SBLC Newsletter Winter 2023

“Your HEART knows the way. Run in that direction.” – RUMI

Happy December 1st everyone and Happy Birthday to me! While I don’t believe in coincidences, I do believe that everything unfolds as it’s meant to just as this newsletter was intended to reach you today. Our theme for this quarter is “Keeping a Warm Heart”. You may wonder how or why, and the answer is simple. A warm heart is a giving heart but it’s also one that can receive. Throughout this Fall semester we have been quite intentional on how we planned to serve our community. Our learners and community members were able to participate in Financial Literacy workshops, the Career Skills Academy (a workforce development initiative), Train Up Resource Fair and our first ever Health and Wellness Resource Fair. Each event provided our community with resources that assist them in reaching their academic, financial and career goals.

Our drive and commitment to our learners is at an all time high. We are excited to announce that we reached our Annual #GivingTuesday Goal of $1500.00. Also, we received a $50,000 grant from Kaiser Permanente to continue our amazing work of Financial Education and Awareness. The SBLC community is connected, and we believe in our mission to improve the self-sufficiency of educationally disadvantaged adults. SBLC is a community-based nonprofit organization providing functional literacy and life skills training, in addition to career preparation services, to residents in the Baltimore Area. More than 30 years since our founding, SBLC remains among only a few community-based adult literacy organizations still in operation. We believe that we do this work the best and with your support and engagement we can continue to promote an environment that is safe, supportive and responsive to the needs of our learners and staff.

What’s To Come

In closing, the SBLC Family would like to extend gratitude to everyone who donated goods and services to us this quarter. A special thanks to those who supported our Winter Coat Drive. Our Toy Drive begins December 1st, and we invite you to drop off a new toy to support our SBLC learners and their families during this holiday season. This time of year may be brisk but with a warm heart we have the ability to pay it forward through acts of kindness. To that end, let’s do more of that together!

P.S. Don’t forget to like and share our social media post to help us grow. Have an amazing holiday season and keep your heart warm.

All the best,

We are excited to announce our annual Toy Drive and invite you to join us in spreading joy this holiday season. Our goal is to bring smiles to the faces of children in need.We believe that every child deserves a happy holiday season and we can make a difference by coming together as a community. Whether you donate new toys or gently used ones, every contribution counts. Let’s make this holiday season special for all the children in our community. Join our Toy Drive today!

SBLC|Learning Works Mock Interview Extravaganza is December 6th, 2023. It is designed to help learners prepare for job interviews and gain confidence in their interview skills.

This is a great opportunity for learners & community members to prepare themselves for the real world job interviews, and to gain valuable experience and feedback. We encourage everyone interested in improving their interview skills to sign up today.