The Daughters For Life First Annual Gala a great success!

The magical, memorable Daughters For Life First Annual Gala was an overwhelming success– both in raising funds for the Foundation’s important educational work and raising its profile in the community.

Over 10 stellar musicians, film makers, poets and song writers volunteered their time and talents and skills to the programme. Carol Off, the acclaimed co-host of CBC’s As It Happens, led the evening as MC. As 300 guests came to celebrate and support the vision and work of the Foundation, which is breaking new ground in its mandate to offer girls, struggling with conflict and hardship in the Middle East, opportunities for higher education, regardless of religious or national affiliations.

The proceeds from the night’s successful event go to DFL’s scholarship, fellowship and awards programs that help young women achieve their educational goals.


View gallery of images from last gala 2012 here.

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Nobel Peace Prize Nominee to Speak at First Annual Daughters For Life Gala

May 29, 2012, Toronto

A distinguished line-up of speakers, headlined by 2012 Nobel Peace Prize nominee Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, will help the Daughters For Life Foundation launch its first annual gala on Tuesday, May 29. The event, to be held at The Carlu at 444 Yonge Street in Toronto, will showcase the Foundation’s important work to improve the lives of girls and young women in the Middle East, in collaboration with Trent University, ILAC and Humber College.

The Daughters For Life Foundation is a Canadian charity founded by Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish in 2010. Widely respected as “the Gaza doctor,” working within Palestine and Israel, Dr. Abuelaish lost three of his daughters and his niece, killed during a 2009 Israeli attack on Gaza. Rather than seeking revenge, Dr. Abuelaish has dedicated his life to promoting peace in the Middle East. His book, I Shall Not Hate: A Gaza Doctor’s Journey, has been acclaimed around the world.

The Daughters for Life Foundation, believes that empowering young women through education is essential to building lasting peace in the Middle East. The Foundation provides aspiring girls and young women with awards and scholarships to help them advance their education and so develop strong voices for improving life in the conflict-torn area. In 2011, the Foundation presented its first awards to young women studying in the fields of medicine, law, business administration and journalism. New scholarship initiatives within Canada will be announced at the gala, including joint programs with Trent University and Humber College.

Carol Off, host of CBC’s As it Happens, is the gala’s emcee. Speakers include Dr. Steven E. Franklin, president of Trent University; Jonathan Kolber, executive director of the International Language Academy of Canada; Christiane Amanpour, award-winning global journalist, who will speak by video. Several globally renowned performers will celebrate the Foundation’s goals and achievements, including Simon Shaheen, virtuoso oud and violin player; Joseph Maviglia, acclaimed poet and singer-songwriter; Peter Katz, singer-songwriter, composer of Forgiveness, 2012 Juno nominee; the Arabesque Music Ensemble; and an all-female string quartet from the Glenn Gould School, the Royal Conservatory.[/toggle] [toggle type=”gray” title=”VIEW Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish THANK YOU LETTER” active=””]

THANK YOU LETTER from Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, MD, MPH, Founder and President

Dear Friends,
On behalf of The Daughters For Life Foundation Board, I want to thank you personally for participating in our First Annual Gala. It was such a very special evening for me and my family, and, I hope, for you. You made it a magical and beautiful evening by your participation.

And thanks to all of you-our brilliantly talented participants who volunteered their time and talent, and our loyal and generous sponsors– it was a great success, both in raising money for our scholarship and awards programs and in bringing together many good friends to the Foundation.

Our First Annual Gala – and all of you who were there that night – will never to be forgotten. My children too will hold it in their hearts, especially my daughters Dalal and Shatha, who worked so hard alongside the Board to make the evening a success. To our educational and academic sponsors and our major donors-and their names are proudly placed on our website here-I am deeply grateful. A few of you have been with us from the very start: you play such an important role.
The evening was so richly filled with great musical and poetic talent. It lived up to our hope that it would bring together old friends and supporters with new and future supporters of our goals, which are ambitious but sound and attainable. So to every single one of you at last Tuesday’s gala, I give thanks for so generously supporting this important work, and helping to change the conflicted world we live in.

It has been an amazing year for the Foundation. We have made huge steps forward and I continue to be humbled by the level of support we receive. Last year, the first DFL awards were successfully presented to 23 young women studying in the areas of medicine, business administration, law and journalism. This year we look forward to increasing the number of awards recipients and to implementing our joint scholarship programs with the International Language Academy of Canada, Humber College and Trent University.

In the next five years we’ll be actively working to grow our existing programs as well as to forming strong new partnerships with leading Canadian academic institutions and educational organizations across the country. With your continued support, I am confident we will achieve our goals.

I believe our shared vision is a vital, important one, and it was wonderful to be with you last Tuesday as it becomes a reality. But the evening could not have been the success that it was without your participation. You are an important part of our growing family, which includes the girls receiving awards now in the Middle East, and the girls shortly arriving in Canada on the scholarships. I hope you will remain part of our family for many years.

Thank you and I am deeply grateful for your support.

Izzeldin Abuelaish

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Post Gala media coverage:

http://www.thestar.com/news/article/1202636–toronto-family-honours-fallen-loved-ones-by-helping-others-fulfill-their-dreams

http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorialopinion/article/1203272–a-canadian-palestinian-with-a-message-of-peace


https://www.daughtersforlife.com/foundation/2012/06/the-daughter-for-life-first-annual-gala-a-great-success/