UP IT VICKERY MEADOWS LEARNING CENTER

SERVES: Local refugees who want to learn English

It may have been easy for Preston Hollow residents to ignore the dramatically different neighborhood just across Central Expressway until recently, when the first Ebola case in the United States thrust Vickery Meadow into the national spotlight. But many neighborhood volunteers have been working in the refugee community for decades through the Vickery Meadow Learning Center. Founded in 1997 as the flagship mission of Preston Hollow Presbyterian Church, the nonprofit provides English literacy classes for adults as well as early childhood education for their children. Right now, 36 different cultures are represented at VMLC.

“We have refugees who have fled life-and-death situations,” says longtime Preston Hollow resident Stephanie Haley, who has volunteered since the program began. The students are alert and eager to learn, she says. After all, their livelihood depends on it. They must quickly learn English to get a job and support their families.

Earlier this fall, when hazmat crews and media trucks surrounded the Ivy Apartments in Vickery Meadow, the students didn’t seem overly concerned, Haley says. “Some of them are just struggling to get through the day.”

There are plenty of bright spots that come with the volunteering gig. Neighborhood resident Laurie Ledbetter recently began working with Haley in the classroom. In addition to the planned coursework, they often have organic conversations among the students. “It’s fun to hear them talk about their lives,” Ledbetter says. “It is so rewarding.”

VOLUNTEER: VMLC is accepting volunteer ESL teachers for the spring semester, beginning in early January. Volunteers teach two hours a week for 12 weeks. Morning, afternoon and night hours are available. No teaching experience or foreign language skills are necessary.

ATTEND: The annual spring fundraiser is March 31 at Fashion Industry Gallery, featuring a performance by the string trio Time for Three.

GIVE: $30 buys a set of ESL books for one adult student

$250 supplies a year’s worth of classroom material for an adult ESL class

$400 sponsors a parent to participate in VMLC programs for one year

CONTACT: Liz Harling • 214.265.5057 • vmlc.org