Edmonton Student is the National Winner of the Canada Day Poster Challenge 2000
OTTAWA, May 30, 2000 -- Minister of Canadian Heritage Sheila Copps today announced that Neshali Weera was chosen as the national winner of the Canada Day Poster Challenge 2000. Neshali's poster was selected from more than 19,000 drawings submitted by young people aged 18 and under, from across Canada.The theme for this year was "Canada: The Place to Be!" was coined by the Prime Minister in his response to the most recent Speech from the Throne.
Neshali Weera is a grade 10 student at Harry Ainlay Composite High School in Edmonton. When she submitted her drawing to the Celebrate Canada Committee for Alberta, she wrote that "Canada is the place to be because as Canadians we are able to encounter a numerous amount of different people, regions, beliefs, and cultures all living in harmony."
Neshali and the finalists from each province and territory, each accompanied by a family member, will attend Canada Day celebrations on Parliament Hill on July 1 as special guests of Minister Copps.
The Canada Day Poster Challenge was launched in 1987 to encourage young Canadians to express their vision of the country. Every year, each province and territory first holds its own regional contest and chooses a finalist for the national contest. Nashali Weera was selected from among this year's thirteen finalists, and her drawing will be the official poster for Canada Day and for Celebrate Canada activities held throughout the country between June 21 and July 1, 2000.
The finalists from each province and territory are:
Kita Nahanni Loeks, 13 (Yukon)
Margaret Brown, 16 (Nunavut)
Michelle Lavoie, 13 (Northwest Territories)
Cindy Yung, 15 (British Columbia)
Neshali Weera, 15 (Alberta)
Andrea Minter, 14 (Saskatchewan)
Phuong Nguyen, 14 (Manitoba)
Jordon Jocius, 18 (Ontario)
Marie-Ève Fortin, 16 (Quebec)
Melissa Keehn, 14 (New Brunswick)
Kimberly Piccott, 15 (Nova Scotia)
Ashley Crane, 16 (Prince Edward Island)
Shannon Morris, 15 (Newfoundland and Labrador)
Jasc Software Canada, Ltd., author of the award-winning image-editor Paint Shop Pro 6TM, is the official software sponsor of the Canada Day Poster Challenge 2000.
The winning poster is available at provincial and territorial Celebrate Canada Committee offices. The addresses and telephone numbers for the Celebrate Canada Committees are available on the Internet at:
http://www.pch.gc.ca/canada.
Information:
Catherine Gagnaire
Communications Assistant
Office of the Minister of Canadian Heritage
(819) 997-7788
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