ViVitro employees embrace the community spirit of the season

VICTORIA, British Columbia, November 30, 2016 – ViVitro Labs, a global leader in cardiovascular device testing, and StarFish Medical, Canada’s largest medical device design, development, and contract manufacturing company, salute their employees’ community efforts during the season of giving.  This November and December employees are raising awareness and funds for BC Children’s Hospital and Mustard Seed Food Bank.  ViVitro and StarFish match employee donations and cover all sponsorship fees to encourage participation.

Victoria Festival of Trees 
Each year ViVitro Labs and StarFish Medical sponsor a tree in the Festival of Trees fundraising campaign for BC Children’s Hospital. The festival knits together the incredibly generous community of Victoria in what has become, over the last two decades, a cherished holiday tradition and the unofficial kick-off to the holiday season in the city.

This year the ViVitro Labs/StarFish Medical tree’s theme is: “We look deeper to help make holidays healthy for everyone!”  The tree features an LED X-ray branch outline and ornaments that include hand crafted “x-ray” images for traditional holiday gifts.  A custom booklet shares the significance of both companies’ work and the tree’s design. Judges awarded the team’s concept and execution top marks in all categories at the November 16 Opening Gala.

2016 Results

• $170,500 raised during the 2016 Holiday season to support the most urgent needs of BC Children’s Hospital
• StarFish Medical/ViVitro Labs tree ranked #11  in the 2016 Festival of Trees People’s Choice Voting Results

The tree is on display through January 3, 2017 at the Empress Hotel. 85 beautiful trees were decorated, and over 550 guests attended the Kick-Off Celebration and $106,400 was raised through tree registrations

Fundraising continues online via the Festival of Trees Online Voting System.  Fundraising tool for online vote collection. Visitors can make a donation and vote for the ViVitro Labs/StarFish Medical tree on the Victoria Festival of Trees StarFish Medical Webpage. 

2016 VIATEC Food Bank Challenge for Mustard Seed
Hayley Young manages ViVitro Labs and StarFish Medical participation in the 2016 VIATEC Food Bank Challenge for Mustard Seed.  Organized by VIATEC (Victoria Innovation, Advanced Technology and Entrepreneurship Council), this annual food bank drive challenges companies in Victoria to compete in an effort to raise as much food and donations as possible for the Mustard Seed Food Bank.

ViVitro Labs and StarFish Medical fundraising events include a Chilli/Curry cook-off, 50/50 raffle, and Social Committee lunch. The 2016 Chilli/Curry cook off fundraiser was held November 17, and raised $590.00.  1st prize went to Debbie Gould, 2nd prize went to Savannah Hari, and 3rd prize went to Michael May.  The 50/50 stubs raised $535.

The Mustard Seed provides support to 7000 people each month. Since its inception in 2002, $1,981,296.84 worth of food and cash has been donated to the Mustard Seed through companies participating in the VIATEC Food Bank Challenge. The 2016 challenge runs from November 7th to December 2nd. Donations are accepted online.

About ViVitro Labs
ViVitro Labs Inc. offers industry-leading cardiovascular test equipment and related laboratory testing and consulting services. Hundreds of organizations in over 40 countries for over 30 years have trusted ViVitro expertise, accuracy, and quality for their heart valve, LVAD, TAH, stent, and graft testing. ViVitro Laboratory Services holds ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation based on ISO 5840. ViVitro products are manufactured by StarFish Medical. ViVitro’s A2LA Scope of Accreditation includes the physical and mechanical testing of heart valve substitutes. www.vivitrolabs.com

For more information please contact:
Mike Camplin
mcamplin@vivitrolabs.com
250.388.3531 x210

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