Villa Charities Italian Canadian Immigrant Tribute Installation at the Columbus Centre | Rendering by Brown + Storey Architects Inc.
TORONTO, July 06, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Villa Charities Inc. (VCI) is proud to announce the Villa Charities Italian Canadian Immigrant Tribute project, to honour Italian Canadian immigrants and their families. For more than 50 years, Villa Charities has been a leading provider of Italian culture and heritage, and with this new fundraising initiative the charitable organization will establish a nationally recognized destination and tribute for Italian heritage.
The Immigrant Tribute commemoration will be located on the Villa Charities campus at Lawrence and Dufferin streets in Toronto, as an installation on the north-facing wall of the Columbus Centre. The tribute wall, designed by Brown + Storey Architects Inc., will showcase name plaques honouring individuals of Italian heritage who journeyed to Canada to begin a new life.
“Villa Charities is extremely proud and excited to launch this important initiative,” said Marco DeVuono, President and CEO, Villa Charities Inc. “The Immigrant Tribute project will honour the important contributions that Italian Canadians have made to the social, cultural and economic fabric of Canada and will help educate younger generations on their cultural heritage and the immigrant experience.”
The Immigrant Tribute installation will be a destination for people of Italian heritage to gather, commemorate, celebrate, and reflect on their immigrant heritage and collective achievements. When completed, the wall will feature upwards of 5,000 individual plaques with the names of family members and the year they immigrated from Italy to Canada.
Villa Charities led the initial Immigrant Tribute wall, sculpture and website design in collaboration with students and faculty of George Brown College Arts, Design & Information Technology departments.
Beginning later this year, the name plaques will be available for the community to purchase. The funds raised from the tribute project through Villa Charities Foundation will go towards support for senior care, youth services, education and scholarships, cultural programming, and capital needs.
A dedicated Immigrant Tribute website will support the physical installation and function as the online fundraising portal. Anyone who purchases a name plaque will also have the opportunity to upload photos and a brief family history to the site, creating a repository of immigrant stories. This will be an engaging and creative resource for Villa Charities patrons and donors to share and learn more about the immigration history and experiences of the Italian Canadians in their community.
The public on-sale date for the Villa Charities Italian Canadian Immigrant Tribute project will be announced at a later date, with construction of the installation currently planned to begin in spring 2023.
About Villa Charities Inc.
Villa Charities Inc. (VCI) is a registered charity and non-profit organization that enriches lives through experiences and services that honour Italian culture and heritage. For more than 50 years across the GTA, Villa Charities has provided cultural and educational programs and supported culturally sensitive long-term care and independent living apartments for seniors. VCI fulfills their mandate through a broad range of activities, services and facilities, both directly and in conjunction with its affiliates and independent organizations. Affiliates include Columbus Centre and Joseph D. Carrier Art Gallery; Villa Colombo Homes for the Aged Inc. in Toronto; Villa Colombo Seniors Centre (Vaughan) Inc. Di Poce Centre; and Italian Canadian Benevolent Seniors Apartments Corporation/Casa Abruzzo Benevolent Corporation with apartments for independent seniors (Caboto Terrace, Casa Del Zotto and Casa Abruzzo). Each of these organizations is an integral part of the Villa Charities family with separate legal status and its own governance Board. For more information visit villacharities.com.
About Villa Charities Foundation
Villa Charities Foundation supports experiences and services that honour Italian culture and heritage. As the charitable arm of Villa Charities, the Foundation provides crucial funding for areas such as senior care, youth services, education and scholarships, cultural programming, and capital needs. For more information, visit villacharities.com/give.
For further information, please contact:
Morgan Lewis
MAVERICK
416-618-0443
morgan@wearemaverick.com
Kathleen Sloan, CM
Director, Marketing and Communications
Villa Charities Inc.
416-789-7011 Ext. 309
ksloan@villacharities.com
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3c0dde66-eec2-4421-9e3e-cf17293b5b5b
