NEVER too old to learn...

Have you heard of someone named “Alferd Williams”?

If not, it’s okay… he’s not a famous world leader, educator, Hollywood actor, or athlete.

Even so, I have a lot of respect for Alferd.

Alferd Williams is a first grader at Edison Elementary School in St. Joseph, Missouri. He sits in circle-time, does his schoolwork dutifully, and enjoys a snack with the rest of his classmates.

But here’s the difference: Alferd Williams is 70 years old.

Why is Alferd going back to grade school? He is fulfilling a promise he made to his mother six decades ago: that he would learn to read.

Alferd Williams grew up poor in Arkansas and was just 8 years old when he went to work in the fields to help his sharecropper father. He remembers how his family struggled and vowed that his life would be different.

His dedication and determination to not only make good on his promise to his mother but also to better himself is truly inspiring.

He is living his dream, following through with what he’s promised someone, and pursuing a life-long goal. Even at 70, his mind is open to the possibilities and his world is still expanding and evolving… and he’s not worried about what others may think, because he’s focused on what he’s trying to achieve. This man is the embodiment of everything I believe in.

And, Alferd’s story gets better: this man is not only dedicated to improving his own life, but he is also serving to inspire others. “I tell the kids they can have anything they want in life,” he says.

To watch a short video about his touching story, click here:

http://video.aol.com/video-detail/msnbc-us--missouri--70-year-old-first-grade/3470800059

Bravo Alferd! And thank you for your example.

Warmly,
Russ

Founder of Winning in the Cash Flow Business
Dalbey Education Institute

P.S. Most of us take basic reading skills are taken for granted. But according to National Assessment of Adult Literacy, 30 million adults in the United States today can’t read.

The most common causes include undiagnosed learning disabilities, inadequate schools and parents who are poor readers. The consequences are devastating: low literacy has been linked to unemployment and poverty.

But, there is help. There are community-based adult-education programs across America, and national organizations like ProLiteracy Worldwide – a non-profit advocacy group – and the National Institute for Literacy offer assistance to adults who want to better their lives by learning to read.