One son learned to read when he was four. Marian smiles when she tells a story about him sounding out the word "Tide" on a box of detergent when he was still very young.

Several of her children, who range in age from 21 to 38 are talented writers. Her youngest son studies writing at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Another son struggled academically until doctors at John Carroll University in Cleveland diagnosed his learning disability. A modified approach to learning led to success. He graduated from the University of Cincinnati and now lives with his family in Japan where he teaches English. Perhaps he was the one who taught Marian that everyone learns differently; a concept she recognizes and adopted with her learners.

Marian and her husband Gary, also a Literacy Connection tutor, lived for many years in Cleveland where she worked first as an x-ray technician and then a nurse. During those years she tutored students in area schools. If her personal experience and her time as a tutor of school children hadn't already convinced her of the value of literacy tutoring, she would surely have been converted while she and her husband lived in Hungary for 3 1/2 years while he did contract work for the Embassy. "You begin to understand the frustration of non-readers when you live in a big city full of signs that you cannot read. Finding a restroom or a restaurant became an ordeal," she remembered.

Sitting in a relaxed posture, wearing green corduroy slacks and a gray sweater, Marian Swisher doesn't really seem old enough to be the grandmother of seven. She constantly talks about the future; what she can do to make her learner's life more conducive to the task at hand. She turns her expressive eyes toward the light and muses aloud about his needs and how they might be filled. She makes it clear that the responsibility to make life better belongs to the learner - though she will go to great lengths to assist the effort. She caresses the small cross worn on a chain around her neck and searches for the key to unlock the mysteries of reading for her learner. "Teaching someone to read," says Marian Swisher, "is like nurturing a flower. When someone learns to read it's like watching a flower bloom. Marian Swisher loves flowers and wants to see yet another bloom.

Interview by Boyd Addlesperger

Editor's note:

Marion Swisher died on January 26, 1997 while going to help victims of an accident on Interstate 70. She volunteered in several capacities for the Library Literacy Connection and she possessed a confidence to match her energy and generosity. She approached living as an engaging puzzle to be sorted through and worked with to reveal its treasures. For those of us who have known her, this legacy and her memory are among our treasures.