TBL's new booth at 105 Gibson Centre

Talking Book Library (TBL) has formed a partnership with 105 Gibson Centre (105gibson.com), a Christian care centre located in Markham devoted to bringing positive changes to the neighbouring communities.

In particular, both TBL and 105 Gibson Centre, seek to serve the community of visually impaired persons (VIPs). The Cultural Café, located in 105 Gibson Centre, which is currently operated by The Joy Beyond Vision Community, provides training and employment for VIP’s who prepare and serve food and beverage to the public.

A recent installment of a portable recording booth at 105 Gibson, will allow TBL to expand its audio production of Christian materials for the visually impaired and print disabled in addition to TBL’s long history of English narration of over 2,500 inspiring Christian books for the blind.

TBL productions are available to persons with print disabilities through public libraries that offer service from the Centre for Equitable Library Access (CELA) in conjunction with CNIB (Canadian National Institute for the Blind). A print disability is learning, visual or physical disability that prevents a person from reading print material.

TBL has begun an exciting pilot project to narrate books in Chinese for the print disabled. Currently, TBL’s recording studios are located in Stouffville, ON where over 40 volunteer narrators and editors record and edit books in the DAISY format for the blind (14 of the 40 are Chinese speakers).

To expand its volunteer base, TBL’s portable recording booth in Markham provides greater accessibility by transit. TBL, which is the only Christian audio book publisher for CELA, is the first to offer audio productions in Mandarin and Cantonese.

You can hear some of TBL’s Chinese productions at our website: www.talkingbooklibrary.org/chinese-pilot-project

TBL is grateful to 105 Gibson, for sharing its resources and allowing the placement of a portable recording booth at the centre. We hope that forming this alliance will raise greater awareness for the VIP community overall.

Please join us! TBL’s official opening of its new recording booth at 105 Gibson Centre (south entrance) is coming up soon and will be held on Wednesday, August 17, from 11am to 2pm. Light refreshments will be served. There will be demonstrations of narrations in both English and Chinese and a chance to do a recording of your own!