Melfort Rotary Club donates to multiple local organizations

They will have guests Chief Margaret Bear from Ochapowace Nation as a guest speaker, Courtney-Dawn Anaquod from Muscowpetung Saulteaux Nation to teach jigging to the youth, and Edward Stonestand from James Smith Cree Nation, who will perform pow wow with his drumming group and dancers in traditional regalia.

Meanwhile, the Marguerite Riel Centre in Melfort is providing volunteers to help with educational activities and donating supplies to help the event run smoothly.

Special volunteers Amy Constant (a James Smith Band Member from Melfort) and Karlee Bear from Ochapowace Cree Nation will also assist in teaching the older girls beading.

In a statement from the Girl Guides, they said “we are so excited to be hosting this Girl Guide District Rally and are thankful to the communities working together to make this a successful event. We would not be able to host such an amazing rally without the support from the Rotary Club of Melfort who graciously donated $1000 to the event. This donation will allow us to put on a top-rated day full of fun, interactive activity, and learning, while also providing life-long memories for our girl guide attendees.”

As for the library, their ‘Books for Babies’ and ‘1000 Books Before Kindergarten’ projects are both being supported.

Melfort Rotary Club presents cheque to Melfort Public Library (Submitted photo/Melfort Rotary Club)

According to the library, “the purpose of the Northeast 0 to 3 Early Childhood Taskforce project, Books for Babies, is to promote literacy as well as healthy growth and development by providing culturally and age-appropriate board books.”

Currently, there are Books for Babies committees operating in Melfort, Tisdale, and Nipawin.

And, in Melfort, parents will receive a Melfort Library’s ‘1000 Books before Kindergarten’ book bag from a public health nurse at their newborn’s two-month child health clinic appointment.

The program will seek (annual) literacy funding from Melfort Rotary and Kinette Clubs requesting approximately $1500- 2500 per year for books and another $1000 for additional supplies (mirrors, finger puppets, and rattles).

The board books and additional supplies will be selected and ordered by the Melfort Library, and the ‘Books for Babies’ items will be added to the Melfort Library’s program ‘1000 Books before Kindergarten’ reusable bags.

Books for Babies/1000 Books Before Kindergarten bags being packed (Submitted photo/Melfort Rotary Club)

The library said, “on average, in the Melfort area, there are about 120-150 births per year.”

The Books for Babies Committee members include the Saskatchewan Health Authority Public Health Nursing and Nutritionist, Melfort Public Library, and North East School Division Coordinator of Learning.

The committee meets 1-3 times per year as needed, and health and educational resources will be reviewed yearly at a committee meeting before existing or new items are included in the bag.

“Our Rotary Club of Melfort supports literacy initiatives both locally and internationally… our goal is to help eliminate child poverty, and literacy is a crucial component to achieving this goal,” added the Melfort Rotary Club.

“The ‘Books for Babies’ and the ‘1000 Books Before Kindergarten’ projects of the Melfort Public Library are extremely important in the development of children and their learning to read, and we are proud to sponsor these projects.”

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Ben.Tompkins@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter @BenTompkins_8

by Ben Tompkins

Melfort Rotary Club donates to multiple local organizations

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