When the lights go out at Chetwynd Public Library, something magical happens.

Children arrive carrying flashlights and suddenly the familiar rooms become somewhere new. They race through the building, play tag and hide and seek, make messy creations, share snacks and meet children from schools across the community.

During the long northern winter, when daylight disappears early, Flashlight Fridays offers somewhere warm and welcoming to go. Children burn off energy, families connect and the library becomes a place of play.

For Bauer, every Flashlight Friday is an adventure with his grandmother, Ruby. To Bauer, Ruby is more than the grown-up who brings him to the library. She is his playmate, his role model and, quite simply, his superhero.

Michelle Fontain, who facilitates Flashlight Fridays, has watched them laugh, create and discover together. The program gives them precious time to enjoy being together.

Over time, Fontain has watched Bauer, who is naturally shy, grow more comfortable within the library community. Surrounded by familiar people, friendship and encouragement, his curiosity and sense of humour have emerged fully.

During a recent visit from Science World, Bauer volunteered to go on stage. The shy child Fontain had come to know stepped in front of an audience, delighted the crowd and made people laugh.

Bauer’s story shows us that confidence is nurtured through play, friendship, familiar faces and the certainty that there is a place where you belong.

At Chetwynd Public Library, literacy sometimes looks like a child reading a book or a flashlight glowing through a darkened library. Sometimes it looks like slime on a table, children racing through the stacks and a grandmother laughing beside her grandson.

Literacy thrives in all of those moments because learning is not confined to a page. Children learn through language, imagination, relationships, play and the confidence that grows when they feel safe enough to explore the world around them.

Behind that community work is Decoda Literacy Solutions, B.C.’s provincial literacy organization, supporting 101 Literacy Outreach Coordinators serving more than 400 communities. Through resources, training, funding and local partnerships, Decoda helps communities shape literacy programs around the people, places and needs they know best.

At Chetwynd Public Library, that means creating a place where children like Bauer can learn, play, make friends and grow in confidence.

There is another beautiful piece of Bauer’s story. He calls Ruby his Super Kookum.

Kookum is the Cree word for grandmother, and in Bauer’s world, a Kookum is a superhero. He already knows what he hopes to become.

One day, he says, he wants to be a “Super Dad.”

Your Gift. Their Next Chapter.

Your support helps community literacy programs across B.C. create welcoming spaces where children and families can learn, connect, celebrate who they are and grow in confidence together.