Red Star Line Museum and City of Antwerp Launch Nationwide Search to Identify Image of Young Girl
Antwerp, Belgium Vice-Mayor Philip Heylen Kicks-Off "Do You Know This Girl?" Awareness Campaign in Hopes of Bringing Her Story to Life
NEW YORK, June 8, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Between 1873 and 1934, legendary shipping company Red Star Line, based in Antwerp, Belgium, transported 2.6 million emigrants on a journey to a new life in North America. Although millions traveled on the Red Star Line, the image* of one young girl, with a ticket in hand, has inspired a nationwide search to not only discover her identity, but bring her story to life. Philip Heylen, Vice-Mayor of the city of Antwerp, officially launched the "Do You Know This Girl?" campaign (www.redstarline.org) last night at an event in New York City hosted by world-renowned designer Diane von Furstenberg.
(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110608/NY15813 )
Sponsored by The Red Star Line Museum, the multi-tiered social media campaign features a "Do You Know This Girl?" Blog (http://blog.redstarline.org) and personal Facebook page (www.facebook.com/RedStarLineMuseum) where fans can join in on the search, get clues, learn more about the Red Star Line Museum and enter a contest to win a trip for two to Belgium. The public can become eligible to win by completing a simple entry form found on the blog site and 'liking' the photo of the girl in order to enroll in the search. A series of ten qualifying questions/clues will be posted on the campaign's Facebook page every week for five weeks starting June 24. The first "fan" to answer each question correctly will become a contest finalist. The ten finalists will be asked to symbolically convey the story of the girl's life (in one paragraph) with "fans" voting on the best story for the grand prize.
In April 2005, the city of Antwerp purchased the original Red Star Line buildings from the Port Authorities of Antwerp and began a $26 million, top-to-bottom transformation of the complex slated for completion in spring 2013 as the Red Star Line Museum.
For more information on the "Do You Know This Girl?" campaign, visit www.redstarline.org.
*Photo: Young Galician immigrant holding envelope labeled "Red Star Line." Saint John, NB. May, 1905
Source: Library and Archives Canada/Department of Employment and Immigration fonds/C-063254
SOURCE Red Star Line Museum
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