The Okanagan Regional Library (ORL) held its quarterly Board meeting on May 17, 2023, where key developments and updates were shared. The board approved ORL’s 2022 financial statements, giving the green light for the continued growth and expansion of the library system. Additionally, the board approved the annual report, highlighting ORL's achievements and impact on the community in 2022.

In the lead up to National AccessAbility Week (May 28-June 3, 2023), the Okanagan Regional Library (ORL) is excited to announce the formation of an Accessibility Committee to improve accessibility and comply with the Accessible BC Act, which the BC provincial government passed in June 2021. The Act establishes a legal framework to identify, remove, and prevent barriers to the full and equal participation of people with disabilities in BC. Over 926,000 people live with some sort of disability in BC who face various barriers.

The Okanagan Regional Library is proud to announce the release of our new Library Activity Guide for Spring 2023. This comprehensive guide showcases a wide range of programs and activities available for all ages, running from April until June.

The Okanagan Regional Library is pleased to announce the receipt of a $1.68 million one-time provincial funding grant. This grant is part of the $45 million the Province of BC has dedicated to libraries this spring, and the ORL is excited to have the opportunity to use these funds to make a positive impact on its communities.

The Okanagan Regional Library is pleased to announce the appointment of 15 new members to its board of directors. These dedicated individuals come from a wide range of backgrounds and bring a wealth of experience and expertise.

The Okanagan Regional Library is proud to announce its next program in the Community Readers series, Fire Safety Story Time, presented by the Kelowna Fire Department. Join us for a fun and educational experience that combines storytelling, music, and essential fire safety information for children.

Attention all families in the Kelowna region! The Kelowna Downtown branch of Okanagan Regional Library is excited to announce our first-ever Community Reader Story Time Series. We're kicking it off with a special Drag Story Time on Saturday, January 28th, from 11 am to 12 pm.

All library locations are closed beginning Friday, December 23 and resume normal hours on Tuesday, January 3. Though we may be closed over the holidays, your eLibrary is always open!

ORL announced today that it reached a record-breaking 1 million digital book checkouts in 2022. This milestone illustrates the continued growth and importance of library lending of eBooks, eAudiobooks and eMagazines, as well as the library's success in serving all members of the community.

Okanagan Regional Library has announced the appointment of Danielle Hubbard as their new CEO. After Don Nettleton retired from his position as CEO, Jeremy Feddersen, CFO, was selected by the Board of Directors to become an Interim CEO. At the same time, ORL looked for a new leader. Hubbard became the successful applicant for the CEO position and will officially assume responsibilities on Tuesday, November 1st, 2022.

Flipster, our online magazine collection, has some hot new titles! In addition to the magazines that you know and love, we’ve added 9 new magazines for adults, including such titles as... The Atlantic, Essence, Forbes, Real Simple and more!

Borrow a robot from our Library of Things collection! We have Ozobots Evo and a Code & Go Robot Mouse kits that are great for kids ages 5+, and the Sphero Bolt for kids ages 8+, with a caregiver’s help.

At the February 16 meeting of the Okanagan Regional Library Board of Trustees, the Board held elections for the Board Officer positions.

As per the current Public Health Order, the ORL will not be holding in-library programs until January 18. We are looking forward resuming our planned programs as soon it is safe to do so.

The Okanagan Regional Library provides Library services to the citizens of Lake Country. For over 30 years, the Okanagan Regional Library Board has had established policies to guide communities and staff expectations for branch placement, sizes and open hours. The District of Lake Country has historically been serviced from 2 locations – the main library, which is currently situated in the Lake Country Municipal Hall and from a tiny location in Oyama. This Oyama library existed for historical reasons and has not met Board standards or policies for branch size or location (due to the small population being served and the proximity of other nearby libraries).

After the announcement of the tragic discovery of the remains of 215 children buried on the site of the former residential school in Kamloops, we wish to offer our sincere condolences to the Tk’emlups te Secwepemc and to all local First Nations - and to everyone impacted by residential schools in Canada.

VantageOne Credit Union’s generous $4,000 donation to Okanagan Regional Library (ORL) has helped strengthen community programming in the communities of Peachland, Vernon, Armstrong and Enderby, BC. The charitable gift will support ORL in two vital ways: Improving public access to digital learning and tools and fostering the development of S.T.E.A.M. programming at four of our smaller library branches.

At the May 19th, 2021 Meeting of the Okanagan Regional Library Board of Trustees, the Board was presented with a financial "clean bill of health" from auditors BDO Canada for the 2020 fiscal year. The Library system strengthened its balance sheet in 2020 with an increase in financial assets and decreased the overall net debt. It also posted a surplus for the year, most of which will be transferred to the building reserve to help to finance new branches such as West Kelowna.

Our newest Makerspace, the Inspiration Lab at the Vernon library branch, will be opening on June1! It is a free space dedicated to digital creativity, collaboration, and storytelling.

Do you have little ones at home, not yet school-aged? Have you noticed how they are growing up so fast? Well, what better way to get them prepared for the big wide world ahead than by reading together. We have an exciting new list of 100 Books to Read Together Before Kindergarten.