Maria Broekhof, left, and Lucia Broekhof hold a photograph of their father Jan, outside the Malvern branch of the Toronto Public Library in Scarborough, Ont. The sisters are raising money for the library in honour of their father.Laura Proctor/The Globe and Mail
The organizers: The family of Jan Broekhof
The pitch: Raising $25,000
The cause: Malvern public library in Scarborough, Ont.
Some of Maria Broekhof’s fondest memories of growing up in Scarborough, Ont., are spending Saturdays in the Malvern library with her father and four sisters.
Her parents, Jan and Anne Broekhof, moved to Scarborough in 1976. They had immigrated to Canada from the Netherlands in 1965 and spent their first years in Brantford, Ont.
Scarborough was still a fairly new suburb of Toronto at the time, and the Broekhofs became active community builders. Mr. Broekhof, who worked as a computer programmer at Toronto Hydro, sat on planning committees for new neighbourhoods and helped found a local Catholic church. He also played a key role in the planning and building of the Malvern Community Centre and library.
“My dad was a very handy person. He fixed everything in our house, and he took books out from the library. He saw the benefit of reading,” recalled Ms. Broekhof.
She and her sisters spent almost every Saturday at the library, accompanied by their father who became engrossed in books. For him, the library “was YouTube before YouTube existed,” Ms. Broekhof added.
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Her father died in 2023 and would have turned 100 this year (their mother is turning 90). In the final days of his life, Ms. Broekhof suggested an idea to her husband and sister. “What dad would love is if we raised money for the library, because he loves the library,” she told them. They agreed and the family contacted the Toronto Public Library Foundation about making a donation to the Malvern branch.
They’ve raised $15,000 so far and hope to get to $25,000. The money will go toward a new children’s space at the library, which is being renovated. The family hope the space will open later this year.
Ms. Broekhof said the library project will be a fitting tribute to her father and a place where families can experience the joy of reading. Mr. Broekhof “passed away three years ago, but his love for reading and learning – and for making sure his daughters shared it – lives on in every page we’ve ever turned,” she said.