Chris Davis, a 14-year-old student at Lehi Junior High School, evaluates new students with an advanced computer program that measures their reading and determines the specific areas and concepts with which they need help.

"I used to not read very good," Davis says. "I used to go to special classes, and now I just want to help others."

Davis is the poster child for what keeps the center running — former students of the program who return as tutors. Any student who is at least two grades ahead of the student who needs help can be a tutor, a practice that results in a fascinating scene of children helping other children in a process that provides a mutual confidence builder.

"It's so satisfying to see the children make progression and then come back as tutors, knowing they are being helped in a way that will help them and their children," Rippy said.

Outside the computer room, a foyer with study carrels crammed into every inch connects to two smaller rooms used for math tutoring. Space is a precious commodity at the Rippy Literacy Center, so every inch is made to count.

In a hall behind the reading center, two younger students sit on pillows and listen while a tutor helps them with basic math skills.

"This is a fire escape, so we can't put any furniture in here," Rippy says. "But these students have been very good about working with us."

Rippy said the city is looking at options for giving the center more room, but she adds she is satisfied with the current arrangement and is doing fine with the space she has.

Back in her office, Rippy says she is surprised by the center's success but quickly adds, "I think we've just started."

Rippy firmly believes there has been a divine hand guiding her work but said the human hands are making a major contribution as well.

"God is so good," she says. "The city runs a very close second."

Of course, the center still has its problems. Funding is tight, a problem Rippy hopes to solve by establishing a permanent endowment.

And while the $40,000 she has saved for it is far short of her million-dollar goal, if history is any indication, Hester Rippy has a habit of making things happen.

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E-mail: jtwitchell@desnews.com