Winter will be upon us shortly and, this year, we are happy to mark it with a celebration of Twice Upon a Time’s (Twice) tenth anniversary of giving new and nearly new books to Ottawa’s children from birth to 12 years of age!
It is a momentous occasion as we celebrate a decade of supporting literacy and fostering a love of reading at home. We thought it timely to look back at where we started to see how far we have come and to look ahead as we enter our second decade.
Our Beginning
In 2014, Alexandra Yarrow, the founding President of Twice, and volunteers from diverse backgrounds came together via a shared passion for reading and a belief in the importance of early literacy. Inspired by a visit to the Children’s Book Bank in Toronto, Ontario, Alexandra, a librarian, decided that children in communities across Ottawa could also benefit from access to free books.
Volunteers initially set up a free “pop-up bookshop” in the lobby of Heartwood House in Ottawa’s Vanier neighbourhood. As Twice grew, more bookshops were set up in other locations in Ottawa, including the Taggart YMCA, the Overbrook Community Centre, and various BGC Ottawa clubhouses.
Today, in addition to these pop-ups, we also have self-serve bookshelf locations.
Notable Events and Milestones
We are happy to say that we have had many notable events and milestones since opening our doors. Our volunteers, community partners, funders, and donors have been key to our success.
We have expanded our pop-up locations, built and strengthened community partnerships, offered a more diverse range of books, and pivoted our service model during the pandemic. In 2023, we received a grant from the Government of Canada’s Community Services Recovery Fund to assist with recovery from the impacts of Covid-19, including launching an assessment of our current service model with stakeholders to help develop new and more efficient ways to provide free books to Ottawa children.
We were recently honored for our work as one of just three local charities highlighted by the philanthropic 100 Women+ Who Care Ottawa Fundraising Group in February 2024. And this month, we launched our new website and a new look inspired by a decade of children discovering the uplifting joy of reading.
Our Impact
Since 2014, with the support of our donors, community partners, funders, and volunteers, Twice Upon a Time has provided over 50,000 books to local families!
The reaction from the kids and the communities we serve has been heartwarming. As one volunteer noted, “It was really rewarding to see the enthusiasm from the kids when they found something to read and their parent’s pride as they witnessed their child’s reading develop.”
While you can find us regularly at our pop-up and self-serve bookshelf locations, you can also find us out in the community, collecting and distributing books at various partner special events such as the annual Overbrook Day, the Caring and Sharing Exchange, the Atlético Ottawa soccer game, Old Ottawa South Community Association Porch Sale, Movati Athletic Barrhaven Drums, and Salon du livre.
Looking Ahead: Growing with Your Support
As we celebrate our successes, we are also looking ahead to continue our mission to give free books to children from 0 to 12 years old in the hopes of growing young minds.
Join us on this journey of growth as we celebrate 10 years of nurturing the love of reading in Ottawa’s children. Cash donations are welcome at any time: a $100 cash donation allows us to purchase five new books.
Please visit our donations page, where you can find information on how you can donate or join other volunteers in giving your time to help us with a wide range of activities.
Twice Upon a Time’s 2023 Annual Report is now available! While we invite you to read the full report, we’ve outlined the highlights of our 2023 activities and achievements below.
In 2023, thanks to the generosity of our financial and book donors, grant funders, and partners, we received over $28,000 and acquired over 9,700 books (donations and purchases). With these resources and the tireless efforts of our volunteers, we distributed nearly 5,700 books to children in Ottawa, bringing the total number of books given away since Twice Upon a Time was created to over 52,000!
Community is essential to us. Without our supporters and partners in Ottawa, Twice Upon a Time could not fulfill its mission of giving free books to children. Specifically, we are deeply grateful to our community partners, bookstore partners, funders, donors, and our volunteers.
While you can find us regularly at our pop-up and self-serve bookshelf locations, you can also find us collecting and distributing books in the community at partner events such as these in 2023:
We continued to hear about the positive impact Twice Upon a Time is having in the community. For example, a clinical coordinator of social pediatrics at the Vanier Community Services Centre had this to say about an eight-year-old boy she met:
“It was like the book he chose jumped off the shelf into his small hands. If the beaming smile on his face is any indication, he was thrilled with his choice!”
One of our volunteers who has been with us since 2018, remarked, “It was really rewarding to see the enthusiasm from the kids when they found something to read and their parent’s pride as they witnessed their child’s reading develop.”
Moments like these are priceless!
As we celebrate 10 years of Twice Upon a Time in 2024, we are busy working with our partners, donors, and volunteers to continue giving free books to kids and promoting the love of reading in the community.
It is never too late to donate: we accept donations throughout the year. Visit our donations page for more information on how you can donate or join other volunteers.
To receive ongoing news on our projects, programs, progress, and successes, sign up for email updates here.
Thank you to 100 Women Who Care Ottawa for nominating Twice Upon a Time as one of three finalists to present at their February event!
Driven by a desire to make a difference, 100 Women Who Care Ottawa gathers four times a year to donate $100 each, conduct a one-hour series of presentations and select a charity to receive up to $10,000.
We are thrilled to have Laura May, a Twice Upon a Time volunteer since 2014, present her story to these 100 dynamic women determined to build a strong community.
In 2023 alone, Twice Upon a Time distributed almost 5,700 books with the help of its community partners.
How your donation to Twice Upon a Time makes a difference:
We are honored to share the stage with Volunteer Ottawa & Food For Thought Ottawa. We look forward to seeing you on February 26!
More information about the event can be found here.
Too many children are not developing the literacy skills that they need to reach th
eir full potential. Being surrounded by books at a young age fosters a love of reading and improves school readiness, and academic performance. In fact, studies have shown that having as few as 20 books in a home can have a significant impact in propelling a child to a higher level of education. But owning books can be expensive, and not all children have access to public libraries on a regular basis. Our mission at Twice Upon A Time is to give books to children at no cost, creating pride in book ownership, and nurturing lifelong literacy skills.
Twice Upon a Time is 100% volunteer-run and your support has an immediate impact in our communities. We negotiate with book publishers, wholesalers and bookstores to purchase books at discounts to make every financial donation go further. Through our partnerships with community organizations, we are able to reach increasing numbers of children and families in Ottawa. Thanks to our generous supporters, last year Twice Upon a Time distributed over 6,000 free books to Ottawa children.
How you can help
A donation of $50 will buy four new books that will find their way to children in Vanier, Overbrook and other Ottawa neighbourhoods. Our goal for this campaign is to raise enough funds to buy 450 new children’s books.
Your gift will help Ottawa kids to grow up with a love of reading. Please donate today to become a champion for early literacy!
We are delighted to announce that Twice Upon a Time has received funding from the Government of Canada’s Community Services Recovery Fund to assist with its long-term recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Community Services Recovery Fund is a $400 million investment from the Government of Canada to support community service organizations, including charities, non-profits, and Indigenous governing bodies, as they adapt and modernize their organizations. Nearly 5,500 organizations from across Canada have received funding through this initiative.
Twice Upon a Time will use the funding to evaluate our current service model and to develop new and more efficient ways to provide free books to Ottawa children. From now until spring 2024, we will work to build stronger partnerships with the community organizations who distribute our books to their clients and with the businesses who help us acquire books and accept donations of books on our behalf. We will also update our communications strategies, develop new volunteer training programs, and increase our fundraising capacity.
As part of this process, we will be surveying partners, donors, volunteers, and families who receive our books to inform the development of our new service model. Interested in sharing your thoughts and experiences? If you haven’t received a survey link by email, you can participate in our survey by clicking here.
Twice Upon a Time will celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2024. The work carried out in the coming months will ensure our long-term growth and allow us to continue to serve the Ottawa community in the decade to come.
Looking to make a difference in your community? We can use your talents! Twice Upon a Time is seeking several volunteers to help with a wide range of activities:
We also have two vacant positions on our Board of Directors:
If you are passionate about literacy and enjoy working with others, these roles may interest you. More information can be found on the Volunteer Ottawa page, and questions can be directed to info@twiceuponatime.ca.
[:en]We have received funding to review our service delivery model and to identify new ways of making an impact in our community. If you have experience consulting with stakeholders and working with not-for-profit organizations, this position may be for you. Please see the posting below for more information about the role and how to apply.
Contract Available - Project Coordinator
Project Overview: Twice Upon a Time/Il était deux fois is undertaking a project to create a new service delivery plan. This includes: a review of the program delivery capacity and results pre and during the pandemic; recommending metrics to determine which programs and service channels require maintenance, strengthening or termination; recommending how many volunteers could be required and cost of service options being recommended for future service; consulting with current and potentially new service delivery partners under direction of assigned board member; recommending improved processes for volunteer recruitment, training and retention; and recommending improved processes for service delivery partner liaison and communications. The project must be concluded no later than May 31, 2024.
Position Description: the contractor will report to a Service Delivery Plan Committee Lead which reports to the Board of Directors. Working under the direction of the Service Delivery Plan Committee Lead, the successful candidate, working from a home office, will undertake the following:
Duties and Responsibilities:
Qualifications: The successful candidate must:
Reports to: Lead of the Service Delivery Plan Committee; this committee reports directly to the Board of Directors of Twice Upon a Time.
Contract Fee: Payments will be determined by an agreed upon series of deliverables. This contract is valued at approximately $10,000. This project will end no later than May 31, 2024.
Application submission: Please submit a cover letter, CV and three references to vicepresident@twiceuponatime.ca, no later than August 15, 2023.
Reading and being surrounded by books, especially at an early age, has a positive impact on the level of education children will attain and their chances of success. But books are expensive, and not all children are able to visit public libraries on a regular basis. With the end of another school year fast approaching, kids across the city will soon be free from assignments and the guidance of teachers - but it’s important that they keep learning and exploring the world of books over the summer.
Do you remember your favourite book from when you were a child, the one that inspired your love of reading? Wouldn’t it be wonderful for all children to have an opportunity this summer to dig into a new favourite book and explore new characters or places - to discover and enhance their joy of reading? You can help provide such opportunities for Ottawa children with a donation to Twice Upon a Time! Our mission is to give books to children. We operate free bookstores for local children, making books more accessible, creating pride in book ownership, and nurturing lifelong literacy skills.
By giving now you will be supporting our “Joy of Reading” campaign, running until June 30th. We are targeting $3,500 in donations during this period and we need your help. Please take a moment today to renew your donation and consider becoming a monthly donor (click here to Donate Now). As part of the CanadaHelps Great Canadian Giving Challenge, every $1 donated via Twice Upon a Time during the month of June enters us into a draw for a chance to win a $20,000.
Twice Upon a Time is 100% volunteer-run, and we depend on the support of our community. Whether you are able to donate at this time or not, please know that your support means everything to us. It’s because of you that we can continue to inspire young readers and improve literacy for young Ottawans.
La Journée internationale de la francophonie, or International Francophonie Day, is celebrated each year on March 20. March is also known as la mois de la francophonie - the month of the francophonie. During this time, francophones across the world celebrate their shared language and cultural diversity.
As a bilingual organization in a bilingual city, Twice Upon a Time is committed to celebrating French language and francophone culture by offering books in French to local children. In 2017, 28% of books chosen by children at our free bookstores were in French, and that number has increased rapidly in recent years.
This mois de la francophonie, consider supporting local children by making a donation to our Joie de Livre! campaign. Making a donation is easy, and your gift will allow us to purchase books in French so that we can meet the growing demand for French language materials at all of our locations.
Twice Upon a Time is seeking a Treasurer and a Secretary for our Board. Do you have a passion for reading and want to help foster literacy skills in young children? Do you have experience with financial control and budgeting, or experience organizing meetings and taking minutes? If so, we’d love for you to join us!
For more information on the positions and to submit an application, please visit the Twice Upon a Time postings on Volunteer Ottawa. The deadline for applications is February 3, 2023.
We look forward to hearing from you!