Musical instrument loan program available in 12 city libraries

MONTRÉAL, Sept. 14, 2017 /CNW Telbec/ - The musical instrument loan program which has been very successful since its launch in 2016 in eight Montréal libraries has been expanded to five more libraries thanks to an additional donation of 50 musical instruments from Sun Life Financial. This addition brings the total number of musical instruments available for lending in participating libraries to 150, enhancing the program, which is also available in Toronto and Vancouver libraries.

At its weekly meeting, the Montreal executive committee endorsed the resolution to accept Sun Life Financial's latest donation of instruments worth $27,500. Guitars, basses, violins, ukuleles, portable keyboards, drums and xylophones that have been available since November 2016 in the Du Boisé, Georges-Vanier, La Petite-Patrie, Maison culturelle et communautaire de Montréal-Nord, Plateau-Mont-Royal, Saint-Léonard, Saul-Bellow and Jacqueline-De Repentigny libraries, will be available in October at the Octogone, Saint-Michel, Rivière-des-Prairies, Benny and Pierrefonds libraries.

"It is with great pleasure that we accept this new donation from Sun Life Financial to the musical instrument loan program. This generous gesture will increase the number of loans in 12 libraries and reduce the waiting time for this program, which has a borrowing rate of 97%. The excellent lending rate percentage demonstrates that the program responds to a need and illustrates the dynamic character of this cultural rendezvous, which is highly frequented in the metropolis," declared the Mayor of Montreal, Mr. Denis Coderre.

"By increasing and diversifying the service offering in its libraries, the city is able to retain and increase the number of subscribers who frequent their neighbourhood libraries. It also contributes to the cultural vitality of the metropolis and to the quality of life of people of all ages who frequent them, in particular, young persons, who have the chance to discover and to practise a musical instrument thanks to the musical instrument loan program in Montreal libraries," said Ms. Manon Gauthier, executive committee member in charge of culture, heritage, design, Space for life and the status of women.

"In honour of Canada's 150th birthday, Sun Life is thrilled to be expanding the highly successful Sun Life Financial Musical Instrument Lending Library Program to more cities across Canada. To help meet the high demand of instruments, we are also donating an additional 50 instruments to the existing Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal programs," said Paul Joliat, Assistant Vice-President, Philanthropy and Sponsorships, Sun Life Financial. "Music and the arts can have a profound impact on a person's life and we're proud that we are able to provide the opportunity for more Canadians to experience and enjoy the positive power of music."

Remember to subscribe to one of the participating libraries in order to borrow a free musical instrument. It is also possible to reserve a musical instrument at bibliomontreal.com. Only one instrument can be borrowed at a time, with a borrowing time of three weeks and the possibility to renew it three times, if the instrument has not been reserved.

About Bibliothèques de Montréal (Montréal libraries)
The Bibliothèques de Montréal have a network of 45 libraries located in the 19 boroughs. Passionately committed to neighbourhoods, the mission of the Bibliothèques de Montréal is to provide everyone with access to reading, information, knowledge, culture and leisure. Backed by bold programming and dedicated teams, the Bibliothèques de Montréal are prime destinations where visitors can acquire knowledge through all its forms. 4.2 million documents are available at the libraries, 7 days a week, and offer lively spaces for meetings and exchanges for all.

About Sun Life Financial in the community
At Sun Life Financial, we are committed to building sustainable, healthier communities for life and we're proud to hold the Caring Company designation from Imagine Canada. Community wellness is an important part of our sustainability commitment and we believe that by actively supporting the communities in which we live and work, we can help build a positive environment for our Clients, Employees, advisors and shareholders. Our philanthropic support focuses on two key areas: health, with an emphasis on diabetes awareness, prevention, care and research initiatives through our Team Up Against Diabetes^TM platform; and arts and culture, through our award-winning Making the Arts More Accessible ^TM program. We also partner with sports properties in key markets to further our commitment to healthy and active living. Our Employees and advisors take great pride in volunteering over 40,000 hours each year and contribute to making life brighter for individuals and families across Canada. Read more about Sun Life Financial in the community.

SOURCE Ville de Montréal - Cabinet du maire et du comité exécutif

Source: Noémie Brière-Marquez, Press attachée, Office of the mayor and executive committee, 514 243-1268; Information: Linda Boutin, Press Relations Officer, Service des communications, 514 872-6013