During the COVID-19 pandemic, widely recognised in 2020, several public health measures were adopted. This included lockdowns and limitations on travel and of access to public spaces, such as libraries and community hubs.
As reported in 2020 and 2021, Indigenous communities used wholistic knowledge of health and previous pandemics to quickly protect vulnerable community members and reduce the spread of the virus. Nonetheless, health researchers reported in 2023 that the impact of COVID-19 was disproportionately higher among some—but not all—Indigenous communities.
Understandably, many Write to Read BC’s partners in isolated BC communities continue to take a cautious approach to visitors. This affects Write to Read BC projects. Before the pandemic, previous consultation and collaboration happened face to face. In time, when the partnering communities are ready, this work can continue. When invited, Write to Read BC volunteers will be ready to actively continue our partnerships across BC.
One of Squamish Nation’s urban schools, Capilano Littlest Ones Xwemelch’stn School, celebrated its new library in November 2022. The school is on Squamish land in Greater Vancouver.
The school brings together 130 Indigenous and non-Indigenous students in the Norgate area of urban North Vancouver. The school and its library help break down social barriers, build bridges across cultures, and re-establish positive relationships. Capilano Littlest Ones is a community school under the auspices of North Vancouver School District.
The Lax Kw’alaams library, part of the Write to Read BC project, was featured in a Vancouver Sun article. It describes community reactions to the arrival of new library books.
Excerpt from Vancouver Sun, March 20, 2021.
By Douglas Todd
“Please bring us more books” First Nation librarians ask.
Naomi White still remembers her delight when she saw a barge full of books moving across the inlet to her village of Lax Kw’alaams, north of Prince Rupert.
“It was amazing,” the First Nation librarian said.
Six volunteers from Metro Vancouver helped haul in 14 pallets of books and library furniture so that about 150 school-age children in the small village, 1,000 kilometres north of Vancouver, would get the chance to enhance their literacy.
“If you don’t know how to read, you don’t know how to do anything,” White said, explaining how literacy is the key to more First Nation people advancing into higher education and holding down jobs in the trades, businesses and professions.
“We’re just so isolated here, especially during COVID. Now we’re better able to foster the love of learning. And to pass on that reading is power. The more you know the better off you are,” said White, describing how many young people in the village are keen to learn about the larger world through the library.
After a long drive from Prince George, the installation team arrived in Gitsegukla at 2:45pm on a Tuesday, ready to install a library for the school and community.
The installation took 3 days, while the school was closed for holidays. To comply with COVID-19 restrictions, the out-of-town volunteers obviously could not socialise or stay with community members. The efforts of the volunteers, including members of Write to Read BC’s library response team, were planned from start to finish.
A literacy-focused addition to the community.
On arrival, the library response team swung into action, with the school staff and principal Louise Ormerod. Once the furniture was unloaded, the library response team started organizing the layout of the learning centre, with its internet connection that allows remote attendance at courses and conferences..
Volunteers unloading a delivery of library books.
Fetching sponsors
On Day 1, the team started early and progressed well. Total Support Services Chief executive officer Chris Gillen made a “quick” 3-hour return trip to Terrace to fetch more shelving tabs and an HDMI cable for the TV.
Chris Gillen of Total Support helps troubleshoot the learning centre’s computers at no cost.
How Total Support Services joined Write to Read BC
For a Victoria-Harbourside Rotary Club meeting a few weeks before the Gitsegukla library were installed, Write to Read BC co-lead Bob Blacker gave a presentation about the program, by video call. One of the audience members mentioned that her son-in-law was working with First Nations to provide computers, IT solutions, and training. A few days later Bob received a call from Chris at Total Support, expressing interest. As a result of this connection, Write to Read BC now has a supplier of computers and related hardware needed for learning centres. In addition, Total Support will, at no cost to the libraries—provide online support for any computer problems that surface. This has been huge for Write to Read BC, as support for computers has always been a concern; now we do not have to worry about that.
After 3 days of hard work, the Write to Read BC team, along with principal Ormerod and her staff, completed Write to Read’s very first “version 3” learning centre.
We had some hiccups over the three days, which is to be expected, but we were able to prevail. The new library and resource centre looks great.
Masks off for the group photo: The satisfied team that installed the library and learning centre.
Preceded by planning and design
The team leads recalled the process that led to the installation of this library.
The Write to Read BC team met with Chief Willie and three council members, overlooking Princess Lake. This meeting allowed members of the team to chat with key members of the community. The evening ended with a handshake between Chief Willie and Write to Read BC team co-lead, Bob Blacker, cementing the agreement and the blossoming friendship and trust with Gitsegukla.
As one of the team members said: “This is what makes it all worth it.”
An earlier imagineering session: What does the community’ envision next?
The evening was topped off with an imagineering session, lead by design response team member, Scott Kemp. This was also a new experience for the Write to Read BC team.
Key components of the learning centre: a large screen and a computer table.At this point still a warehouse of books, this room will soon be a classroom.
Over the next few months, we’ll be installing furniture and books at five locations, ranging from Vancouver to BC’s interior. Most of these libraries are linked to a community school or preschool, including in Squamish Nation, Tsideldel First Nation, Williams Lake First nation, and Aboriginal Mothers Care Centre.
Gitsegukla, in the Skeena region of west central BC, on the southeast side of the Skeena River adjacent to the Kitseguecla River mouth, near New Hazleton, BC.
Learning Centre at Tsideldel First Nation, located in the Chilcotin region of BC’s western central interior.
Littlest People Elementary School, a Homulchesan school in the Squamish Nation, next to the mouth of the Capilano River, in Greater Vancouver.
Aboriginal Mothers Care Centre in Vancouver’s downtown eastside neighbourhood. It’s a place where Aboriginal mothers, babies, and children can come to be together as a family.
Little Chiefs Elementary School library in Williams Lake First Nation, which is located in the Cariboo region of BC’s central interior, at Williams Lake.
Need to brighten up your cloudy day? Stop by our Bella Bella library/office and check out this beautiful new mural by Thomas Kero! Photos don’t do it justice. There are so many hidden creatures and special features nestled into the summertime foliage.
A mural painted on the Bella Bella library. Kero wants the town to be as beautiful as the surrounding landscape.
Write to Read BC’s 17th library is getting ready for its official opening, after the recent installation of shelves and books by Write to Read BC volunteers.
Preparations involved a trip on the high seas by BC Ferry to the Nanaimo Correctional Centre to pick up furniture build for the library, and a visit to the Write to Read storage locker, provided by U-Lock Storage, to pick up a shipment of books.
The final touches: the outside of the Rocky Pines community building before the library was installed in one of its rooms.
The library response team, volunteers Margaret, Carol, Liz, and Marion, made the trip to the Rocky Pines community, sometimes called the Lower Nicola Indian Band, near Merritt, BC, where they coordinated with local volunteers to prepare the furniture, shelves, and books for the library’s opening. Other volunteers later set up the TV and computers for the library’s learning centre, which will offer remote attendance to courses and conferences via Internet.
Still to come is an amazing donation of new Indigenous-authored books from GoodMinds.com. This donation of 1,000 books for readers from pre-schoolers to adults, is an $18,000 gift to the community.
A team visit to the community centre shows it’s ready for the library response team to install the shelves, seating, books, and technology.
Write to Read BC’s design response team visited the Sxoxomic Community School at Esk’etemc, and ended up designing a library with the kids. Although the students are not designers, they have clear ideas about how to lay out their library.
This beautiful new school did not yet have a library.
Our co-lead Dr Shirley-Pat Gale heard from new elementary school’s principal that the school does not yet have a library.
Gale, brought in Write to Read BC’s design response team, architect Scott Kemp, and co-lead Bob Blacker. The team mixed with grade 7 students, and magical things happened.
During an amazing lunch-and-design session with the kids, the team designed its layout, including where the new shelving would be placed. The shelves will be made by the Nanaimo Correctional Centre. All that remains is for library response team lead Margaret Fletcher to visit the school to review what books they’d like, and then the school can contact our Aboriginal book distributor GoodMinds.com and Jeff Burnham to purchase the aboriginal authored books that will make their library suit the community.
This was Write to Read BC’s first design session with students from an elementary school, and it was a success.
While attending a Rotary Club leadership conference, Write to Read BC co-lead Dr Shirley-Pat Gale was interviewed by Rotarian David Mangs about her work with libraries, literacy, and Write to Read BC.
During the video interview, Gale told the story of the child who inspired her to start providing not only books but spaces for libraries in isolated BC communities.
Interviewer David Mangs is a past district governor of Rotary district 7890. Mangs begins the interview by explaining the goals of Rotary Clubs, and by introducing Gale.
Spurred by the Write to Read BC library projects in Toosey and Stone, Indigenous community Nemiah Valley, has approached us about a community library.
Nemiah Valley, BC, is home to the Xeni Gwet’in band of the Tsilhqot’in people. This community is on Chilco Lake, a 4½-hour drive from Williams Lake. This has logistical challenges for the project.
Members of the Rotary Club relayed to us that community members are very excited that something like this is available to them.
Dr Shirley-Pat Gale, our co-lead, has made contact with the community, and will help set up an initial meeting in which the community can tell us what they want from a library.
