Dr. Ada Man - Hip Hop

Ada is very honored to participate, alongside her father, in this year's United Way Blossom Ball. After finishing medical school in her hometown Vancouver, she moved to Toronto to persue Internal Medicine and is now a resident physician at U of T. As for dancing, she had always looked up to the beautiful dancers on Hong Kong TV as a child. She was able to take some lessons in Jazz dancing as a teenager, and even performed at a few shopping mall shows back then! She has loved dancing ever since, whether with friends, or on a happy afternoon with blasting music. Tonight, she is excited to perform among the best of dancers, for the best of causes. Thank you, especially to the sponsors and pledgers, for this wonderful opportunity.

Bill Kwan and Carol Liouboumirskai - Ballroom

Bill Kwan and Carol Liouboumirskai have been dance partners for almost 2 years, both of them having ballroom danced also for 2 years. Carol, being only 8 years old, has had a very strong foundation of dance through her gymnastics, and Bill, aged 10 years old, was kept in tip-top physical condition through his Chinese wushu kung fu, before beginning his dance career. They are currently at the silver level of competition, having won over 20 medals as a couple, most recently including a gold medal at the 2007 Pol-Can competition for Latin ballroom and a gold medal for standard ballroom at the 2006 Canadian Closed Amateur Championships.

The couple is pushing hard towards improvement, shooting to compete in the 2012 Olympics, when ballroom dancing will finally be included in the competitions. This evening, Bill and Carol's performance on the dance floor will be a vibrant display of their youthful talent and vitality. They both hope for all the guests to enjoy the show as they display the grace and vibrancy of ballroom dancing.

Cynthia Lai - Ballroom

Cynthia Lai is a leader and volunteer in the Chinese community and beyond. With her success comes her strong belief that it is important to give back to the community.

Cynthia currently holds the position of President of Global Link Realty Group Inc. In 2003, she was the first Chinese female President of the Toronto Real Estate Board elected in the Board's 83-year history.

Cynthia has been recognized by many organizations and government for her outstanding achievements. A proud recipient of the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal in 2004 has added a special meaning to the Duke of Edinburgh Silver Award she received in 1972. In 2005, Cynthia was also presented with the “Chinese Canadian Legend” inspirational award by the Asian Business Network Association.

Her recent community work has included being Co-Chair of the “Spirit of Life” Inauguration Dinner and Fundraising Chair for “Habitat for Humanity” Build in 2004 where she raised $60,000.00 towards the completion of a home in Toronto for a less fortunate family to realize the pride of home ownership.

The Blossom Ball is giving Cynthia a chance to show some fancy footwork that she normally saves for her real estate negotiations. Never being one to turn down a challenge, she had no formal training until being recruited three months ago for this evening's performance.

Cynthia would like to express her heartfelt appreciation to her supporters and her dance instructor, Valentin Mirosh, whose training has made her dream of being a ballroom dancing star a reality.

Justin Poy - Singer

Justin is the President & Creative Director of The Justin Poy Agency, in Toronto. He is an active volunteer in the community and sits on various Boards and Committees for charities and government agencies. He has a passion for the issue of organ and tissue donation and is fortunate enough to sit as a Honourary Board Member and Past Board Member of the Kidney Foundation of Canada and the Trillium Gift of Life Network, a government agency of the Province of Ontario.

Justin thoroughly enjoys performing for a worthy cause. He has performed as Charity singer with other events several times.

Mimi and Fred Chau - Ballroom

With their marriage going strong for over 20 years, couple Mimi Chau and Fred Kwan have been bound together, more than anything, by their shared passion for ballroom dancing. Becoming part of their lifestyle, Mimi and Fred have been taking dance lessons as a leisure and social activity and a form of exercise and fitness. In addition to their keen interest in dancing, Mimi and Fred both sing as a pastime activity, taking lessons at their studio every weekend. Being the parents of an 18-year-old daughter as well as a 10-year-old son, whom in which is also performing this evening, music and dance have been key in keeping this family passionately connected with each other, as well as with themselves.

Mimi and Fred work together as the owners and founders of Wah Lung Labels, a woven and printed label manufacturing company initiated 15 years ago in Canada. Over these years, their business has received numerous highly regarded business awards for the success of their corporation, such as the most improved award awarded by Association of Chinese Canadian Entrepreneurs in 2000 and the international trade award given by the Markham Board of Trade.

Truly dancing from their hearts, Mimi and Fred hope that they will inspire the audience this evening as they humbly perform to their fullest potential of passion and drive, and display the timeless beauty of ballroom dancing.