I would like to extend a thank you with much gratitude to Professor Laurie Grobman and the students in her class most importantly to Amanda Nicole Martin. Amanda has made my experience fun and joyful. She has paid attention to every detail, made me feel welcomed and we both know this is part of something bigger than her and I. I feel as if we connected since the first day we met.  I am truly honored to be a part of this project. The work within this class will go beyond the words in this book. It’s the beginning of a rebirth for Reading PA! I couldn’t be more excited to share this with you all.

It is my hopes that you will have a deeper understanding of the adversity and challenges some of us had to face along the way and how important perseverance and commitment are to creating change. Change doesn’t happen overnight however with open conversations and honest dialogue we learn about yesterday, today, tomorrow and how to be better for the future.  The word itself is in the word activism and in order to see things through we must ACT and share our experiences. We did just that while engaging in this project. We shared both our worlds with one another and let the beauty of the City of Reading shine. We created new friendships, partnerships and opportunities. Thank you to all who made contributions to see this project fulfilled and a huge kudos to you all who participated.

 

We all have made significant strides in our lives, community and families. The one take away I would like you to remember is that every day is a new start to create the change you want to see in you and in the world.