Help UGM Brighten Things Up

On April 10, over 3,500 people in need all across Metro Vancouver will be served a delicious Easter Dinner at UGM - and given a fresh orange at the end of the meal. They call it Orange Day.

via UGM

Here's how it works:

1. Enjoy the Outdoors: Between March 27 - April 10, get out of your house, enjoy the outdoors and participate in the free parks & attractions in Vancouver. But don’t spend any money!
2. Help the Homeless: See how much you can squeeze to donate to UGM instead, whether it’s $0.32 (the price of an orange), $32.90 (10 full meals from UGM) or $329 (if you had spent the day at Whistler)
3. Share Your Stories: Tell Vancouver about your Orange Day experiences: take photos, shoot video, blog or Tweet about it. If you tag your content with #orangeday, it’ll be automatically displayed right here.

via UGM's blog

...why all this talk about oranges? Well oranges are fresh, bright, fun, and juicy (the list could go on). But most importantly every one of UGM’s Easter Dinner guests gets an orange at the end of their meal. It is usually received with a smile. It’s a tangible reminder that its never too late for a fresh start. No matter how much time has passed on the streets or in an addiction, UGM’s doors are always open. With your help, fresh starts can be made this Easter.

As part of Orange Day, Wallblank.com is selling limited-edition prints of a photo called Hastings Street taken by my beautiful and talented friend, Leah Gregg. All of the proceeds go to UGM (and if the photo sells out, that means $5,625).

via Wallblank.com

Photo Description: The day is breaking on Hastings Street. It's cold. It's rainy. You wake up on the pavement, your pillow made of concrete. It feels like every door has been slammed in your face. But there is a light. An open door. Union Gospel Mission’s Vancouver Drop-in Centre is open. This photo was taken at dawn on the busiest street in Canada’s poorest neighborhood just steps away from Union Gospel Mission’s Vancouver Drop-in where people were finding help, solace and love.

This is a No Profit Print. Each 8” x 12” print sold will buy 6 meals & each 12” x 18” print will buy 20 meals for the homeless on Orange Day – Friday, April 10th.

Please consider feeding the homeless by acquiring some incredible artwork for your home : http://www.wallblank.com/products/hastings. Help UGM make this Easter special for every one of the guests they serve.