HEROES' TRIBUTE GALA TO WELCOME SPECIAL GUEST SPEAKER

(WEDNESDAY, MAY 26, 2010 - PETERBOROUGH, ON) Sponsored by the Peterborough Remembers Committee, the 2nd Heroes' Tribute Gala will honour our local fallen soldiers and their families. The Gala will take place at the Peterborough Armoury on Saturday, June 5, 2010 starting at 7:00 pm and tickets are still available at $100.00 per person.

Proceeds will be used to establish the Fallen Heroes' Endowed Bursary at Fleming College in honour of our fallen Heroes. Tickets can be ordered through the Office of MP Dean Del Mastro by calling 745-2108 or on-line at peterboroughremembers.ca.

"This year's gala is in honour of Corporal Nicholas Ashley Bulger and his family." stated Alan Wilson, Peterborough Remembers Committee Chair. "Corporal Bulger and the four soldiers that we honoured at last years' gala have paid the ultimate sacrifice and it is our duty not to forget their heroism and the families that they have left behind. This evening is dedicated to their memory and support of their families. It is an deeply emotional and meaningful event for all that attend."

The Committee is pleased to announce that the Guest Speaker for the evening will be His Excellency Jawed Ludin, Ambassador of Afghanistan in Canada.

Jawed Ludin was appointed as Afghanistan's Ambassador to Canada in May 2009. Prior to this appointment, he served in Oslo, Norway, as Afghanistan's envoy to the Nordic countries, accredited Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland (2007-2009), and in Kabul as President Hamid Karzai's Chief of Staff (2005-2007).

Ambassador Ludin was born in Kabul on 16 March 1973. He grew up and went to school in Kabul. In 1990, he entered Kabul's prestigious medical faculty where he studied general medicine until the summer of 1992 when the university was shut down due to the outbreak factional fighting in the country, followed by the Taliban's oppressive regime in 1996. His Excellency resumed his studies when he went into exile in London, United Kingdom in 1998, studying politics and sociology. In 2002, he earned a Master of Science degree in Political Theory from the University of London. He is currently a candidate for an LLM degree in Public International Law from the University of Oslo.

Ambassador Ludin's work experience stretches back to his first job as an aid worker in Pakistan in 1994 and covers a broad spectrum of humanitarian and development work, conflict resolution, management, media and public relations and politics. He has worked for a number of international non-governmental organizations based in Afghanistan, Pakistan and the United Kingdom, including the Agency Coordinating Body for Afghan Relief (1994-1998), British Agencies Afghanistan Group (1999-2001) and British Overseas NGOs for Development (2001-2003). His roles have varied from provision of humanitarian aid to research, training, management and organizational development.

Ambassador Ludin's political career started in November 2001 when he took part in organisation of the United Nations-sponsored Bonn Conference that laid out the democratic framework for the post-Taliban Afghanistan. In early 2003, he returned to Afghanistan to take up his first political post as Presidential Spokesman and Director of Communications for President Hamid Karzai's government. In that role, he set up a modern Communications Department within the Office of the President, and led a vigorous effort to bring the new government closer to the people through open and constructive engagement with free media.

In May 2005, he was appointed Chief of Staff of President Hamid Karzai, with responsibility for overall management of the President's Office and its various organs, and remained in that post until his first Ambassadorial appointment in Norway in early 2007.

Ambassador Ludin has led Afghanistan's delegations in several important international conferences, including the annual summit of the OSCE (Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe) in Helsinki (2008), the International Compact Conference on Iraq in Stockholm (2008), the international signing conference of the Convention on Cluster Munitions in Oslo (2009), and has participated in official delegations at several summits of the United Nations General Assembly, North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), the Non-Aligned Movement, the Organisation of Islamic Conference and the World Economic Forum.

Ambassador Ludin has written extensively on Afghanistan, the region, as well as on conflict and development issues, including co-authoring a book on conflict management strategies (Zed Books UK, 2002) and articles and commentary in international publications, notably the Guardian in the UK. He is fluent in Dari, Pashto and English, and also speaks some French and Hindi. Ambassador Ludin has two daughters, Annahita, 4, and Arianne, 2.

The committee looks forward to welcoming the Ambassador to Peterborough and to the Heroes' Tribute Gala. Tickets are still available until Friday, May 28, 2010 and can be ordered by calling the Office of MP Dean Del Mastro at (705) 745-4594 or on-line at www.peterboroughremembers.ca.

For citizens that are not able to attend the event, but would like to pay tribute, the Committee invites you to visit peterboroughremembers.ca to leave a Message of Remembrance using the on-line Guestbook. Biographies of the soldiers as well as pictures from last years' event and information about the new Fallen Heroes' Endowed Bursary are also available for viewing on the website.

Media Contact Only:
Karen Feeley - (705) 745-4594

PETERBOROUGH REMEMBERS COMMITTEE TO HOST 2nd HEROES' TRIBUTE GALA IN HONOUR OF OUR LOCAL FALLEN HEROES AND THEIR FAMILIES

(MONDAY, MAY 10, 2010 - PETERBOROUGH, ON) Sponsored by the Peterborough Remembers Committee, the 2nd Heroes' Tribute Gala will honour our local fallen soldiers and their families. The Gala will take place at the Peterborough Armoury on Saturday, June 5, 2010 starting at 7:00 pm and tickets are $100.00 per person. Proceeds will be used to establish the Fallen Heroes' Endowed Bursary at Fleming College in honour of our fallen Heroes. Tickets can be ordered through the Office of MP Dean Del Mastro by calling 745-2108 or on-line at peterboroughremembers.ca.

The evening will consist of the Procession of the Families, a gourmet buffet dinner catered by The Old Smoke House, a Musical Tribute by the Peterborough Pop Ensemble, a Guest Speaker and the formal Presentation of the Memorial Plaque honouring Corporal Bulger and his family.

The Peterborough Remembers Committee would like to urge all media outlets to assist in promoting this event and the Guestbook opportunity offered on the website. Your assistance will not only help to make the event a success - but any general promotion will assist the committee in their larger goal of making sure that "Peterborough Remembers".

Media Contact Only:
Karen Feeley - (705) 745-4594