DUNNVILLE—In 2017, Michelle Galley Salgueiro was serving as a parent volunteer with the healthy snacks program St. Michael’s Elementary School in Dunnville when she was given the opportunity to give back in another way.
“I was asked if I could help support some kids with a program from Strong Start called Letters, Sounds, and Words,” Galley Salgueiro said. “As soon as I read about this program, there was no turning back. Play games one-on-one with kids who need reading support? Count me in!”
She’s been an avid participant in the program ever since, and when it was going to be discontinued at her son’s school because “no one was able to run the program anymore … I stepped up and then became site coordinator for the program to keep it going.”
Galley Salgueiro serves in dual roles, as the volunteer site coordinator and as a volunteer coach.
“I stay involved because I have seen firsthand the amount of ‘great’ this program brings to kids, not only through better comprehension and better reading skills; it gives kids something they really need, especially nowadays, which is connection and one-on-one attention,” she said. “It’s crazy how much these kids thrive in this environment; it’s lovely to see. And an added bonus, it’s so very rewarding to be a coach – it goes both ways.”
Galley Salgueiro explained that the program operates in participating schools throughout Ontario. Children in Senior Kindergarten to Grade 2 who would benefit from extra guidance with reading and learning to recognize sounds, letters, and words are paired with a Strong Start volunteer. Parental/guardian authorization is required for a child to be enrolled in the program.
“It takes about 30 minutes once a week for 10 weeks to complete a full session with a child and make a big difference in their life,” Galley Salgueiro said. “If there are kids struggling above Grade 2, this program can still apply with special circumstances.”
Constance Bergsma saw firsthand the difference the program made in her son, Marcus Haardeng.
Bergsma explained that when he first started the program, Marcus “unfortunately had a very low level of reading; it was very hard to get him to read just the basic words, like ‘the’, ‘and’ – simple things.”
Then, one evening after he had finished the program, Bergsma said she went upstairs to tell her kids to turn the lights off and go to bed.
“And there he was, reading to his little brother, perfectly.… It was an absolutely amazing thing to witness,” Bergsma said. “It is a relief that the program helped him as much as it did. I would recommend it to anybody who wants to help improve their child’s reading.”
Galley Salgueiro encourages anyone who might be interested in volunteering to reach out on the program’s website, strongstart.ca, to find participating schools in their area that need volunteers. If anyone wants to volunteer in Dunnville, they can email her directly at m.galley.salgueiro@gmail.com.
Volunteers working with students must have a flexible schedule that allows them to do sessions during the school day; this is why Galley Salgueiro noted that grandparents in particular are a great fit. But anyone who qualifies is certainly welcome.
“I even have two homeschooled teens who volunteer as coaches at our school.”
Galley Salgueiro noted that according to data on the Strong Start website, the organization has supported over 60,000 kids to date (it has two other programs as well, Get Ready for School and Baby Connections, that are also focused on early literacy). This work has been done across 349 sites, and the results from the 2023/24 sessions showed that “overall 95% of the children made considerable, excellent, or outstanding gains.”
Galley Salgueiro added, “It’s incredible how big it’s getting, but it needs to spread out into all of Ontario – and then beyond; I feel very strongly that this program should be at every single school!”
She can speak from personal experience how life-changing the work of the organization can be – both for the kids and the volunteers.
Galley Salgueiro said she had been working as a reflexologist and doing administrative work for her husband’s classic car restoration business (something she still does). However, after getting involved with Strong Start, she decided to go back to college and get an Early Childhood Educator designation.
“I now work in two separate school boards and focus on mental health and early learning,” she said. “Strong Start has completely changed my career path and I am grateful for that! It’s not only the kids that have positive outcomes from this program.”
