Twenty authors, including a young author and a young illustrator, are coming together to continue a longstanding literacy event.

Authors for Literacy returns to the main branch of the Lexington County Public Library this weekend, raising funds for Turning Pages, a nonprofit adult literacy council providing free one-on-one tutoring to adults in Richland and Lexington counties. 

The decade-old event was initiated by Chronicle founder Jerry Bellune, who said he wanted to do something regarding literacy issues around the Midlands. 

“Literacy is dear to my heart as an editor and writer,” said Bellune, who notes that roughly 9% of Lexington County residents can’t read at a fourth grade level.

Per a release about the event, more than 50,000 people in Richland and Lexington counties are functionally illiterate.

The free event will include a discussion for all the authors taking part to exchange ideas with their peers. The authors come from around the state, with the majority being located in the Midlands area. 

Funds raised, through the authors selling books and autographing them, go directly to helping the Turning Pages’ learners and tutors. The group’s tutors volunteer their time, and the nonprofit doesn’t have any paid staff.

The presenting authors are Halina Schafer, Pat McNeely, Jerry Bellune, Arthur Turfa, Aliya and Joanelise (both minors), Carole Sellman, Franciner Diane Riley, Sverre Thorvaldson, Walter Curry, Tom Elmore, Denise Lynch, Sandra Kay Vosburgh, Ruby DeLoach, Jerry Emanuel, Kathy Widener, Jane (last name redacted), Sandra Pound, Jerry Dean Pate, Nicole McCune and Bonnie Stanard. 

Bellune, who has served on the Turning Pages board for a few years, said if the event raises at least a couple of thousand dollars it could help roughly 10 learners with materials costing about $100 per one learner.

Turning Pages has existed for more than 50 years and has undergone many changes, but its current and only program is their Get Booked: 24 Hours to Success, which stems from research that it takes roughly 24 hours to reach literacy success, said Lisa Cole, the group’s interim executive director.

 All learners are matched with a curriculum after being assessed. If they test at or under a sixth grade level, they will receive 24 hours of tutoring, which equates to one or two sessions a week, Cole explained. If they test above a sixth grade level or want to get their GED, Turning Pages will help them get in touch with other organizations that can help them. 

Cole said finding tutors is the easy part, as many retired educators and others want to help out, but finding learners is difficult because of the shame and stigma associated with not knowing how to read.

When people come to train to become a tutor, she always shows them a replica of a newspaper with all the letters jumbled, emphasizing what words look like to those who cannot read. 

Tutors commit to 12 to 24 weeks of one hour sessions once or twice a week at a public location.

Learners often find tutoring through a trusted friend or one of Turning Pages’ partners. There are a variety of reasons learners decide to learn how to read or how to read better, Cole said, including wanting to find a better job, helping children with homework or just wanting to read signs on the road or at the store. 

Learners who are illiterate often adapt and figure out how to hide their lack of reading skills, the executive director said.