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On Saturday May 30, the LOFT and a host of other youth spaces and programs took over Dufferin Mall, hosting a concert, art show and information booths about youth programs in the Dot!

Above: CONNECT the Dot hosts, Lah Chemist (Emcee extraordinaire, Artistic Effusion/Davenport-Perth N. Centre and LOFT Music) and Hannah (Vocalist, LOFT Music) on the main stage outside of WalMart in Dufferin Mall.

The show went from 12-6pm, featuring performances by artists collaborating with youth spaces across the city.

Above: Fresh paintings from the LOFT Team: "Rep the Dot" - 4 paintings consisting of portraits of youth workers, artists and programmers playing a pivotal role in encouraging the entrepreneurial vision and capacity of emerging talent in Toronto.

Much love to all the people that came through the mall and supported what we do - the whole day was dedicated to the youth of our city that are working hard to be sustainable through their art and music, through their vision for empowering youth, and to keep youth spaces like the LOFT open and to fund more youth HUBS.

Above: Boys will B-Boys...! We wanna give a big shout out to Armaghetto (in mid-head spin) holding down programs for young b-boys in the Dot!

Above: From left to right: Nahome aka DJ Skitz, and LOFT Music artists Produced by Ken and Moose. Much love to this sound crew for making sure everything was crisp all day long, coordinating sound for over 30 performances in the chaos of Dufferin Mall!

Above: Airbrush Tshirts by LOFT artists Logan (left) and Viviana (right) just outside the food court. Get your portrait on a tshirt anytime - get at Viviana!

Above: Representing the Infinite Syndicate family, Darkie did what he does best - lyrical niceness to inspire future generations of intelligent emcees in the 416!

Finally, we want to give appreciation to all the key organizers behind the scenes that made CONNECT the DOT possible. Notably, Bill Sinclair, chair of the Toronto Coalition of Youth Centres,  for his tireless efforts on the political side of Youth Space Day, lobbying the provincial government to ensure that NO more youth spaces are closed and additional emphases is placed on creating more youth HUBS in the province.

Also we want to recognize the huge contributions from Shani Kipang of Dufferin Mall Youth Services, Tara Huddlestone of St Alban's Boys and Girls Club, Tanika Riley of Davenport-Perth Neighbourhood Centre, Jacob Bloome of St. Stephen's Youth Arcade, Jenny Katz of Frontline Partners Youth Network, Marcelle Samuels of University Settlement Rec Centre, Christine from St. Christopher's House and all the volunteer contributions all day long!