When it opens next year, the Belmont Library will have an outdoor early learning centre, thanks to someone who knows a thing or two about active learning.
Thanks to a $700,000 donation from the Sticks and Strings foundation, the Calgary Public Library has announced plans for an outdoor early learning centre for the Belmont Library.
When it opens in 2027, it will be the first library in the city to open with a learning centre, with the 15 others having been added after initial library construction. The space will be 4,000 square feet, with elements of play, learning and sports, among others.
Lauren Rodych-Eberle and Jordan Eberle, co-founders of Sticks and Strings Foundation, both said that as Calgarians with a young family, libraries have meant a lot to them.
Giving back in a widely accessible way was a top priority for the pair.
“We started our foundation in 2022 with our five pillars in mind, so there’s sports, music, reading, the outdoors, and supporting parents in need,” Rodych-Eberle said.
“We started working with the library at the very beginning on their My First Bookshelf program, so that kids (aged) 0-5 could fill their bookshelves, and then we did story walks with them as well.”
Recently, the foundation worked with the library on a program that could help as many families as often as possible.
“We thought the best way was to create an outdoor space that is truly, to the families that come there free and a lot of people in the area can get to without having to have a car too,” Rodych-Eberle said.
As a longtime professional hockey player and current captain of the Seattle Kraken, Eberle said that hockey has given him everything. The sports pillar of their foundation will play a large role in the space when it opens.
“We’ve got one of our pillars is trying to get kids outside and get kids active and moving around and just the joy that goes with that,” he said.
“What better way to do that than building a park and giving back that way?”
Learning centres add another layer of learning to libraries
Tracy Johnson, CEO of the Calgary Public Library Foundation, said that all learning centres across the system are donor-funded, something that staff, families, and officials are all extremely grateful for.
“For me, they are always what separates a library from being just a beloved location to a family destination,” she said of the centres.
“We’re here today at the Seton Library, and we have a helicopter. This is a space that families want to come to, and we’re so excited to have an outdoor space.”
Moving forward, the library’s goal is to have early learning centres, whether indoor or outdoor, at every library across the city.
“We’re currently building a couple of other library locations, one in Simons Valley, one in Walden, and our dream would be to have more (early learning centre) spaces, both indoor and outdoor,” Johnson said.
“We are seeking donor funds, so if anybody is interested, we’d encourage them to reach out to the Library Foundation by heading to libraryfoundation.ca and get in touch with our team.”
Sarah Meilleur, CEO of Calgary Public Library, said that no two early learning centres are the same, but they all mean something to their community.
“We want families using these spaces to feel like the library is a place for them, a place to create their own story, whether through imaginative play or real-life learning and discovery,” she said.
“We want families to visit all the libraries in the city to explore how each of them is unique.”
