category archives: Definitions
Hey Party People!
Tomorrow is the big day and you’re probably wondering what you can expect at DefineTO. Here’s a couple things that you NEED TO KNOW:
1) TICKETS– Online purchases close at 6 p.m. thursday, but you can purchase them at the door as well. It’s $20 a ticket, and ALL money goes to The Remix Project. There are limited tickets available, but we’ll get as many as legally possible through the doors!
2) TIMING– Doors open at 7, but there are plenty of attractions throughout the night. If you’re planning to catch Twidol though, get there early because we’re planning on beginning the karaoke festivities at 8 sharp!
3) DRESS CODE– There is none. Wear whatever you’re comfortable in, but dress to impress because we’ll have our great photographers there to document the event.
4) ENTERTAINMENT– The whole point of tonight is to try to raise funds and help out The Remix Project, but we’re definitely going to have a great time while doing it.
We got some great performances, awesome prizes, and tons of other stuff going on including:
- Performances from The Remix Project and Ryan Creeelman hosted by April Kalloo,
Segment Producer for Breakfast Television/CityTV - Nat & Marie’s Twidol Karaoke Challenge in Cabin 5
- Draw Something Contest
- Kissing Booth with Saul Colt & Casie Stewart
- DJs spinning beats all night
- Photobooths to capture your next social profile picture
5) BUSINESS CARDS – Make sure you bring your business cards along because you’re sure to make some awesome new friends.
Thanks for all your support, Toronto! Let’s make #DefineTO the talk of the town!
Cheers,
Nathan
@NathanChong…
Remix : Redefined Paths
As you may or may not know, DefineTO is holding an event on April 12th, 2012 in support of The Remix Project. We wanted to take the time to showcase this amazing charity and give you a more in-depth look at how it provides creative programs to at-risk youth in Toronto. We chose to support The Remix Project for this event because its mission is aligned with the values of DefineTO – providing youth with opportunities to define who they are, on their own terms and through creative education.
The Remix Project is a youth-led, urban arts incubator. It was created in order to help level the playing field for young people from disadvantaged, marginalized and under served communities. Its programs and services serve youth who are trying to enter into the creative industries or further their formal education; The Remix Project provides top-notch alternative, creative, educational programs, facilitators and facilities.
Beza Getachew, a recent graduate of the Remix 7.0 Creative Arts program, produced and edited the following documentary as her thesis project. It captures the journeys of 3 participants within the program – a rapper, a photographer, and a videographer. They share their inspirational stories and describe how much The Remix Project means to them and the ways it has impacted their lives.
Karla Moy aka HustleGRL – A “The Remix Project” Success Story
Karla Moy, better known by her online moniker HustleGRL, is the perfect example of the levels of success that The Remix Project participants have achieved through the amazing opportunities they are given at Remix.
One of the youngest participants to have even been accepted, Karla was 15 when she first came to The Remix Project. Just three years later, she had completed an internship with Chris Smith Management; producing events for Drake, Trey Songz, and Day 26. She is the owner and creative lead of HustleGRL – a graphic and web design, and website management company that has done work for Drake, Lil Wayne, Funk Master Flex, Diggy Simmons and Universal Music Canada.
So now you hopefully have a better idea of exactly what The Remix Project is and why you should join DefineTO at The Fifth on April 12th in support of this great cause!
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The Cancrete 2012 Team with the Haitian Workers we worked alongside to build the concrete pad we are standing on.
Haiti: My Definition
When I first signed up, I thought one week in Haiti would be enough. I had never gone on any sort of mission trip or relief effort before, and I thought baby steps were the way to go. I still haven’t decided if I was wise to err on the side of caution and test out the waters before taking the dive, or if I was just being a big chicken; valuing the stability of a cushy job, a cozy apartment and the hot showers that I have at home in Toronto. I’m usually more of a diver. I think things through, mind you, but then I dive. When I decide I want to do something, I do it, and I give it everything I have. Moving to Haiti, however, was not something I had the courage to consider, so I went for a week. This is probably why I wasn’t ready to say goodbye.
When I travel and I fall in love with a city or a place I try to pick something that I want to do or see the next time, so that I always have a reason to come back. It helps me to leave because I promise myself I will return. I love the bustle of Rome, the romance of Paris, and the strange but sure harmony of Haiti. I had to make myself a whole list of promises getting on the bus back to Port-au-Prince airport. On the way home, I made a list of reflections, favourite memories, and next steps which included keeping in touch with people I’d met on the mission, following the Mission of Hope on Twitter and most importantly: sorting out my thoughts. I knew that when I got home someone was going to ask me what Haiti is like and I wasn’t sure I could give an answer that I felt did justice to my experience there. People generally associate the word Haiti with other words like earthquake, devastation, poverty, and voodoo. Truthfully, the most common responses I received when people found out I was going to Haiti were either, “On vacation??” or, “Be careful”. In my short time there, I now saw and understood so much more of this country than the vast majority of my peers. I was leaving as an ambassador and I wanted to be prepared.
It sounds funny to say, but I feel as though I have made friends with the country. I will follow their progress, celebrate their triumphs and lament the challenges they face. I hope to go back to Haiti, and I can’t wait to see the evolution of what I had a small part in: to see that cement pad I helped lay, the children older, healthier, full of hope and potential. Many members of the group I was with have gone back year after year; I was so encouraged by their stories. Imagine their joy this year to see a bubbly, giggling little girl who was very sick, showing the signs of malnutrition and labouring just to breathe one year before. These friends of mine have been able to experience the satisfaction of seeing their work combined with other like minded individuals’ efforts function to build homes, schools, churches, food halls, and put together entire communities for people who might not have these things – things that we take for granted – if they did not have our support.
As a result of the efforts put forward by the Mission of Hope organization in Titanyen, Haiti, otherwise malnutrition children are getting a good meal every day, sick and injured Haitians are receiving medical attention, amputees are receiving prosthetic limbs, orphaned children taken in, taken care of, and are surrounded by a loving community. Hundreds of people support this mission; they contribute and donate their time and resources because they hope to see lasting change in Haiti. I want lasting change for Haiti and I am happy to partner with those who have dedicated their entire lives, or just what they can, towards this goal. It was an honour and a privilege to serve there and experience the beauty of the country and its people. I don’t know that enough of us city folk and working professionals stop chasing the next best thing long enough to really understand and appreciate how privileged and fortunate we are on a community– let alone a world — scale.
I wanted to share my experience with the DefineTO community because we are doing the same thing. We are joining together in our own community to bless, encourage and motivate each other to seek out and define our own paths. We are GenY, we are Toronto, what can be said about us? We seek to be the exception and not the rule; we won’t fall into the mundanity of everyday life. We have passions and a heart for our community and our world. Yes, individually our efforts might seem small and insignificant in the grand scheme of things, but they are efforts nonetheless– they are our first steps. And the process to defining your path and making a difference begins with that very first step.
Remix project is a group of people who have gone to work in their own backyard, determined a need, and set out to make a difference in the lives of the young people that are mentored and given otherwise inaccessible opportunities through their program. I hope that you can join the DefineTO community April 12th at The Fifth to celebrate social media and how it can bring people together for a common cause.…
