Catholic Diocese of Spokane, Washington

From the

Official News Magazine of the Diocese of Spokane

(From the Jan. 13, 2005 edition of the Inland Register)

The Foster Grandparent Program is being used at St. Mary School, Spokane Valley, for the first time this year. Here, Marie Poirier, a former kindergarten aide who has helped out in the classroom all her life, helps a student with one-on-one skills. She has volunteered in the classrooms of her children and grandchildren, and now enjoys assisting other students who relate to her as “Grandma.” She spent over 25 years in Religious Education in Yakima before moving to Spokane. She has been involved in St. Mary Parish’s religious education program since 1990. Now, as an official “Foster Grandparent,” she helps students in the first, third, and sixth grades, and in the library, for four hours a day, four days a week. The program proves rewarding to the students and to the “grandparent” alike. (IR photo from Kathy Dondero)