Pioneers help provide school boards in and around Regina with thousands of books to help students develop their literacy skills.

“People don't realize how a man’s whole life can be changed by one book.”

Those were the words of the late American civil rights activist and Muslim minister, Malcom X.  Those words resonate with many of us when we reflect for a moment and try to imagine how we would – how we even could – function without the ability to read.

First Book Canada, an organization devoted to improving literacy, is determined to see that all children, regardless of their economic conditions, can achieve more in school and in life through access to an ongoing supply of new books.

To date, First Book Canada has distributed more than 4.5 million books and educational resources to programs and schools serving children from low-income families throughout Canada.  First Book Canada is transforming the lives of children in need and elevating the quality of education by making new, high-quality books available on an ongoing basis.

First Book Canada is a leader in working to provide digital resources so that children in need don’t miss out.  No matter how formats and technologies change, children from low-income families will still need access to rich and varied content.  First Book Canada is helping guide the publishing industry as it evolves so that all children can benefit from new technologies and flourish as readers.

But, they can’t do it without the help of partners, donors and dedicated volunteers to bring the millions of new books to schools and programs serving children in need.  This sounds like a job for the SaskTel Pioneers!

On August 15, 2016, the Pioneers received five palettes of books (a total of approximately 12,000 books) at the Pioneers Salvage Sale location in Regina.  “The books were sent by First Book Canada,” said Darrel Liebrecht, SaskTel’s Pioneer Manager. “Pioneer volunteers and two people from First Book Canada unloaded and helped organize the books according to age-appropriate reading and topic.”

During the following two days, 58 teachers and other people from school boards across Saskatchewan came to select books laid out in the Computers for Schools salvage area.  “Each one of them took an average of 150 books,” said Darrell.

In addition to this initiative, SaskTel Pioneers have spent $5,000 this year on books ordered from First Book Canada and distributed the books to schools throughout Saskatchewan.

If one book can change someone’s life, First Book Canada and the SaskTel Pioneers are sowing the seeds of change for many lives throughout our communities.

To find out more about First Book Canada, visit their website at: http://www.firstbookcanada.org/

To find out more about the SaskTel Pioneers, visit: http://www.sasktelpioneers.com/