A Westport woman is providing the gift of reading to families learning English as a second language.

Tammy Barry is an educator and volunteer at the Mercy Learning Center in Bridgeport. She says most of her students are mothers learning English alongside their children with books provided by the center.

?I feel for these women,? she says. ?It's really an extra gift because they're living at poverty level, so they don't have the opportunity to buy books from big chain stores.?

The Mercy Learning Center provides free job training and education for women in need.