First Lady Kathy Evers and the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families provided a wonderful gift of social and emotional learning books for Afghan refugee children resettling in Wisconsin. 

Anna Bierer, our Northeast Regional Literacy Consultant, and Cassie McLain (photo above), North Central Regional Community Coordinator, delivered them to resettlement locations throughout Wisconsin. The 170 books were distributed to 8 literacy agencies - Literacy Network of Dane County, Next Door, Neighborhood House of Milwaukee's International Learning Program (ILP), Literacy Green Bay, Fox Valley Literacy, Portage County Literacy, Wausau, and Winnebago Area Literacy Council.

Some families were welcomed with books for their children the first time they entered the literacy program office. Mustafa from ILP gave four books to his brother with four children. He said, "The books are very good.  They help my brother's children learn English and keep Pashto and Dari with them.  Now they are here, and we don't want them to use only English; we want them to remember their home languages."