People4Kids Gala is an annual fundraiser held in Toronto, Canada that raises funds for People to People AID Organization Canada (P2P), which provides support for those affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Ethiopia. The gala was founded in 2011 by a group of Ontario public servants and friends,most notably the former Chief Economist of Ontario, Dr. Pat Deutscher, and former Secretary of the Cabinet, Peter Wallace. It has raised more than $100,000 in funding for P2P Canada.
This year, the gala will also raise funds for a second organization, namely the Educate Lanka Foundation. Founded by social entrepreneur Manjula Dissanayake, Educate Lanka is a MasterCard Foundation-backed non-profit social venture that invests in the education and skills development of promising future leaders from socioeconomically marginalized backgrounds in Sri Lanka. Since 2007, Educate Lanka has disbursed nearly $250,000 in micro-scholarships to over 800 scholars, thanks to individual micro-philanthropists from around the world and in Sri Lanka, especially from the diaspora, through its unique online platform. Nearly 30% of the currently sponsored children and youth are from the Northern Province; the majority of whom are from Mannar, Vavuniya, Jaffna, and Kilinochchi.
This year’s gala, which promises to be the biggest one yet, will be held on May 6, 2015 at LUMA & the TIFF Lounge in the TIFF Bell Lightbox. Tickets are priced at $165 each (but of which $90 is tax deductible) and can be purchased online.
Come, join fellow Torontonians on May 6 for a night of fun and philanthropy!
நன்றி, አመሰግናለሁ, Thank you!
Kumaran Nadesan is a civil servant in the Government of Ontario. His decision to join the organizing committee of the People4Kids Gala 2015 was inspired, in parts, by his work with comdu.it and his recent travels through Sri Lanka and Ethiopia.
