Children’s section library expansion receives boost from province
The latest contributor to the Gaynor Family Regional Library’s children’s section expansion project is the province of Manitoba. Premier Wab Kinew personally stopped by the library last week to make the announcement that $600,000 will be given to the library to support the expansion.
Selkirk Mayor Larry Johannson(left) with Premier Wab Kinew (right) and kids who were at the Gaynor Family Regional Library during the provincial funding announcement
The announcement started with Ken Kuryliw, the Director of Library Services for the Gaynor Family Regional Library, opening the event with a land acknowledgement before turning the podium over to the Premier.
“I’m very happy to be here today to stand with many great local and community leaders to announce $600,000 to expand the Gaynor Family Library here in Selkirk. This is such a beautiful facility. I hope everybody in the region is very, very proud. Every time I come here, there is a wonderful cross-section of (the) community, and there’s great events happening here. I was here for the dedication of the art in the back. We’ve held gatherings to do with literature, and Lake Winnipeg, and other events over here. And then today, of course, we’ve got the future generation having a little story time. To me, this facility just represents what libraries mean to communities right across Manitoba,” said Kinew.
This $600,000 investment comes from the province’s Manitoba Growth, Renewal and Opportunities for Municipalities (Manitoba GRO) program and joins contributions from the City of Selkirk and the RMs of St. Andrews and St. Clements of just over $400,000 each, the Gaynor family of $300,000, the Harvey family of $100,000, the Selkirk and District Community Foundation of $150,000, the Rotary Club of Selkirk of $150,000, and community fundraising of $290,000 to total $2.79 Million of the $2.8 million needed to complete the project.
Kinew talked about how libraries have so much to offer.
“It’s been amazing to see how libraries have kept up with the times, of course, the books, literature, and being able to research by reading is really, really important, but there’s the community programming that libraries have really taken on, there’s the access to computers, there’s the access to other media that libraries have taken on, and that was a pretty good coffee shop. Libraries have done this remarkable job of keeping themselves relevant to what Manitobans need in your community and continue to be a gathering place. So, this investment is going to make the Gaynor Family Library bigger, better, and going to have more amenities for kids and for community, but I think most of all, it’s going to make sure that this facility stays relevant to the needs of Selkirk, St. Andrews, St. Clements, and everybody from surrounding communities who come to use the library,” said Kinew.
The planned renovation for the Gaynor Family Regional Library will nearly double the regional library’s fully usable space, to a total of 22,500 sq. ft., including a new children’s area, community meeting and study spaces, and shelving for 20,000 additional volumes.
The Gaynor Family Regional Library was looking to expand because, despite its proportionally smaller size, it packs a punch in our community. Library statistics show it to be one of the busiest libraries in the province, and with the demand for early learning and children’s programming very high, this will allow the library staff to increase their offerings so that more kids can discover their love of the library at an early age.
The current plan for the renovation is for construction to start sometime in the beginning of April, and Kuryliw says that the idea is to see completion in October of this year.
“We are hoping interior work can be done by the end of summer, with exterior work in the early fall,” he said.
For patrons who don’t want to give up grabbing a great read in the next few months, the plan is to keep the library operational during most of the construction.
“We are planning to keep the library functioning as much as possible and limit actual days closed to five or so. Obviously, since all areas of the library will see some changes, (it will be the) first time it’s been painted in 12 years, disruptions will happen. We ask all staff and library users to be understanding that there will be issues when you have construction, from noise, dust, (and some) ease of access as areas will be closed off for safety,” said Kuryliw.
Despite some inconvenience, the finished product is going to help the library keep up with the demands of the community, from students studying during exam time to expanding their collection.
At the announcement, Minister of Municipal and Northern Relations Glen Simard was glad to see a regional project like this be submitted for consideration saying, “We’re really, really excited that the leadership of this community got together collectively to make this significant ask, and we’re really excited to get this past the finish line, because small communities can have great things too.”
Larry Johannson, the Mayor of Selkirk, talked about how this expansion is not just for current residents but also for future residents of the area.
“The province’s financial support allows this regional library to grow and offer more services, expand its collection and programming and better serve citizens now and well into the future. It’s a meaningful investment in community building and people building too over the coming decades, countless children will learn to read and learn to love books in this space, lifelong friendships and family memories will be formed through programming here, regardless of age, income, ability or background, people will come here to be inspired, to connect, to feel welcome, to share ideas and to learn and grow,” he said.
St. Clements Mayor Debbie Fiebelkorn, who formerly served as a long time library board member, spoke about how much the library means to us all.
“For so many of us, a place like this isn’t just a building, it’s where we brought our kids on rainy Saturday afternoons, it’s where students came to study, where seniors found connection, where newcomers found resources to help them feel at home. The Gaynor Library has been part of the fabric of life in this region for generations, and that means something. Standing here today, I’m not just proud as a mayor, I’m proud as a neighbour. This announcement is a testament to what happens when communities stop thinking about their own boundaries and start thinking about the people they share this region with,” said Fiebelkorn.
St. Andrews Mayor Joy Sul acknowledged the hard work of so many people who made this project possible.
“Many people have worked so hard to reach this moment, the Library Board, the staff, community supporters, the Rotary Club and our regional partners. This project reflects the belief that when we work together, great things can be accomplished,” she said.
After the mayors made their remarks, some local parents discussed the importance of the children’s programming to their families, noting the library staff who put so much care and attention into what they do, the love of reading that going to the library has given to their kids, and the connection to other parents that attending children’s programming has given to them.
Kuryliw ended the presentation by expressing his thanks to everyone involved in investing in the community and supporting this library project.
“A board of volunteers run the library, but our library is also a partnership of the Province of Manitoba, four different municipalities, including the Village of Dunnottar, as well as the three that have spoken here today. Without that partnership, we wouldn’t be around. It’s critical for the operation of the library. We have both provincial and municipal support, and the thing that is growing is community support. The campaign that we did to afford the expansion, we received significant community donations (in addition to) what the province and the municipalities gave, so without that, we would never (have) been able to raise (the needed funds),” he said.
