Duane Hicks
A whopping 30,000 books soon will be distributed to children across the 10 area First Nations and points in-between—thanks to a donation from Scholastic Canada and the Save The Children Foundation.
Calvin Morrisseau, executive director of Fort Frances Tribal Area Health Services, said he was contacted this past spring by a friend, who had been contacted by Scholastic Canada.
Morrisseau then learned about a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get free books in order to encourage literacy, with the cost to supply and ship the thousands of books covered by Scholastic Canada and Save The Children Foundation, and took up the offer.
“The idea is to try and get reading material in the hands of every kid in the north who wants books,” explained Morrisseau, stressing he personally feels strongly about the value of literacy.
“I read to my daughter when she was very young and now she is in university,” he noted.
“Reading is very important. As an author, I know that,” Morrisseau added with a smile.
Morrisseau, along with fellow FFTAHS employees Tanya Hughes, Bobbie Loyie, and Everett Freeman, were busy Friday at the Crozier Warehouse, sorting through books, separating them into categories, and then packaging them up for the communities to receive them.
He said FFTAHS nurses and mental health workers who do outreach work to the 10 area First Nations will be delivering the books.
“The communities have been contacted already about the books that they want, so we kind of know which communities want books and how many they want,” noted Morrisseau.
FFTAHS also has partnered with the Sunset Country Métis and United Native Friendship Centre to help distribute the books locally.
The shipment of books, which actually arrived here in May, represents a wide variety, both entertaining and educational, and covers different levels of reading ability—from young children to young adults.
There are about 80 titles in total, ranging from “The Backyard Adventure” and “The Jewel Fairies” to “Captain Underpants and the Big Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger,” not to mention books about the environment and solar system.
“We’re pretty excited about all these books,” enthused Morrisseau. “It’s a great opportunity to get books up here.
“It’s not every day you get 30,000 books for free, delivered to your door,” he added.
“That’s so cool,” echoed Hughes. “It’s nice to be thought of.”
Morrisseau stressed the books are for all children living in the area, and will be made available to anyone who wants them.
“We wouldn’t like to see any child go without a book,” he said.
In addition to being delivered directly to the 10 area First Nations, books also will be made available at various local agencies in the near future.
More details will be announced soon.
