The world is in a bit of a scary place right now. There isn’t a single person on the planet who hasn’t been impacted by the global pandemic that has paralyzed human civilization. Everyone’s life has been turned upside down, defined by necessary lockdowns and social distancing. Disruption is the order of the day. And while there seems to be a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel, normal is still a long way off.
And perhaps the most impacted-the most disrupted-are school kids.
They’ve been yanked from their classrooms, resorting to cyberspace to see friends and teachers. Birthdays, sports and weekend playdates have all been cancelled. Most probably won’t get the annual privilege of saying goodbye to their favourite teacher before tossing both their books and cares in the young summer air.
While kids are arguably more resilient than their parents, odds are their lives have seen more upheaval than anyone else’s. And with both school and public libraries shuttered until the crisis passes, many kids are denied their most precious and accessible escape. Books.
While everyone over the age of fifty loves to cling to the myth that “kids don’t read anymore” (a crutch older generations have always leaned on to justify their passive contempt for anyone younger than them), the sales of kids and teen books are keeping book stores the world over open.
But even those stores are now unavailable. And if you thought school libraries were in trouble before this, suffering cutbacks year after fiscal year, then imagine how badly they’ll be devastated by this pandemic.
Someone has to step up.
Here in Canada, Indigo did.
Over the last sixteen years, it’s estimated Indigo has touched the lives of over a million students in Canada, supporting over 3000 high need schools with 31 million dollars in literacy grants through it’s Love of Reading Foundation. Customers can make donations all year round and Indigo kicks in a hefty amount as well, distributing 1.5 million dollars in grants a year to public schools across the country.
And that doesn’t includes their annual Adopt-A-School program, where every fall Indigo and Chapters stores (and some smaller Coles ones as well) adopt eligible local schools and raise money exclusively for their libraries. Some stores have thought outside the geographic box and adopted schools as far north as Nunavut.
But to say 2020 isn’t like any other year is a Grand Canyon sized understatement. All of Indigo’s stores have been shut up tight since March, halting both business and customer donations. And while stores in some cities have begun no contact curb side pickup (Calgary and Ottawa) to go along with their online store, Indigo currently doesn’t have a timeline to re-open its brick and mortar stores.
Yet despite that, Indigo has created the Community Response Fund to help communities impacted by COVID-19. And they’ve put their money where their mouth is, investing a million dollars into the initiative despite their disrupted revenue and donation streams.
Normally Indigo supports children’s literacy by donating to public school libraries, but that isn’t an option in the world we currently live in. So it expanded its mandate to include entire communities. As such it has partnered with the Boys and Girls Club of Canada, Jays Care Foundation and the Martin Family Initiative to help distribute the awarded grants to successful applicants.
Indigo will be granting as much as 25,000 dollars but organizations serving a higher number of families may be eligible for more. Funds can be used to purchase books on Indigo.ca and successful applicants will automatically receive a generous 30 percent discount on books. Applications can be made until May 1st but a second round of funds may become available if there’s any cash left in the donation til. Non-profit organizations, grassroots agencies and charities already serving high needs communities and families are eligible and Indigo has set up several different ways to ensure successful applicants receive their funds.
Unfortunately Indigo has had to hit the pause button on traditional grant applications to its Love of Reading Foundation (though current applications are still under review) and temporarily postponed applications to its Adopt-A-School program. But as the Love of Reading Foundation’s Executive Director Rose Lipton recently wrote in an open letter, Indigo will resume standard fundraising procedures the second the dust has settled and the world is back to normal.
People can still donate online and once stores are open for business customers will be able to contribute at the store level (100% of donations go to the Love of Reading Fund). Donations can be made here and interested parties can apply here until May 1st.
A lot of people and other businesses have stepped up during the COVID pandemic. Kids will have a whole new generation of hero to look up to when this is all said and done (don’t be surprised to see a lot of nurses and truck drivers trick or treating at your door this Hallowe’en). But we’ve also heard a lot about some pretty bad corporate behaviour as well (looking at you Amazon and Gamestop), so it’s beyond refreshing to hear one of Canada’s biggest corporate citizens is doing more its fair share.
Image www.freshdaily.ca
Shayne Kempton has been an Indigo employee since 2013. The Love of Reading Foundation has always been close to his heart.
