Residents of the Halifax area will now be able to borrow musical instruments from the Halifax Public Libraries free of charge, thanks to the Sun Life Financial Musical Instrument Lending Library program.

This program allows anyone with a valid library card the opportunity to borrow a wide range of musical instruments such as guitars, banjos, and drums. Halifax is the ninth city in Canada to benefit from this initiative.

"Music is a large part of the Maritime spirit and we're so excited to be able to bring this program to Halifax. Music has the ability to connect us with one another, while allowing us to express ourselves on a deeper level," said Paul Joliat, Assistant Vice-President, Philanthropy and Sponsorships, Sun Life Financial.

Philanthropic donation of $140,000

Sun Life is making a philanthropic donation of $140,000 to the Halifax Public Libraries to fund the program's operating costs. In addition to donating 150 guitars, banjos, mandolins, ukuleles, violins, drums, and portable keyboards, Sun Life has also created a series of videos to assist with the use, care and enjoyment of the instruments.

The Halifax Public Libraries will also be holding a musical instrument donation drive running from July 11 to August 11 to add to the collection so that more people will have access to instruments. Residents of the Halifax region may drop off their donations of new or gently used guitars, banjos, mandolins, ukuleles, violins, drums, and portable keyboards at any Halifax Public Library branch. Visit halifaxpubliclibraries.ca for more information.

The Sun Life Financial Musical Instrument Lending Library was first launched at the Toronto Public Library, expanding to the Vancouver, Montréal, Calgary, Kitchener, Ottawa, Fredericton and Regina Public Libraries.