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Enter To Win One Of Three Framed "Hope In Shadows" Prints

Twelfth year of Downtown Eastside photo contest gives those impacted by poverty a chance to share their stories and earn extra income

Each year, Pivot Legal Society sponsors a photo contest open to Downtown Eastside residents and those living on low incomes. Winning photos are included in an annual calendar, launched each October and sold through a vendor program that creates meaningful employment opportunities for people impacted by poverty.

The 2015 Hope In Shadows calendar has just hit the streets, and to celebrate the community initiative's 12th year, Pivot Legal Society is offering three lucky Tyee readers a chance to take home their choice of a framed Hope In Shadows print.

Please keep reading below for more information on Hope In Shadows, the annual photo contest, and the vendor program.

Contest ends Monday, Nov 3 at midnight.

Enter to Win

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About the Vendor Program

Share: Members of the Downtown Eastside capture what is meaningful about their community for the annual photography contest and calendar.
Connect: Supporters help create employment opportunities and bridge communities with every calendar purchased.
Work: Vendors purchase the calendar for $10 and sell it for $20, keeping the profit and earning an income.

Slideshow

Kick-off event of the 2014 Hope in Shadows camera handout. This year, more than 250 members of the Downtown Eastside community picked up cameras as part of the three-day contest. Photo by Robin Toma.
Photography contest participant Joe Thompson at this year's Hope In Shadows camera handout event. Photo by Robin Toma.
Hope in Shadows vendor Peter Thompson at work selling the 2014 calendar. Peter works at the corner of Robson and Howe. Photo by Matthew Chen.
Vendor Stephen Scott at his usual corner at Davie and Thurlow, where he's been selling Hope in Shadows for three years. Photo by Leigh Eldridge.
"Teresa and Mrs. Lowe" by Mike McNeeley, featuring Hope in Shadows vendor Teresa Ng, won Best Artistic Photo in this year's photography contest.
"Ray of Light" by Sonia Samuels won First Place and DTES Community Choice Award in this year's photography contest. It's also the cover image of this year's Hope in Shadows calendar.

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More about Hope In Shadows

Hope in Shadows is a community-driven project that uses photography as a vehicle for people living in poverty to share their stories and to represent their community on their own terms.

Every year, more than 250 Downtown Eastside residents participate in the annual photo contest. Nearly 100,000 copies of the calendar have been sold through the street vendor program since 2003.

We often hear from people whose lives have been positively affected by the Hope in Shadows project. Photo contest participants have explored or discovered their artistic talents and love of photography. Calendar vendors have met financial goals and accessed new opportunities.

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