All ORL Branches are closed on statutory holidays and during Christmas and Easter holiday times. The book drops are closed on these days.
We are located at the Capital News Centre, 4105 Gordon Drive, in the south end of Kelowna beside the H2O aquatic centre. Our friendly staff are ready to help you. Parking is free! All programs at the Mission library branch are free of charge. Children 8 and under must be accompanied by a parent or adult guardian at all times.
Masks are no longer mandatory in indoor public spaces, including the library.
Help us celebrate the talent of the Okanagan's up-and-coming writers. This celebration will feature a story and poetry reading and book signings by this year's winners The Okanagan Young Writers' Awards were founded to promote excellence in writing for youth in high school and early college.
Please come by Mission Branch to see our re-opened spaces, which include new colours, programming spaces and comfortable seating and study tables. The children's area is now toward the back of the library, with adult non-fiction near the front.
Explore & download hundreds of free at home printable activity, instruction, and crafting sheets - all created to help you and your little ones make the most of stay-at-home days: https://libraryplus.ca/
Join us at the Mission Branch for time to bond with your baby through song, touch, and rhymes. This early literacy program will help parents and caregivers plant the seeds that will bloom to a lifelong love of language. Recommended for newborns to 18 months with parents/caregivers.
Weekly on Tuesdays, 10:15 am - 10:45 am
January 17 to March 28
No registration required
Toddler Time at the Mission Branch uses songs, stories, movement, and rhymes to nourish early literacy skills. Recommended for ages 18 months to 3 years with a parent/caregiver.
Weekly on Wednesdays, 10:15 am - 10:45 am
January 18 to March 29
No registration required.
Preschool story time uses more songs, rhymes, movements, and stories to continue to build your child's language learning skills. Recommended for ages 3 to 6 with a parent/caregiver.
Weekly on Thursdays, 10:15 am - 10:45 am
January 19 to March 30
This program is for adults to learn skills to entertain, distract and play with their babies. Learn songs, rhymes, stories and bounces that will help you connect with your child. Gather with other parents and babies, have some fun, make connections and find books to enjoy with your children.
Weekly on Thursday afternoons, 2:00 pm to 2:45 pm
Join us at the Mission Branch for a time where the whole family can sing, move, listen, and learn together. Recommended for ages 3 to 6 with parent/caregiver, but all children are welcome!
Weekly on Saturdays, 10:15 am - 10:45 am
January 21 to April 1
Drop in and build your imagination! KEVA planks and LEGO will be available for kids to build during these unstructured afternoon sessions.
Tuesday, January 17 | 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm
Tuesday, January 31 | 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm
Tuesday, February 14 | 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm
Celebrate UnPlug and Play week at this Mission Branch event with fun technologies, such as Ozobots, Snap Circuits, Cubelet Robots, Code 'N Go Mice and clever games.
Tuesday, January 24 | 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm
Get creative with science and technology during this highly interactive workshop! Materials will be provided.
Tuesday, February 7 | 3:30 pm to 4:30 pm
Registration is required.
Teens and pre-teens are welcome to learn the foundations of knitting from experienced knitters at Mission Branch. You will learn an art with endless possibilities for creativity, and it can even relieve stress! There is no fee, but we ask that you bring your own yarn and needles (details in registration e-mail). Register HERE beginning January 6th.
***This is a series of classes that runs once a week until February 23rd. By registering for January 26th, you are registering for the whole series. If you need to cancel your registration after January 26th, contact the Mission Branch directly.
Need a quiet, comfortable place to study without distraction? Once a week the Mission Branch is turning its Community Room into a dedicated study space for teens. No registration needed! Drop in to tackle that essay, do research, or wrap your brain around math. There will be free Wifi, the library's resources at your fingertips, and snacks!
The Teen Writing Group is an opportunity for you to practice and share your writing in a safe creative space! Bring a journal, your favorite pen or pencil, your laptop, or just yourself! We will use prompts to spark a freewriting practice that will flex our writing muscles. No registration required.
There are copies available in the branch or as a downloadable ebook. Please email Luanne at lwarren@orl.bc.ca, or call 250-764-2254, if you have any questions. Happy Reading!
Fibre enthusiasts rejoice! Join a group of fibre enthusiasts for time and space to work on projects and share tips and tricks. Bring your needles and hooks, your yarn and threads!
Drop on in! No registration required.
Need someone to help you prepare your tax return? A tax professional will help adults with modest income to prepare their tax returns for free. Bring your tax slips on your first visit, then pick up your return at a later clinic date. * Maximum 2022 gross income under $35,000 for single; under $45,000 for a couple.
Your class is welcome to visit the Mission Branch library for a tour. We can also conduct online sessions to introduce students to library resources and research methods. Contact Richard to see how he can help your class by calling 250-764-2254, or e-mailing rkicksee@orl.bc.ca
The library is a great resource to enjoy with your family or friends, before or after sporting events. Drop by the library on your next trip to the Capital News Centre or H2O! The Mission library branch is conveniently located inside the Capital News Centre, which features two arenas, two indoor soccer fields, a walking track, a gym and many outdoor playing fields. Next door is H2O, an aquatic and exercise facility with water slides, a wave pool, indoor river, lane swimming and a gym. Free parking!
Download our Safety Plan and Risk Assessment [PDF]
Kelowna Friends of the Library are a non-profit organization formed in 1988, with a mission to raise funds to support Okanagan Regional Library including the downtown Kelowna, Mission & Rutland branches, to enhance the profile of our libraries in the community, and to increase awareness and use of library program and services. Persons interested in libraries are encouraged to volunteer with Friends as we support ORL through our year-round fundraising book sales and joint activities.
Up to 2019, Kelowna Friends were registered under the Society Act of British Columbia and the Canada Income Tax Act. Monetary donations should now be directed to the Okanagan Regional Library Admin Centre.
Kelowna Friends’ major fundraiser, the Great Okanagan Book Sale, takes place typically in Fall/November each year. Funds raised significantly support Summer Reading Club, year-round programming for babies to toddlers to teens, book clubs, guest speakers & events for adults, and enhanced facilities and maker spaces at all ORL branches.
To stock the various year-round book sales, Kelowna Friends accept donations of gently used books at our sorting base at #114 – 2476 Westlake Road, West Kelowna, next to Rose Valley Veterinary Hospital. Donations can be made at this location on Fridays 9am – 11:30am when volunteers are on duty to review and accept items, or anytime in small amounts in drop-bins at the ORL Administration Centre (1430 K.L.O. Road, Kelowna) and at Parkinson Recreation Centre (Harvey Ave & 1800 Parkinson Way, Kelowna). Friends acknowledge Dr. Moshe Oz and Two Small Men with Big Hearts Moving for their support with these operations and sales.
For book sales, volunteer and donation information, visit www.kelownafol.ca, or email Friends at fol4k@hotmail.com
Volunteer coordinators & interested volunteers hold formal meetings as necessary, rotating between the three branch libraries and our sorting base.
Follow Kelowna Friends on Facebook to keep updated on our latest activities and read posts on ORL, libraries, reading & literacy.
For further information, please email fol4k@hotmail.com
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