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 On May 19, GE retiree and Literacy Volunteers of Roanoke Valley Board Member Walter P. “Pat” Dungan and Executive Director Annette Loschert received a check from the GE Foundation Community Matching Gifts Program for $2,325 at General Electric Drive Systems Plant. Literacy Volunteers of Roanoke Valley will deploy this generous contribution in its battle against illiteracy in the Roanoke Valley. We thank the GE employees heartily who contributed and the foundation for matching those funds. It’s obvious to us at Literacy Volunteers that GE is not just a powerful corporation and employer in this area, but that its employees also make GE a powerful member of the community and a force that makes this area a better place to live and work for everyone. Driven by the community spirit of GE, Pat Dungan brought that force to Literacy Volunteers of Roanoke Valley years ago and encouraged by this most recent gift, he’d like to harness more of it for the cause he has given his soul and sweat to for nineteen years.
Pat Dungan understands what volunteerism means. Knowing Pat also helps us understand what it means and gives us a model to aspire to in our work. After working for General Electric for 33 years, Pat Dungan took up the cause of literacy in the Roanoke Valley. Since his retirement in 1985, he has been a highly active member of the board of directors. As a GE retiree from the TV and Appliances Division, he has always pushed vigorously for the support of both GE employees and retirees. Having come from this GE work environment that fosters community involvement – both volunteer and financial, Pat left the GE workforce and went to work for literacy. It’s difficult to consider Pat a retiree. He’s worked so hard and given so much to our program over the years.
Literacy Volunteers of Roanoke Valley is a non-profit 501(c)(3) agency dedicated to adult literacy, serving the cities of Roanoke and Salem and the counties of Roanoke, Botetourt, and Craig. Two librarians, Sarah Rubush and Ruth Lipnik, founded the program in 1985. Understanding both power of literacy and the powerlessness of illiteracy, Pat got on board from the start, working with other interested volunteers to create an organization to respond to the community need that Sarah and Ruth had experienced first hand. At the time, they didn’t know that a 1993 government survey would discover that 22% of adults nationwide and 25% of Roanokers are functionally illiterate. So many people had asked them for help, they just knew the need glaringly existed for volunteer-driven literacy services in the Roanoke Valley. Pat had no idea about the depth of the problem either. He simply knew that people needed help, and Pat Dungan is a man who responds to a call for help.
One of the first steps taken to create Literacy Volunteers was to recruit a board of directors. Pat joined Sarah, Ruth, and others to seek concerned folks to provide this organizational backbone. As the organization has grown over the years to provide literacy services to more and more adults, a vital and active board has always given foundation to our success. Great board members have come and gone over those years, but Pat Dungan remains the last of the originals. Sarah Rubush said recently of those early days, “Pat made a big commitment to the program from the start, and he was always there when needed.” Well, Literacy Volunteers still needs him, and fortunately, he’s still here doing whatever it takes to keep this program strong. Although Pat’s good character, work ethic, and community spirit developed over a life-time, which included military service in World War II, his 33 years at General Electric and its tradition of community involvement played a significant role in his decision to apply his brains and muscle into community service upon retirement.
One of his duties as a board member is to create awareness in the community that a severe problem with illiteracy exists and that in working to combat this problem we can make all of our lives better. Pat goes out to speak to groups, and the message he likes to drive home has three components: Literacy Volunteers of Roanoke Valley needs volunteer human resources to answer the endless demand for literacy services; we need financial resources to support those volunteers; and finally, we need community awareness so that people who need literacy services know that there’s a place to go for help. Pat does a wonderful job of communicating this message, and since working for GE made such an impact on his life, he’d love to see even more GE employees and retirees get involved whether it be a financial contribution through the GE Foundation’s Community Matching Gifts Program or as a volunteer.
We have a sense here at Literacy Volunteers that the rest of GE’s employees are much like Pat – hard-working, concerned, and giving. We need your help in whatever capacity you can give it. Of course, we greatly appreciate financial contributions and volunteer human resources; however, simply telling your friends, family, church members, groups, etc. about our program or letting a person you suspect might need help with literacy skills know about our services is also a tremendous help.
For those of you who want to support us financially, you can find out more about GE’s Matching Gift Program at your Web site www.ge.com or by calling 1-800-305-0669. This most recent gift of $2325 from your foundation will go a long way, but Pat Dungan will tell you that we have a much longer way yet to go to eradicate illiteracy in this country and in the Roanoke Valley. We hope you can lend your support. Please visit our Web site www.lvarv.org and call 265-9339. We hold volunteer trainings year round, so when you’re ready, we’re ready to train you to begin work to bring the gift of literacy to another’s life.
Thanks again from Pat and all of us at Literacy Volunteers of Roanoke Valley for your help – both now and in the future.
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