PRESS RELEASE
Start2Finish expands LIT Project to Biidaaban Kinoomaagegamik in Sagamok Anishnawbek
The innovative book vending machine offers free, culturally relevant books to students at Biidaaban
Kinoomaagegamik and Shki Waase-Aaban Binoojiinh Gamik; Sagamok’s elementary school
and daycare.
Sagamok Anishnawbek, ON [February 11, 2025] — Start2Finish announced the expansion of the
Indigenous Literacy Enhancement Project (“The LIT Project”), providing a “book vending machine” to
Biidaaban Kinoomaagegamik in Sagamok Anishnawbek, Ontario. This initiative was organized by Colleen
Toulouse, Sagamok Education’s Student Support Program Coordinator, in conjunction with the LIT
Project, an education-focused program supporting youth in Grades 1 to 8 from Indigenous and other
diverse communities across Canada. An official unveiling and ribbon cutting ceremony will take
place at Biidaaban Kinoomaagegamik (1666 Toulouse Bay Road, Sagamok) on Friday, February 14,
beginning at 10:00 a.m. and will include a ceremonial smudge, prayer, cultural teaching, and more.
Also included in the ceremonial unveiling will be remarks and a story reading of the first book
dispensed by honoured guest, Brian Warren, who is the Founder of Start2Finish. Biidaaban
Kinoomaagegamik is the first Indigenous elementary school in the North Shore region to receive the
book vending machine!
The project celebrates authors and artists from Indigenous and other diverse cultural backgrounds
in an effort to empower children to build strong connections to their land, history, family, and
selves. When a student can see themselves in their libraries and the stories, they recognize that
they can find home and acceptance no matter where they are. “The Indigenous Literacy Enhancement
Project was created to support literacy and student achievement in Indigenous and diverse
communities through the power of storytelling,” said Brian Warren. “Since the pandemic, literacy
gaps have widened even more for children from vulnerable communities, and community-led, culturally
responsive interventions are needed to address these gaps and give children the tools they need to
succeed. Our aim is to help children expand their learning pathway and to encourage academic as
well as emotional and mental well-being.”
This beautiful and colorful book vending machine arrived at Biidaaban Kinoomaagegamik on January
28, 2025. Students were curious and excited to see the book vending machine being set up in their
new school. Through the LIT Project, Biidaaban Kinoomaagegamik and Shki Waase-Aaban Binoojiinh
Gamik (Daycare) will receive 2,000 titles per year over the next three years, all written and
created by First Nations’ voices. Sagamok’s lead on this project, Colleen Toulouse, shares, “I
submitted the application on behalf of Biidaaban Kinoomaagegamik to Start2Finish in May 2024. For
me, reading has always been encouraged in my home by my parents. I still to this day, remember
reading The Unjust Society by Harold Cardinal when I was young. He wrote about the realization of
our full potential, and we must be who we are. For me, reading and writing about ourselves is one
way to keep us on the path of reaching our full potential.”
The project is being implemented with the support of the Future Generations Foundation. The
expectation is that every student will go home with books or graphic novels of their choice, each
month. Each student will receive a token each month, that they will deposit into the vending
machine, make their selection, and watch as their book is dispensed; just like a vending machine
containing pop, snacks or other “goodies”. The excitement of choosing a book and having it drop
into their hands will be something to spark interest and desire to read, encourage thoughtfulness
towards the selection they make, cause discussion with peers about the book they chose, and provide
content applicable to self- discovery and actualization through Indigenous authors, voices, and
relatable stories.
Vance McPherson, Director of Education for Sagamok Anishnawbek says, “We are grateful for this
initiative to put high quality literature by Indigenous authors in the hands of our students. We
all know that when we get kids excited about reading, we set them up for a bright future on whatever path
they choose to follow. I think that Start2Finish's approach to supporting literacy is innovative and
exciting, and we're all looking forward to hearing from our students and families about the worlds
they will visit through these books.”
Chi Miigwech to everyone who played a role in bringing this innovative resource to Biidaaban
Kinoomaagegamik, including Start2Finish, The Future Generations Foundation, and Colleen Toulouse,
who researched, applied for, and successfully achieved the vending machine allocation be awarded to
Biidaaban. This project provides Sagamok Anishnawbek -- a dynamic, diverse, and community centric
territory -- with important literary support for families and students.
About Start2Finish Canada:
Start2Finish Canada, a national charity that operates locally in communities from coast to coast,
was founded on the belief that every child deserves the tools to succeed. Its mission is to break
the cycle of child poverty by providing ongoing educational support to Canada’s at-risk children
throughout their school years. Nurturing the mind, body and social health are all essential areas
of focus to help empower children to succeed and become role models for change.
The Start2Finish Indigenous Literacy Enhancement Project launched in spring 2022 with four machines
in First Nations, Métis and Inuit communities across Canada (Toronto, London, Ottawa and Calgary)
and has since expanded to an additional 12 communities nationwide.
About Sagamok Anishnawbek:
Sagamok Anishnawbek is located on the north shore of Lake Huron. It is a beautiful community whose
name means a meeting place of lots of trails. Sagamok is a community that is party to the Robinson-
Huron Treaty, 1850. The Anishinaabemowin language is still alive in the community and serves as the
means by which the community is connected to its lands, ancestors, history, culture, laws and its
right to self-determination. The community members of Sagamok number over 3,400. A majority of the
membership lives on the reserve, with the remainder living in urban locations.