Pictured above: Thousands of books arrived in the school’s new library in Wasagamack, MB and are being carefully organized on the new shelves.

Children in four northern Indigenous communities have been gifted 9,000 opportunities to discover the joy of reading, thanks to a Manitoba charity aimed at increasing literacy levels.

The Share the Magic Book Program, in partnership with the Rotary Club of Winnipeg, distributed thousands of books to children between the ages of 5 and 18, and another 100 books distributed to adults, in northern Manitoba communities between February and March.

“This pandemic has been especially hard on children who are struggling through periods of isolation and lack of access to educational materials,” said Christine Melnick, executive director of Share the Magic. “Not only are children affected emotionally by the pandemic, many are also falling behind in critical reading skills. These books will help them continue to discover the joy of reading.”

Strini Reddy, organizer of the Rotary Club’s Honouring Indigenous Peoples program, reached out to The North West Company seeking assistance to ship books to the Indigenous communities in Lac Brochet (1,560 books), Red Sucker Lake (1,608 books), Manto Sipi (1,483 books), and Wasagamack (3,271 plus another 1,000 books for Wasagamack School). The North West Company was happy to use its resources for a good cause and help transport the books at no cost.

Pictured: The Winnipeg Logistics Service team prepared the books to be sent to northern Manitoba communities.

“We are very pleased to support Share the Magic and the Rotary Club of Winnipeg in their efforts to provide books to children and families in remote northern communities,” said Andrew Thunder, Director of Corporate Responsibility for The North West Company.

The Share the Magic Book Program collects and distributes new and gently used books for individuals, community groups and communities that do not have many books. To date, more than 640,000 books at an estimated value of more than $4.2 million have been given away throughout the program.

“Christine and Share the Magic continue to offer an invaluable service when they help us send large quantities of books to our remote northern Indigenous partner communities,” said Reddy. “The children, youth and their families really appreciate receiving books that they can call their own.”