Thank you for following us on our website or our Facebook page @AFKO FRANCO to know about our latest news.
The West Kootenay Francophone Association (or AFKO Association des francophones des Kootenays Ouest) promotes French language and its cultures throughout the region. The Association gathers and represents francophones and francophiles from all regions of the West Kootenays through socio-cultural, educational and community activities.
AFKO is a non-profit organization that offers a variety of services in French, including weekly radio shows, quarterly newsletters, summer day camps, a directory of French-language services, annual events. In our community center located at 807 Baker Street in Nelson, we have a library with over 4,000 articles in French and access to a printer / scanner / copier.
Our community center is open Tuesday to Thursday 10-5pm and Friday 10-3pm
250-352-3516
Our services
Come visit us to consult over 4000 French books and magazines! We have plenty of kids books, to help your children in learning or practicing French. Only members can check out documents.
Become a member today here! You can search for documents in our library.
Improve your french skills with our beginner and advanced French conversations tables.
The more, the merrier ! AFKO community wants to open up even more to anglophones who love the French language and culture. Each Wednesday for beginners and each Tuesday for advanced at 6:45 pm, come to the community center to learn, discuss and enjoy our lovely place with a teacher. No need to book in, just show up and don’t be shy.
Everyone is welcome ! Drop In $15/lesson
The AFKO is happy to provide at its community center a free public access to Wi-Fi, computers and a scanner, and access to a printer and a photocopier for a low cost.
You are organising an event and you need more plates, mugs and cutlery than you have at home? The environment is important for you and you refuse to buy single-use products? You can borrow the AFKO’s by donation.
Contact us at 250-352-3516 or coordination.afko@gmail.com.
Our community center is available for rental during evenings and weekends for private events or meetings. For more information, contact us at 250-352-3516 or coordination@afko.ca
Les P’tits Matins is a free weekly gathering for kids 0-5yrs old and a parent. Perfect time to practice or get immerse in the French language.
Where: At the Family Place located at 312 Silica Street in Nelson (fall 2024) and at the Library in Creston (summer 2024)
Registration is not required.
Here is some additional information:
– A snack will be served on-site.
– You don’t need to be an AFKO member to participate.
- Castlegar Library
- Kaslo Library
- Nakusp Library
- Rossland Library
- Grand-Forks Library
- Little Free French Library in Creston at 714 Alder Street
- Little Free French Library in Nelson at 807 Baker St Nelson
The Club Jeunes de Coeur, is a group of 50yrs old +, francophones and francophiles that meet monthly (spring to fall).
To counter social isolation and to foster friendly exchanges, the club creates opportunities for gathering through activities adapted for 50 years old people and more.
For more information
Web page for the Club
250-352-3516 or coordination.afko@gmail.com
Facebook: Club 50+ Kootenays
Méli Mélo is your French community radio show in the West Kootenays! Produced at the Kootenay Co-op Radio for over 25 years, enjoy francophone music from everywhere around the world. Tune in on Fridays at 10am and on Sundays at 10am for a repeat.
93.5 FM in Nelson, 96.5 FM in Crawford Bay, 101.5 FM in Castlegar, and 107 FM in New Denver.
Méli Mélo is also broadcasted by the francophone Victoria community radio CILS-FM (107.9). You can listen to the show live or as a podcast here. For any comments or suggestions, or if you would like to co-host for one show, please contact us at 250-352-3516 or coordination.afko@gmail.com.
Our publications
All year long, the AFKO publishes monthly in the Nelson Star and the Rossland News a full page in French. You can read them online here for the Nelson Star.
If you would like to share an article idea for the Voilà page or if you have any comments, please contact us.
Our events
Monthly events
Visit our event calendar!
Annual events
In January every year, the AFKO is at the Whitewater Ski Resort for the Winter Carnival. Come see us to eat delicious maple toffy on the snow! Traditional and festive atmosphere to warm you up!
The sugar shack takes place yearly in April at the Salmo Ski Hill. More than 200 people share a traditional meal of ham, beans, eggs, crepes and more, followed with the highly anticipated maple taffy on snow! Games, traditional music. This festive event is a must.
Every year around the 24th of June, date of Québec’s national holiday the St-Jean-Baptiste, La FrancoFête celebrates French language and its cultures. Through socio-cultural, artistic and interactive activities at Lakeside Park in Nelson.
AFKO aims to promote all French cultures and give people an occasion to celebrate them. With games, workshops and concerts by local artists. This event is free and open for everyone of all ages and all cultures!
In early December, the AFKO celebrates the winter holidays with a community event at Taghum Hall. After a traditional meal of turkey, meat pie and all the trimmings, enjoy live trad music, games and a draw!
Become a member!
By becoming a member of AFKO, you help promote French language and its cultures in the West Kootenays. You are also joining a vibrant, creative and well-established community. To become a member, you can visit our community center at 807 Baker St, Nelson, or write us at coordination@afko.ca
Thank you for your support!
The perks of becoming a member:
Reduced cost of entry for events
Right to vote at the Annual General Assembly
Monthly newsletter
Access to our teas and wifi
Rental of books from our library
Automatic membership to the club Jeunes de coeur and Carrefour 50+ for the 50yrs old +
Our rates
- Indivual rate - $20/year
- Family rate - $30/year
- School/nonprofit - $40/year
- Business - $50/year
Environmental Policy
Objective of the policy: The AFKO established an environmental policy with the intention of seeing the quantity and the quality of its environmental actions augment and become more diversified. This policy follows the ecological portrait and action plan established in February 2018, with the purpose of pushing even further our environmental efforts.
The AFKO commits to:
- make responsible purchases by choosing durable, local, reusable products with as least packaging as possible;
- use homemade ecological cleaning products for frequent cleaning tasks;
- carry out sound management of residual materials;
- aim to reduce packaging and plastic when forced to order goods;
- continue to reduce the consumption of single use products such as plates and cutlery during shared meals and other big events, and aim to reuse as much as possible already purchased material;
- encourage and maintain the participation, formation and engagement of its employees to assure the full respect of the environmental policy;
- reduce the carbon footprint of transports, for example by prioritising carpooling;
- encourage and support the members’ initiatives concerning the environment, when those are aligned with the AFKO’s mandate;
- aim for the continuous improvement of environmental efforts in the coming years;
- develop a follow up process with quantitative indicators to reassess yearly.
