FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CITYTV PRESENTS ITS SIXTH ANNUAL CITYTV HERBIE DAY, FRIDAY, MAY 27 BROADCAST LIVE FROM THE HOSPITAL FOR SICK CHILDREN, IN SUPPORT OF THE HERBIE FUND
(Toronto – May 25, 2011) Citytv broadcasts LIVE from SickKids Hospital, Friday, May 27 to help raise awareness and much needed funds for the children’s charity Herbie Fund during its Sixth Annual Citytv Herbie Day. Live broadcast coverage begins on Breakfast Television and wraps up on CityNews at Six.
Join CityNews anchor, Gord Martineau, and other favourite Citytv personalities inside the atrium of SickKids Hospital for a full day of fun! Citytv Herbie Day kicks-off with a special viewer contest announcement on Breakfast Television followed by an exciting prize give-away on CityNews at Six.
“Citytv Herbie Day is a local initiative that impacts patients, families and communities around the world in need,” commented Tina Cortese, Vice President News and Executive Producer. “We are excited to partner once again with SickKids and the Herbie Fund for this important annual fundraising event that has become a proud tradition for both Citytv and Toronto.”
Every dollar donated to the Herbie Fund goes directly to assist with life-altering and life-saving surgeries at The Hospital for Sick Children. Throughout the day, Martineau will share success stories from Herbie Fund patients and encourage viewers to donate by visiting www.herbiefund.com or calling the Herbie Fund Hotline at 1-888-340-3429.
“Over 620 children from 100 countries are alive and well today because of the incredible generosity of the people of Toronto” says Gord Martineau, Anchor, CityNews at Six. “Their support of the Herbie Fund, as well as the skills of the surgeons at SickKids Hospital, have put an end to their suffering and provided tremendous relief to their families.”
From May 23 through May 27, CityNews at Six, chronicles Gord Martineau’s travels to Vietnam and the Philippines to follow up on the courageous stories of JP Salvador, who in 2007 received help and a new lease on life after surgery to correct severe facial deformities, and twin girls from the Philippines who suffer from potentially deadly heart defects. These life-altering surgical interventions were made possible by donations to the Herbie Fund and the world class pediatric surgeons at Sick Kids Hospital. Full coverage of Martineau’s journey is available online at http://www.citytv.com/toronto/citynews/topic/HerbieFund2011. For more information on the Herbie Fund visit, www.herbiefund.com
About Operation Herbie and the Herbie Fund: An increasing number of sick children from around the world and their families look to the Herbie Fund (www.herbiefund.com) at SickKids to provide treatment not available in their homeland. Over 600 children from approximately 88 countries have received specialized medical and surgical help that would not otherwise be available to them. The Herbie Fund helps approximately 20-25 children every year. The number of children helped depends entirely on the amount of money donated. Unfortunately, there are always more applications than can be accepted. Costs can vary greatly, depending on the type of treatment involved as well as the amount of help needed. The average cost per patient is approximately $25,000 - $30,000.
Citytv™ television stations in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton and Winnipeg offer viewers intensely-local, urban-oriented, culturally-diverse television programming. A distinct alternative to other conventional television stations, Citytv engages its viewers with dynamic on- air personalities and delivers an entertaining mix of news, local-interactive formats such as: Breakfast Television and CityLine; as well as local Canadian and US acquired prime time entertainment programming. Citytv is a part of Rogers Broadcasting Limited, a division of Rogers Communications Inc. (TSX: RCI and NYSE: RCI) which is a diversified Canadian communications and media company. For more information on Citytv stations and programming, visit www.Citytv.com.
### Media contact: Stephanie Leslie, Rogers Media Television, 416.764.3191, [email protected] Michelle Lomack, Rogers Media Television, 416.764.3190, [email protected]