As the New Year sets in, and we have a chance to pause and look back at the year behind us, we thought we’d take a moment to highlight some of our favourite memories. These memories help reinforce our vision and goals for the future and remind us why we do what we do every single day.
In 2018, the Little Voice Team held five book signings across Ottawa, partnering with Chapters, Indigo and Coles to bring our books to new audiences. We also expanded our outreach by bringing our books to the newest Indigo location on Innes Road in Orleans, as well as bringing The Lighthouse to every public elementary school in Ottawa. We were thrilled to be part of the OCDSB’s lesson plan on mental health, with The Lighthouse serving as an important resource for teachers to start or continue the conversation on mental health in their classrooms.
In 2018, we partnered with the Ottawa Mental Health Gala to support local fundraising efforts in support of the programs and services delivered by The Royal Ottawa and the Do it For Daron Campaign. With every book sold using the coupon code “mhgala”, as well as those sold in-person on the night of the event, LVB donated five dollars.
We’re also very excited to be supporting this cause once more on May 3rd to do it all over again! From now until May 6, 2019, all books sold online using the coupon code “mhgala” will have five dollars donated to this year’s fundraising efforts. Mental health is a topic near and dear to the Little Voice Team, and wherever we can support our community to raise awareness or fundraise … we certainly try to take part!
As always, the Little Voice Team also took part in the 2018 Walk for Dementia to support their fundraising efforts towards Alzheimer’s disease. This year marked a very special year with Amanda’s family joining her by her side to walk in honour of their grandmother Teresina Bernardo. The Walk proved to be an emotional walk for many but it always reminds families and friends in attendance that they are not alone, and that together they can make a difference.
Little Voice also had a chance to share their stories on stage at the Maker’s Pitch Party, qualifying as part of the top six finalists. While the Team didn’t bring the prize home, their platform received extreme support from those in attendance. It was an opportunity for the Team to really look back on all they had accomplished and define who the Little Voice Team was and wanted to become.
2018 was a great year but a busy one! Running Little Voice Books is a side project for both Amanda Bernardo and Samantha Clusiau-Lawlor who both work full-time during the day. Having both accepted new jobs in 2018, finding balance was key to ensuring that Little Voice Books continued to thrive and make a difference. We really focused our efforts this year on our mandate of giving back – whether that be through our monetary donations or our time. This is something that regardless of how busy life may get we prioritize as number one – it’s what makes us who we are as a social enterprise and what sets us apart from a book publisher to a company leveraging it’s profits, time and resources to make a difference in communities across Canada.
For 2019, we hope to continue to expand our resources, with a focus on branching out of Ottawa to reach new audiences across Canada. We hope you’ll join us in this goal by continuing to share our books with your friend, families and students in your homes, classrooms and online!