Premier Livre Canada et la Banque Scotia s'associent pour offrir 30 000 livres aux enfants dans le besoin

Montreal, QC (October 21, 2020)– Premier Livre Canada and Scotiabank are working to bridge the educational gap exacerbated by COVID-19 by organizing a pop-up book distribution in Montreal to provide books to children. Organized by Moisson Montréal every year for the past six years, the 2020 Pop-Up will see 20,000 titles in English and 10,000 titles in French available for free to educators and distributed to families in need in the greater Montreal area.

As Canada faced the COVID-19 pandemic, many children fell behind in school due to a lack of resources. According to a report from First Policy Response, low-income families were disproportionately affected due to limited access to the Internet or their own books. This means that thousands of children will start school this fall at an even greater disadvantage than their more affluent peers. That is why First Book Canada and Scotiabank are partnering to provide children with their own books.

“This school year is different from others and it can be stressful and worrying for both teachers and students,” said Tom Best, CEO of First Book Canada. “Educators of children in need are facing their greatest challenge as the pandemic exacerbates existing barriers to education. Books can play a very helpful role in addressing these concerns. We are thrilled to have the support of Scotiabank and its supporters, as well as the amazing team at Moisson Montréal, to bring so many new books in French and English to school-aged children and community groups located here.”

“Scotiabank is proud to support the efforts of First Book Canada to eliminate barriers to education,” said Guylaine Duplessis, Senior Director of Regional Marketing at Scotiabank, Quebec and Eastern Ontario. “We recognize the importance of books in child development and, through our support of First Book Canada, we are pleased that more children have access to theirs.”

Thanks to the distribution of First Book Canada, these books will be sent to educators based in Montreal, who will send them home with the children they serve.

About First Book Canada

Près de 25% des ménages canadiens n'ont pas un seul livre. Premier Livre Canada transforme la vie des enfants dans le besoin en mettant à disposition de nouveaux livres et ressources éducatives de grande qualité en permanence. Grâce à un modèle axé sur le marché, First Book Canada crée un accès égal à une éducation de qualité abordable pour son réseau de membres de plus de 11 000 éducateurs qui servent exclusivement les enfants dans le besoin. Depuis 2009, Le Première Livre Canada a distribué plus de sept millions de livres et de ressources éducatives à des centaines de milliers d'enfants à travers le Canada.