Recognition
December 2010: Kathy Knowles was named one of Canada’s 25 Transformational Canadians, a campaign sponsored by Cisco Canada, The Globe and Mail, CTV and La Presse. This honour recognizes individuals, “who through their vision, leadership and action, are catalysts for transformational change.”
September 2010: Kathy Knowles and Joana Felih, OCLF”s first librarian, received the IBBY-Asahi Reading Promotion Award at the 32nd IBBY [International Board onBooks for Young People] Congress in Santiago de Compostela, Spain. This award is given biennially to two groups whose outstanding activities are judged to be making a lasting contribution to reading promotion programmes for children and young people and it includes a prize of US$ 10,000. The other recipient was Taller de las Letras Jordi Sierra i Fabra Foundation (Colombia).
July 2010: Kathy Knowles received the Order of Manitoba from the Honourable Philip S. Lee, the Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB.Citation read: “Kathryn Knowles is the founder and volunteer director of the Osu Children’s Library Fund, a not-for-profit charity established in 1991 to bring books and literacy into the lives of thousands of children and adults in Ghana, West Africa.”
May 2009: Kathy Knowles received the Soroptimist Making a Difference for Women Award for her outstanding work to improve the lives of other women.
June 2009: Kathy Knowles received an Honorary Doctorate of Laws in the Field of Education, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON.Citation read: “A meticulous self-taught lay librarian who is often called upon for her wisdom as a speaker and an adviser on literacy training and library programs for children.”
November 2006: “Dear Kathy, As Canadians, it is so important for us to realize the constructive influence we can have on the world. You are proof that the vision and actions of just one person can make a tremendous difference in so many lives!” Former Governor General Michaëlle Jean following her visit to the Nima Library, Accra, Ghana
2005: Flare Volunteer Award
“Kathy has single-handedly enriched the lives of thousands of children in Ghana, West Africa. Motivating a vast contingent of volunteers, both in Canada and Ghana, she has given the lifelong tools of reading and writing to thousands of children while volunteering from the attic of her Winnipeg home.”
August 2004: Ghanaian/Canadian Special Achievement Award, Toronto, ON
2002: Lewis Perinbam Award for International Development, Ottawa, ON
The annual Lewis Perinbam Award goes to an individual who has made an extraordinary contribution to improving lives in a developing country, all on a voluntary basis.
December 2002:“Dear Kathy, It was wonderfully inspiring to see your project replace hopelessness with pride and hopefulness on the faces of so many young Ghanaians. What you have achieved through your perseverance, your inspiration and determination in promoting both education and literacy is a model for all of us and, for that, I wish to express my deepest gratitude.” Robert R. Fowler, former Personal Representative of the Canadian Prime Minister for Africa, following his visit to the Nima Library, Accra, Ghana.
June 2001: Meritorious Service Award, Ottawa, ON“Through her labour of love promoting literacy, Kathryn Knowles has enriched the lives of many children half a world away and brought great honour to Canada.” Former Governor General Adrienne Clarkson
2000: YWCA Woman of Distinction Award, Winnipeg, MB
An annual award given to a selected group of women for their contribution to the well-being of the community and for being role models to other women.
“This project has had a tremendous effect on thousands of children all over Ghana. They now have access to a library, to books and most important of all, to the JOY of reading. For the first time, they feel they can take charge of their lives. They now have dreams they didn’t have before. It is truly a miracle what happens in those libraries.” Florence Adjepong, Director and Treasurer of Osu Library Fund, Ghana.
“What happens in the Nima Library is nothing short of phenomenal. Everyone had given up on most of those kids, but Kathy has taken them off the streets and showed them something more. Indeed, the minute those kids entered that library, a whole new world opened up for them.” Emma Amoo-Gottfried, Director of Osu Library Fund, Ghana