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RAYMOND ABLACK

Raymond Ablack

Achieving far more than most people his age, Raymond Ablack is a successful actor, speaker and activist. He is an inspiring example to any young person with big dreams and a desire to make the world a better place.

Best known for his role as Sav Bhandari on the internationally acclaimed and globally syndicated television series Degrassi: The Next Generation, his face is seen by millions in more than 80 countries. He is also well-known for his role as Simba in the stage production of The Lion King.

In the summer of 2007, he and seven of his Degrassi castmates travelled to Kenya to build a primary school for second graders–Raymond's first independent trip outside North America. Faced with culture shock and the reality of poverty, and driven by the need to do something, he joined Free The Children as an outreach speaker between seasons of his show, spreading the knowledge of what he had seen to other youth and urging them to make change.

After speaking to youth at schools for six months, Raymond went on to address 7,500 students at Free The Children's first We Day in October 2007, and another 8,000 in October 2008.

That same year, Raymond embarked on another volunteer trip with Me to We Trips, this time to Ecuador, which offered him a broader understanding of poverty-related issues and spurred him to continue working with Me to We to share his words and experiences with this powerful social movement.

TOPIC OF DISCUSSION

I'M NOT ACTING! CHANGING THE WORLD IS SERIOUS BUSINESS

RAYMOND IS IDEAL FOR

Student Leadership, College/University Students, Non-Profit, Family

TESTIMONIALS

"Not only is Ray a great inspirational speaker, but he also told us about his personal experiences, his visit to Kenya, which made the students more eager to get involved. We all know high school students can be a tough crowd, but we listened to Ray because we can relate to him, and through his description know how we would feel if we were present in that situation. Ray was such a helpful addition to our assembly. He was inspirational, motivational, informative, mixed with a whole lot of excitement! All in all, he is awesome!"

- Tasnia, Student
"Ray displayed, through personal experience in Africa, the idea that we as students could make a difference and affect change. With this being the first time Me to We was brought to the attention of most Laurier students, Ray certainly did a lot to make the cause more real and achievable for everyone. Thanks to the motivational speaking of Ray and his contribution to our Me to We assembly, Laurier has been able to be more aware and involved. For this, I and Laurier's Me to We [team] are thankful."

- Diana Yhap, Student
"The students were extremely excited to hear from him. His personal experiences in Kenya were inspiring. The video was a great visual so that our school could not only hear about some of the challenges that women in Africa face every day, but they could actually see Ray taking the tedious journey to the river for water. Ray helped make our Me to We assembly the great success that it was and I am extremely grateful."

- Kristen Foster, Student