Lift Up Vancouver
On Tuesday, October 7, 2008, Lift Up Canada will bring 1,400 young people and their families to the Vancouver movie premiere of “Meet Me in Miami” at Cinemark Tinseltown. The Lift Up Canada event will treat the children and their families as the honoured guests at a Hollywood-style premiere hosted by actor and musician Jim Byrnes. They will arrive in limousines, walk down the red carpet and be greeted by celebrities, sports stars and local dignitaries before they watch the movie. It will be a night that they will remember forever.
The premiere is one of several activities that will allow individuals, businesses and other organizations in Vancouver to give back to the city by helping under-resourced neighbourhoods. Our sponsors, Vancouver Career College and CDI College of Business, Technology and Health Care have donated generously to fund the event. Both colleges have joined forces and will give $1.4 milliosn in scholarships to the honoured guests. In addition, CDI and Vancouver Career College will give up to $1.7 million in scholarships to high school seniors offered as part of Lift Up Canada.
Cinemark Tinseltown will donate the theatre space and provide free popcorn and beverages for the honoured guests. The Luxottica Group will fit children with vision problems with new glasses. Each guest will also receive a plush toy courtesy of the Ty Corporation. Volunteer ambassadors will come to help out at the premiere and to inspire the young people who walk down the red carpet.
This is the first Lift Up Canada initiative which will:
- Develop programs through existing local neighborhood community groups by training and mobilizing ambassadors to improve the quality of life for all citizens.
- Provide parenting and marriage seminars from Family Life, Canada at the neighborhood level throughout Vancouver.
- Partner with the Growing Leaders Corporation to offer character based leadership development courses as an extra-curricular activity through the public school system. These courses will focus on turning students into young leaders that engage in cause-related activities to improve the quality of life in their communities.
- Continue to host similar events that will inspire and ignite communities to action. Plans are underway for a 2009 Lift Up Canada sports event to honour additional children and families.
To view the some of the amazing events that inspired the Lift Up Canada initiatives, please visit www.liftupamerica.org.