Helen Blake to receive 2018 Kiplinger Literacy Award from Library Foundation of Martin County

Maureen Saltzer
For Luminaries
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There is no name more closely associated with the Martin County Library System than Blake.

On Jan. 22, Helen Blake will be honored by The Library Foundation of Martin County as the 2018 recipient of the Kiplinger Literacy Award.

Helen Blake will be honored by The Library Foundation of Martin County as the 2018 recipient of the Kiplinger Literacy Award.

The award will be presented at the Kiplinger Literacy Award Luncheon, a typically sold-out event, held at Harbour Ridge Yacht & Country Club in Palm City. Knight Kiplinger, editor-in-chief of Kiplinger Publications, will be the keynote speaker.

“Helen and Pres Blake were instrumental in the success of the capital campaign to build new libraries for Martin County. The Blakes’ contribution to that campaign is memorialized with the name of our flagship library but their commitment goes so much further,” said Stacy Ranieri, president of the foundation’s board of directors. “We are delighted to have this opportunity to recognize Helen for all of her past and current contributions to literacy in Martin County.”

"Literacy is not just about acquiring the tools to take care of the details of life, like filling out forms and following directions,” said Helen Blake. “It is about looking through windows into places you may never see in person and reading about ideas you might never hear otherwise. It's about opening doors to new opportunities and a better life.”

The Blakes came to Martin County over 30 years ago and currently reside in Sailfish Point. Helen holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Bates College and a master’s degree from Springfield College. She worked in radioisotope research, taught chemistry lab and mathematics. She also studied mathematics at Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

Helen has served on the Library Foundation board of directors in the past and continues to support the organization’s events while spending time with her children, 16 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.

Among her other activities, Helen is involved with the oversight of a scholarship program at Bay Path University in Massachusetts that her husband Pres funded in her honor. The scholarships are offered to women who wish to return to work but require further education to pursue a gainful career.

Keynote speaker Knight Kiplinger has deep roots in Martin County and an enduring connection to the Library Foundation. The Kiplinger family has been a part of the Treasure Coast since 1952 when Kiplinger’s grandfather was seeking a refuge from the “hubbub” of Washington, D.C. Among the family’s many contributions to the area was a plot of land on East Ocean Boulevard in Stuart for the construction of the county’s first library and the Woman’s Club of Stuart.

Kiplinger’s remarks will offer attendees a unique ringside perspective on the leaders and policies that shape the future. The Kiplinger Letter is the most widely read and longest-published business forecasting publication in the world. Among the company’s many accolades, Kiplinger Publications was named one of America’s most ethical companies in 2009 by Ethisphere Magazine.

For more information, visit http://www.libraryfoundationmc.org or call 772-221-1409.

About The Library Foundation of Martin County

Founded in 1992, the mission of The Library Foundation of Martin County, Inc. is to acquire and administer funds to enrich library services and facilities not met by public funding and to endow the library system for future generations.  In addition to the Kiplinger Literary Award Luncheon, the foundation hosts the annual A Literary Affair dinner in March in conjunction with the Book Mania! Festival and a Young Literary Leaders awards event. For more information, visit http://www.libraryfoundationmc.org.

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