MAKING THE RIGHT CHOICE

Dalai Lama connects with Roots during visit to Canada

In an era when getting young people to listen to anybody who’s not a rock star is a tall order, it’s rare to see several thousand teenagers sit spellbound for a few hours holding a dialogue on human values. It happened last week in Vancouver and Roots was there. Chalk it up to the appeal and influence of Tibetan Buddhist leader the Dalai Lama who paid the city a three-day visit.

During his stay, the Dalai Lama helped inaugurate a new education centre and took part in a series of dialogues with noted mental health specialists, educators, corporate executives and spiritual leaders.

In the summer, the Dalai Lama Center for Peace and Education in Vancouver contacted Lyn Frankel, Roots Corporate Sponsorship and Sales Manager in Western Canada, to order gifts for the Tibetan leader’s visit.

At the Dalai Lama’s first session, the youth-directed event was led by a group of high school students. They wanted to present his holiness a memento to mark his honorary Canadian citizenship that he received from the federal government last year. Roots, considered synonymous with Canada, was their first choice for gifts for the spiritual leader.

Roots provided Canada visors from the recent Canada Collection to the Dalai Lama, his long-time interpreter and selected student leaders. The visors were requested specifically as they are the favoured head covering of His Holiness, shading his eyes from the bright lights of the stage and press cameras. An additional 30 Roots Canada scarves together with Roots water bottles were presented to key delegate participants.

Last Friday, balancing the red Roots Canada visor on his baldhead, the spiritual leader held a two-and-a-half hour discussion sprinkled with good humour as he gave his message of the need to learn tolerance and forgiveness in our increasingly violent world.

“I felt honored to be amongst the thousands welcoming the Dalai Lama to Vancouver,” says Lyn, who attended the opening forum. “His message of compassion and peace was inspiring. I was proud to have been able to share our Canadian ‘Roots’ with His Holiness.”

She was also present for the Saturday session of dialogs, when the 71-year-old leader donned Roots gear once again. This time it was the Roots Canada ball cap, which he wore comfortably throughout the second day’s activities.