UNews - ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Bookstore

Hugs from Home gives ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge students a much-needed boost

caroline.zentner — Mon, 01 Nov 2021 19:40:11 +0000

At a time when students are facing multiple stressors including mid-term exams and assignments coming due, the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Bookstore and Housing Services have joined forces for the Hugs from Home support campaign.

Parents of students living in residence were invited by postcard to order Hugs from Home packages online from the Bookstore. They chose from two unique packages, one which contained a mug, hot chocolate and chocolate bars and another that included treats like cookies and popcorn. Parents could also add other items to customize the gift for their student. The Bookstore packaged the gifts, along with an encouraging message sent by parents, for Housing Services to distribute.

Madina Ali, left, accepts a Hugs from Home gift package from Laura Correal, residence life education coordinator.

“I think it’s an amazing program and I love getting a Hug from Home gift,” says Madina Ali, a fourth-year student from Calgary. “In my fourth year, I did not think my parents were going to send me one. We’re in the part of the semester where exams are taking over and everyone’s mental health has kind of taken a dip. Getting the email that I’ve got a hug to pick up, my heart just warmed.”

“We participated in the Hugs from Home program because we wanted to make Madina smile,” says Ambreen Ali, Madina’s mother. “We know the stress of exams and assignments and living on your own and we wanted our daughter to know we are thinking of her. We can’t physically be there to give her a supportive hug, but we can make her feel our support this way.”

Madina, who works as a residence assistant and is a representative on the U of L Students’ Union, knows other students feel the same way.

“People really like Hugs from Home because it’s a reminder that, even if you’re not with your family, they’re still always thinking about you,” she says. “Even though you’re away and becoming your own independent person, you still have your family supporting you.”

Not only are students dealing with extra pressures on the academic side, returning students are getting used to living on campus again after spending last year learning remotely due to COVID-19.

“Hugs from Home came at a really crucial time for students,” says Laura Correal, residence life education coordinator with U of L Housing Services. “They’ve been in the groove of school for a while and midterms are picking up. It’s an overwhelming time. Everyone comes in and they’re very excited to have that little gift they weren’t expecting at a time when it’s really needed.”

The Hugs from Home program, now in its fourth year, has always been popular, but this year it sold out. Annette Bright, Bookstore manager, suspects it’s because, for both first- and second-year students, it’s their first year on campus. Some parents have even purchased extra gifts to donate to other students in need.

“Parents are so appreciative because they were thinking about how they could connect with their student to let them know they’re thinking about them and that they’re behind them,” says Bright.

The Secret Garden provides this year’s theme for the U of L Bookstore’s Tree of Knowledge

caroline.zentner — Thu, 23 Nov 2017 23:23:46 +0000

In its annual tradition, the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Bookstore staff put their creative minds to work to decorate the Tree of Knowledge for the 2017 Christmas Tree Festival. The long-running festival, where local businesses, individuals and community groups sponsor and decorate trees, raises funds for the Chinook Regional Hospital Foundation.

“This Christmas, the U of L Bookstore and friends paid homage to the much-loved children’s classic, The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett,” says Annette Bright, Bookstore manager. “We created a magical Christmas tree blooming with lush flowers and alive with sparkling butterflies.”

The tree bears the gift of knowledge with the promise of exciting adventures in the stories that adorn its branches. In addition, the tree holds a variety of gift certificates from Sport & Recreation, 10 theatre tickets courtesy of the Faculty of Fine Arts, a fleece blanket tree skirt from Printing Services and more than $2,000 worth of books by various publishers. The tree was sponsored by Nancy Walker, U of L vice-president finance and administration.

The festival wrapped up Wednesday, Nov. 22 with a Gala and Auction. More than $230,000 was raised, a record-setting amount. The U of L’s Tree of Knowledge fetched an impressive $3,000 and the purchaser donated the books to Gilbert Paterson Middle School.

Every contribution counts

trevor.kenney — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 19:56:19 +0000

Supporting student awards can cost less than your daily coffee.

��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Bookstore Manager Annette Bright is as connected to students as anyone on campus. A staff member at the U of L for 30 years, she has always worked closely with students, first as a staffer in the library and then as a textbook buyer and now manager of the bookstore.

She thoroughly enjoys her connection to students, and it gives her an insight into their lives and the struggles they face.

Bookstore manager Annette Bright sees the benefits of the SOS campaign in the students she encounters.

"The relationship between students, faculty and staff here is like a family. Students come to us for advice or just to say hi, and we get to share in their
accomplishments," she says.

It bothers Bright when she hears of students not being able to realize their potential because of the financial barriers they encounter.

"I get to know a lot of students and I hear about their struggles," she explains. "Often they can't afford food, rent or their course materials. It's troubling when they tell me they can't afford their books."

In 2005, the Supporting Our Students (SOS) campaign was initiated in response to those challenges. An annual campaign for faculty, staff and retirees, the SOS campaign allows the U of L community to support student awards.

Bright says she quickly saw value in the program and her involvement with SOS has gradually increased over the years.

"More and more people around became involved with the campaign," says Bright, "so I started giving and volunteering. It's the easiest thing to do."

Through her daily duties in the bookstore, she is often reminded of how important her donations can be to a student.

"I think about SOS the most when I see how much a student's books can cost," she says. "That's when I really hope the student is getting the benefit of a scholarship or bursary."

Bright isn't shy about her support of the SOS campaign, and her enthusiasm is contagious. She's quick to point out that gifts to SOS need not be large, especially if more of the campus community comes together to support SOS.

"Every dollar counts," she emphasizes. "Some people say, 'I can't give enough.' But if everyone on campus gave even $5 a month, we could help so many students!"

And, Bright reminds us, $5 is less than many of us spend on coffee even in one day.

For more information on Supporting Our Students or to make your contribution today, visit www.uleth.ca/giving.

This story first appeared in the October 2012 issue of the Legend. To see the full issue in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Cookbook to benefit SU Food Bank

trevor.kenney — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 21:51:46 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Bookstore has embarked on a fundraiser for the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Students' Union Food Bank.

The bookstore is putting together a cookbook, which will feature a collection of U of L staff and faculty recipes. The cookbook will be published on campus and all proceeds from the sales of the book will go to the Students' Union Food Bank.

The SU Food Bank helps hundreds of students each year deal with food insecurity issues, allowing them to focus on their academic priorities. The Students' Union understands the financial constraints involved with earning a university education and has implemented this service so that students do not go hungry.

Food hampers are available in both single and family sizes, and are designed to last about a week. Students, staff and faculty are all eligible to receive food hampers. An individual is able to obtain a food hamper once every two weeks, limited to a total of 10 hampers throughout their entire academic career.

The food bank is a limited resource because it is a not-for-profit, volunteer run organization that depends entirely on donations to operate.

"The food bank has proven to be an essential service to U of L Students and we are always so grateful for the continued support from the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ community, as well as the Lethbridge community, in order to continue to meet students' needs," says Armin Escher, ULSU president.

Any staff or faculty member who would like to contribute to the cookbook can submit their favourite recipes to the bookstore via e-mail (bookstore@uleth.ca) by June 20.

"We, at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Bookstore, are very excited about the launch of our new fundraising initiative for our Students' Union Food Bank," says Rebecca Colbeck, U of L Bookstore. "This campus is a community, and it is important that we all work together and support one another. The cookbook will give faculty, staff and students the opportunity to share some great family recipes and really make a different to those in our community."

The cookbook will be available to faculty, staff, students and the general public to purchase in the Fall 2012 at the U of L Bookstore.

Digital textbooks and e-books on the rise

trevor.kenney — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 16:43:48 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Bookstore is looking for feedback from students and faculty in regards to the use of e-books and digital textbooks.

As the publishing world continues to move its products online, the Bookstore is interested in providing less expensive options to students and faculty members. The introduction of more digital textbooks is one way to reduce costs, but only if students and faculty will use the material.

To participate in the survey, students must follow this link, while faculty members must follow this link.

Those who complete the survey are eligible to win a $50 gift certificate to the Bookstore.

For any further any questions or comments about the purpose of this survey, contact Kari Tanaka at tanakl@uleth.ca.

Whetstone Magazine revived

trevor.kenney — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 20:27:17 +0000

If you are an aspiring writer or photographer who dreams of having their work published, you are in luck. Whetstone Magazine is back, and it's just waiting for your literary and visual art submissions.

"To my delight, there was a great interest in reviving the magazine," says Dr. Jay Gamble, the English professor who, along with managing editor Rylan Spendroth, proposed giving the magazine a facelift and bringing it back into circulation.

Gamble runs the Creative Writing Association at the U of L and had heard about Whetstone and its history. He asked if anyone in the CWA was interested in reviving the publication and a preliminary meeting was organized to gauge participation. Over 20 students answered the call.

"We not only had students interested in seeing the publication come back, many of them were eager to take on senior editing positions," says Gamble. "That initial interest and enthusiasm bolstered the desire to renew the publication."

Whetstone is a ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge based literary magazine that consists of submitted prose, poetry, photography and graphic design images. It was originally established in 1971 with the help of English faculty advisors, and buoyed by a dedicated incoming flow of submissions and donations from the community. The magazine survived until 1999 when it was discontinued due to declining interest.

The plan now is to publish Whetstone bi-annually, with issues out every fall and spring semester. And while the Whetstone name remained from its first incarnation, a twenty-first century upgrade was definitely in order. One of the main changes, its size, came out of necessity.

"Due to the fact we had relatively few submissions in the latest edition, the magazine was able to take a full size format, cut it horizontally in half, and use the look as a new publishing trait," says Andrew Penner, a third-year English major and the public relations advertising manager. "The result is a reenergized Whetstone 2.0."

Gamble says that Whetstone can provide a wonderful outlet for both aspiring and established writers alike.

"It offers a great opportunity for emerging writers to not only have their work published, but to have it showcased alongside more established authors," says Gamble. "Our first issue, for instance, includes work by respected Canadian author Robert Kroetsch."

Penner, who is a poet,attended the preliminary meeting held by Gamble and Spendroth because he was interested in possibly getting some works published. He walked away from the meeting as a member of the executive committee.

"It is really exciting to be involved at the grassroots level of a magazine that has the potential of becoming something very big," says Penner.

Whetstone is available for purchase at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Bookstore.

As sales increase and the magazine's budget expands, Whetstone will look to similarly expand its distribution. Until then, the main focus of the magazine is on southern Alberta and the prairies.

"Whetstone will help to establish a community of writers at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge, in the city of Lethbridge and surrounding area," says Gamble. "I would eventually like to see the magazine grow to become a part of the landscape of Canadian Literature."

Those interested in submitting works for inclusion in the magazine can send their works to Poetry.whetstone@gmail.com or Fiction.whetstone@gmail.com.

For general comments or questions, contact the editor of Whetstone at Editor.whetstone@gmail.com and check out the Whetstone Facebook page.

The next submission deadline is tentatively set for Dec. 1, with the edition scheduled to be released Mar. 15, 2011.

Munsch coming to U of L

trevor.kenney — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 17:52:39 +0000

Renowned children's author Robert Munsch is bringing his unique view of the world to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge this weekend with a pair of appearances in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Theatre.

Munsch will be on stage Saturday, June 5 at both 1 and 3:30 p.m., speaking about his latest books and where he draws his inspiration.

Tickets for these events are available by calling 403-329-2616.

Presented in part by the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Bookstore, 10 per cent of Munsch event sales will be donated to the new Crossings Branch Library.

Author Hegerat at U of L Bookstore

trevor.kenney — Thu, 20 May 2010 17:40:49 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Bookstore welcomes author Betty Jane Hegerat on Thursday, May 20 as she discusses her works.

Hegerat has been a social worker, a teacher and in 2009 was the Writer in Residence for the Calgary Public Library. Newest Press published her first novel, Running Toward Home, in 2006. A collection of short stories, A Crack in the Wall (Oolichan Books), was published in 2008, and a novel, Delivery (Oolichan Books), in 2009.

Her stories have been published widely in literary magazines:he has been twice a finalist in the Alberta Views Short Story contest, and received an Honourable Mention in the 2009 Howard O'Hagan prize for short fiction. Betty Jane teaches creative writing for Continuing Education at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Calgary and at the Alexandra Writers Centre.

Hegerat is at the Bookstore from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. If you are unable to take in he rtalk at this time, she'll also appear at the Lethbridge Public Library at 7 p.m.

UNews - ��Ѹ�����Դ���߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Bookstore

Hugs from Home gives ��Ѹ�����Դ���߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge students a much-needed boost

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