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Ethiopia Reads Founder Named Top 10 CNN Hero of the Year

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Source: Ethiopia Reads

Denver, CO — Yohannes Gebregeorgis, a native of Ethiopia and children’s literacy advocate, has been named a Top 10 Hero of the Year by CNN. Mr. Gebregeorgis was selected from more than 3,000 individuals nominated by viewers throughout the year. Finalists were selected by a Blue Ribbon panel of judges that includes Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Jane Goodall and Deepak Chopra. The Top 10 Heroes will be recognized in CNN’s “All-Star Tribute” to air on Thanksgiving.

Yohannes was first recognized as a “hero” by CNN in May for his work championing children in Ethiopia. A former political refugee who worked as a librarian at San Francisco Public Library, Yohannes is the co-founder of Ethiopia Reads, a non-profit organization that works to create a reading culture in Ethiopia by connecting children with books. In a country where 99% of schools have no libraries, Yohannes and Ethiopia Reads are improving lives, one book at a time.

We share this amazing moment with you — our wonderful supporters and friends across the world.

Lear more at: ethiopiareads.org

4 thoughts on “Ethiopia Reads Founder Named Top 10 CNN Hero of the Year”

  4. Thank you Yohannes for acting on your vision and dream. You gave some of us a purpose. In a country where over 50% can’t read and write, books, education and knowledge are critical if the country is going to make any kind of progress in productivity, literacy, democracy, human rights and so on. Yohannes’s story should be a reminder to all of us that the power of this noble idea and the strength that is contained in one person’s passionate determination to make an impact in the lives of people in Ethiopia.
    Winston Churchill once said, ” What is the use of living, if it be not to strive for noble causes and to make this muddled world a better place for those who will live in it after we are gone.”
    ” If we truly want a legacy of peace to our children, we need to understand that this is a war that ultimately have to be won with books not bombs.”
    Greg Mortenson in an article in Parade Magazine. Please read: Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin.

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