Library Community Steps up to Rebuild Slave Lake Library

In the wake of the devastation in Slave Lake, Alberta, the library community has stepped up to help rebuild the Rotary Club of Slave Lake Public Library, which was completely destroyed by the forest fire in mid-May. The library had only moved into its new building in December 2009.

The library served more than just residents of Slave Lake, though certainly its loss will be felt most strongly by locals. 200km away, Isabelle Cramp, manager of the Morinville Public Library, says “Anyone who uses the library and has put books on hold will understand right away why Slave Lake [library] is such an important piece of our puzzle. [...] Losing Slave Lake Library, we’ve just lost access to a huge collection.” The Morinville Public Library is collecting monetary donations to send to Slave Lake and is planning on issuing a challenge to other libraries, urging them to remember that "we are a collective family when it comes to libraries and we greatly depend on them.”

Twitter and the blogosphere are abuzz with people wanting to help. Shaunna Mireau tweets that at the recent CALL/ACBD conference, a donation box was placed at the registration desk, and attending members donated over $450 for the cause. The money will be sent to the Peace Library System.

According to a notice from Linda Duplessis, Director of the Peace Library System, libraries, bookstores, publishers and other library-related organizations have all asked how they can help. To that end, the Peace Library System is coordinating donations to rebuild the library, and anyone interested in helping can do so in the following ways:

• Donations of new or nearly new books (no more than two years old) can be shipped to Peace Library System headquarters where they will be catalogued, processed and stored until a temporary library opens in Slave Lake. Please ship prepaid to:

Peace Library System
8301 – 110 Street
Grande Prairie, AB T8W 6T2
ATTN: Books for Slave Lake Library

• Cash donations (tax receiptable) can be made by going to the library’s web page at www.slavelakelibrary.ab.ca and clicking on the “Make a Donation” link.

For additional information, please contact Carol Downing, Assistant Director, at cdowning@peacelibrarysystem.ab.ca.

New Distance Family Mediation Service from Mediate BC

Today marks the launch of an innovative new service from Mediate BC. The Distance Family Mediation Project will allow people going through a separation or divorce to work with an experienced family mediator without having to leave home.

According to Susanna Jani, Project Coordinator of the Distance Family Mediation Project, British Columbians undergoing separation or divorce often find it difficult to talk to each other in person because of distance or conflict. This service will allow spouses or partners to take part in private and informal mediation sessions from their own homes, by telephone, email, or videoconferencing. Mediation topics include child custody and support, division of family assets, parenting decisions, and other concerns arising out of separation or divorce.

The project is being funded by the BC Law Foundation, with the goal to make family mediation affordable and available to everyone, regardless of their income or location. Families using the service pay the mediator according to a sliding scale rate, based on their income.

Kudos to the Mediate BC for spotting a need in the mediation landscape and developing a service to fill it! To learn more about the society's family mediation services, visit http://mediatebc.com.

Quickscribe Manuals Updates for April 2011

There were quite a few updates to Quickscribe Manuals in April. Here they are:

CC Motor Vehicle Legislation
RCMP Legislation
BC Motor Vehicle Legislation
BC Transport Legislation
BC Real Estate Legislation

And don't forget that daily updates to BC legislation can be found at www.bclegislation.ca.