Latham welcomes meteorologist Mike Wankum to Storytime

As we continue to celebrate Prader-Willi Syndrome Awareness Month, Latham Centers highlights special guests who have read to our students on Virtual Storytime.*

Guest Reader Mike Wankum: On Monday, May 11th, over thirty participants in our Virtual Storytime portal welcomed Mike Wankum, meteorologist on WCVB-TV (Channel 5). Mike was delighted and honored to join our Storytime in celebration of PWS Awareness Month. Our participants learned from and laughed with Mike, and he also learned about PWS, our students, and our Latham community during the evening Storytime.

Katrina Fryklund, Latham Centers’ Virtual Storytime coordinator, reflected, “PWS Awareness Month is about growing our community of supporters and teaching those new to our world about the diagnosis and the amazing people. By inviting local celebrities like Mike Wankum to share a story, our kiddos are meeting new community leaders, learning cool new facts about different fields of work, and enjoying a special story with their peers before settling down for the evening.”

On this rainy Monday, Mike read a special weather-themed book entitled Toad Weather by Sandra Markle. The students learned about annual toad migrations in highly populated toad locations like Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The story taught our listeners that toads often migrate on the first rainy night, when temperatures reach at least 50 degrees F, of each spring season.

Our Virtual Storytime participants asked some great questions. We learned about how Mike used to live in the southwest on a farm where there were lots of storms that he would chase as a youngster. It was essential for his family to know about upcoming weather patterns for the farm, so he became an in-house expert. Mike entered the field of meteorology because of his childhood experiences. Katrina noted, “This excited many of our students with the message that their childhood dreams are possible!”

Sincere thanks to Mike Wankum for taking the time to read us a story, and to chat and laugh with us! To learn more about Mike, please visit https://www.wcvb.com/MikeWankum.

 

* Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, students at Latham Centers (and in their homes across the country) come together online for a fun surprise, a good book, and an interactive social hour. Each reader brings something special to Virtual Storytime. Whether they are a legislative or non-profit leader, a professional in the PWS community, or a weather forecaster, they have provided the gift of storytelling and delightful conversation. Throughout the month of May and beyond, we highlight our special guest readers and say THANK YOU.

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Archives