Media

Governor General to Meet Vancouver Youth

September 25, 2009

OTTAWA—Their Excellencies the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, Governor General of Canada, and Mr. Jean-Daniel Lafond will visit Vancouver, British Columbia, on September 28 and 29, 2009. During the visit, the Governor General will take part in several events, bringing people together to celebrate the efforts of citizens, particularly youth, to break down the barriers of indifference, to promote peace and to encourage social engagement.

In a spirit of solidarity and to encourage a national dialogue on youth engagement, the Governor General will deliver the opening address at We Day, which features several top leadership and social issues activists, and entertainers. While in Vancouver, the Governor General will also visit a youth centre and take part in a youth forum organized by the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC).

Below is the schedule of activities:

Monday, September 28

9:00 a.m.
Visit to the Directions Youth Services Centre
Vancouver, British Columbia
Her Excellency will visit the Directions Youth Services Centre, meet with staff and hold a discussion with youth who use the Centre. The conversation will address the daily challenges facing these youth and the solutions they have found to improve their living conditions.

Directions Youth Services Centre provides Vancouver’s homeless and at-risk youth with a single entry point to access the tools, support and guidance they need to go about making healthy, positive changes in their lives. Operated by the Family Services of Greater Vancouver, the Centre is working closely with the community to develop solutions to end youth homelessness in Vancouver and to change the community’s perception of street-involved youth.

For more information, visit www.fsgv.ca/programpages/youthservices/directionsyouthservicescentre.html.
OPEN TO MEDIA – Visit to Centre
CLOSED TO MEDIA – Discussion between Governor General and youth

11:00 a.m.
Youth Forum on Olympic Truce
Ismaili Centre
Burnaby, British Columbia
The Governor General will take part in a youth forum on Olympic Truce, organized by the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC). Accompanied by
Mr. John Furlong, Chief Executive Officer of VANOC, and Olympic and Paralympic athletes, as well as approximately 200 Anglophone and Francophone youth from the Vancouver area, Her Excellency will deliver a speech on youth involvement in building peace within their communities. She will then engage in a dialogue with the youth, during which they will talk about the peace projects they would like to establish in their communities.

VANOC is the organization responsible for planning, organizing, financing and staging the 21^st Olympic Winter Games and the 10^th Paralympic Winter Games, in 2010. The Olympics will be staged in Vancouver and Whistler, from February 12 to 18, while the Paralympics will run from March 12 to 21. For more information, visit www.vancouver2010.com.
OPEN TO MEDIA

Tuesday, September 29

9:00 a.m.
We Day
General Motors Place
Vancouver, British Columbia
The Governor General will deliver the opening address at We Day, which will feature a series of speeches by top leadership and social issues activists, speakers and entertainers.

We Day is a series of one-day events across Canada that celebrate the “Me to We” philosophy of reaching out to help others, while engaging youth to be the change agents as they support the international development work of Free The Children. The We Day event celebrates the power of young people to change the lives of others. For more information about We Day, visit www.freethechildren.com/weday.
OPEN TO MEDIA

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Media Information:
Marie-Ève Létourneau 
Rideau Hall Press Office
613-998-0287
613-302-0912 (cell.)
meletourneau@gg.ca
www.gg.ca
www.citizenvoices.gg.ca

Tricia Heywood
Directions Youth Services
778-896-9465
theywood@shaw.ca

Suzanne Walters
VANOC Communications
604-403-2386
778-327-8723 (cell.)
suzanne_walters@vancouver2010.com

Lindsey Coulter
Director of PR and Publicity 
Free The Children
416-528-9134 (cell.)
lindsey@freethechildren.com