Conquering Illiteracy: One Man's Fight
After decades of hiding his struggle, a grandfather reads for his grandson.
Dec. 27, 2008 — -- Two years ago, reading a holiday book to his 3-year-old grandson Chip would have been impossible for Charles Goolsby. But this year, after countless hours of hard work, Goolsby is finally able to read a holiday story -- something he was never able to do for his own son and daughter.
"I was totally humiliated, a grown man with reading and writing skills that are not up to par," said Goolsby, 56, of Fontana, Calif. "I had nothing to lose, because I was at my bottom, my lowest point."
Recently divorced and recovering from heart surgery, Goolsby was entering a new phase of his life. Fixing car transmissions was his specialty. He even owned his own business with the help of his son, but facing retirement, his safety net was disappearing.
"If I needed something, I'd always say, 'Well, give me the paper, I'll go home and fill it out,' or I'd take my wife with me," said Goolsby. "People with the same disability that I have, you know how to get around stuff, you learn the shortcut for someone to help you."
It's not uncommon to find adults headed for retirement who do not have sufficient reading skills. Goolsby began as one of 30 million American adults who cannot read beyond a simple sentence and the 7 million who can't read at all, according to the National Institute for Literacy.
Rosie Manela, adult literacy program director at the Rancho Cucamonga Library, where Goolsby takes literacy lessons, said fear of embarrassment often prevents adults from seeking help.
"It is sad, because in this fast-paced technology, this competitive global economy, our country is going to suffer if we don't do anything about that," she said.
Goolsby's daughter Nicole, a voracious reader herself, made it her mission to get her dad into a reading class.
"I felt like, he had put me through college and law school, it's the least I can do to be able to give back to him and help," Nicole Goolsby said.
Goolsby is grateful for his daughter's devotion.
"This is an opportunity to tell her how happy I am that she went on with pursuing and insisting on me going, because at first I was pretty stubborn," he said.
