Saturday, June 15, 2019 ~ ESQUIMALT
~ West Shore Voice News
This week the Greater Victoria Public Library announced an influx of $45,000 toward digital literacy, the Indigenous materials collection, and the BC Summer Reading Club.
Of that, $13,000 is earmarked for helping to fund a new creative technology space within the GVPL’s Esquimalt Branch, set to be relocated in the Esquimalt Town Square development in 2020. The planned space will include digital equipment that encourages creativity, collaboration and storytelling.
High-demand digital collections like e-books and e-audiobooks will be supported with $10,000.
As well, $5,000 will be used to enhance GVPL’s collection of Indigenous materials including a set for book clubs of the title Glass Beads by Dawn Dumont, the inaugural title of the One eRead Canada program. The BC Summer Reading Club will get $17,000; that program encourages children and teens (up to age 12) to read every day over the summer and to build a love of reading.
The funds were received from the The Friends of the Greater Victoria Public Library, a volunteer group that supports library initiatives, as announced at the group’s Annual General Meeting on June 12.
“The new Esquimalt tech space will let ordinary members of the public convert their photos, documents, slides, VHS, vinyl records or audio cassettes into digital formats. This will help them preserve vital information as well as tell their stories in creative ways,” said Irwin Henderson, president of the volunteer-run Friends of GVPL. “We hope that the Friends’ contribution will be matched by other donors in the community who see what a boon this will be to individuals, families, social groups and small businesses.”
“This generous donation from the Friends will help GVPL strengthen the lifelong learning opportunities the library offers,” said Maureen Sawa, GVPL CEO. “As technologies evolve, so too must our programs and services. This new creative technology space will ensure we are keeping up with advancements, bridging the digital divide, and helping people access tools to develop rapidly changing 21st century skills.”
“The Friends’ volunteer efforts provide funding that helps GVPL enhance its collections, programs and services for the enjoyment and education of our community members,” said GVPL board chair Deborah Begoray. “These volunteers are exceptional supporters of the library.”
The Friends have contributed more than $878,000 to the Greater Victoria Public Library since 1999.
Esquimalt Branch is open during construction of Esquimalt Town Square, though with construction temporarily impacting parking and accessibility.