The Gift of Literacy: Sally And Jim Barksdale

Sally And Jim Barksdale

When former Netscape CEO Jim Barksdale and his wife Sally visited Lee Elementary School in Jackson, Miss., swarms of children reached out to high-five them, introduce themselves and show their latest drawings. Jim, dressed in khakis and open-collar shirt, strolled into a classroom and took a third-grader's seat. He crouched forward as each small student read aloud from the The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse--some in clear, proud voices; others in low, hesitant tones. Sally soothingly helped when they stumbled over a word, and Jim encouraged them to read with inflection.

Earlier this year the Barksdales created a $100 million...

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