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Oakville Grade 8s flash mob for charity’s Christmas fundraiser

Flash mob in Oakville Place Nov 19 | Home Suite Hope
Flash mob in Oakville Place Nov 19 | Home Suite Hope

It may have seemed like an ordinary day at the Oakville Place shopping centre, but then the opening keys of Dan Macaulay’s Hope is Here could be heard booming from the loudspeakers. A group of St. Marguerite d’Youville Grade 8s began moving to the beat in choreographed synchronization, until all 60 students had taken over the mall.

The flash mob, organized by the students as part of their Yearbook project, raised awareness for Home Suite Hope’s annual Christmas fundraising concert, A Merry Night. The group ended their performance by handing out flyers to pleasantly surprised passersby and spectators.

“When we learned of the Home Suite Hope mandate of helping single parents who are homeless or impoverished, we thought that it would be a real eye opener for students within our school community to recognize the existence of poverty within their own Halton region,” said Theresa Merritt, the Grade 8 teacher who helped the students organize the mob.

Home Suite Hope’s A Merry Night benefit concert for homeless families takes place on Saturday, December 6 at the Meeting House in Oakville at 7:30 p.m. The night features international opera sensation and Canada’s Got Talent finalist Emilio Fina. Fina will grace the audience with holiday favourites and classical standards that include ’O sole mio, Bring Him Home, and Ave Maria. He’ll even be throwing in some Tom Jones and other fun surprises.

Emilio Fina Emilio Fina will be performing on December 6th at the Meeting House for the Home Suite Hope Christmas Concert.

Emilio Fina will be performing on December 6th at the Meeting House for the Home Suite Hope Christmas Concert.

“I can’t wait to take part in A Merry Night,” said Fina. “It really is inspiring to be part of such a great cause, to know that our efforts are going to help families in need during a really tough time.”

Oakville’s MacLachlan College teacher and Canadian soprano Rachelle Kelly will join Fina on stage for some riveting holiday duets. The two singers will also perform alongside Theatre Unlimited, a Mississauga community-based musical theatre group, singing songs from The Sound of Music.

Tickets cost $40. Proceeds go towards Home Suite Hope’s housing, education, and employment training programs for single-parent families struggling with homelessness. People wanting to support the charity can do so by either purchasing a ticket online, donating tickets to one of the charity’s families who can’t otherwise afford them, or both.

“We’re really grateful to have such support from these wonderful students and their school,” said Michelle Pommells, Executive Director of Home Suite Hope. “The community has gone above and beyond to take our message of hope everywhere so we can continue to help those who need it, especially during the holiday season, which can be a hard time for our families.”

Tickets for A Merry Night can be purchased exclusively at www.homesuitehope.org (click the Events page). Upon entering payment information, you’ll be able to indicate if your purchase is to be donated to families.


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