Two Ardiso Co-Founders Engaged! Met working on Ardiso!

Maria and James went to the Silicon Valley

for a conference. James and Maria met working on a project

that became Ardiso along with Fabiola and fell in love.

James proposed in front of the Palace of Fine Arts

in San Francisco.

Fabiola was the first person to hear the news!

Maria Al-Masani Modeling, Fashion Sales and Art

Maria Al-Masani is a graphic designer and PR director, with a university degree with honours in economics and public policy. She was the branding lead of the Canadian Public Relations Society two years in a row. She is also an artist, women's rights campaigner and a model. She has worked for the Parliament of Canada, Cambridge University Advanced Research Unit, Open Net Initiative and started her own firm, Visionary PR. 

She is also a model with many years of experience working in the fashion industry, including sales, consumer research, fashion sales, retail and merchandising. She founded boutique PR agency Visionary PR. PRVisionary.com. Like many of her colleagues at Miss Universe Canada, she proves that beauty and brains do come in the same package.

Below - more on Maria Al-Masani from Wikipedia

Maria Al-Masani

Maria Al-Masani was born in Russia and moved to Yemen at age three. At 16, she moved to Erie, Pennsylvania, attending a local college before relocating to Ottawa to study economic development at Carleton University.^[2]

    Maria Al-Masani 

    ^{Maria Al-Masani} 

Maria Al-Masani came to national and international attention as the first contestant of Yemeni origin to enter the Miss Universe pageant at the national level for Miss Universe Canada, and the first Yemeni contestant to win a title, of Miss Congeniality at the competition in 2010.^[3][4][5]

    ^{Maria Al-Masani} 

    Maria Al-Masani

  

     Activism

 

Maria Al-Masani founded Yemen Rights Monitor during the Arab Spring in 2011, providing a means of updating news via social media when traditional news media had been blocked – she was later cited by Andy Carvin as one of his most reliable sources about opposition activities in Yemen.^[1][6]

    Maria Al-Masani

She has appeared as an activist against forced marriage on Al Jazeera's The Stream, recounting her own escape from a potential forced marriage in Yemen.^[7] In 2012, Al-Masani was among the speakers at a summit hosted by Yahoo! in Cairo on women's use of technology to create positive change.^[8][9] In 2011, she spoke at the Silicon Valley Human Rights Conference, discussing how social media has been used to circumvent censorship in Yemen.<sup>[10]

                                                                                      Maria Al-Masani</sup>

Women's rights

 

Maria Al-Masani

Maria Al-Masani serves on the board of Madbakh Women's International, a group whose projects have included raising funds for the National Boroma Fistula Hospital in Somalia.^[11] She also discussed fistula on Al Jazeera's The Stream and in a feature in the Canadian political and government newspaper The Hill Times.[

Maria Al-Masani 

Maria Al-Masani 

 Maria is also an artist who studied art and at art history at Mercyhurst University and Mercyhurst Prepartory School, and had to grades in class and was a member of the art honours society.

Maria Al-Masani 

And here are some more samples of Maria Al-Masani at photoshoots

Maria Al-Masani 

Maria Al-Masani  

 

Maria Al-Masani 

Maria Al-Masani 

Maria Al-Masani 

Maria Al-Masani 

Maria Al-Masani 

Maria Al-Masani 

Maria Al-Masani 

Maria Al-Masani 

Maria Al-Masani 

James and painting for the Ukraine

James Makienko is a Canadian of Ukrainian and Russian background, who spend every childhood summer in Kiev until he was 13. During the Ukrainian revolution, before Yanukovich fell

He saw this:

In his mind, he had a dream of Ukraine rising. So he painted this: (Dream)

It says glory to Ukraine, which they were shouting in the square. He took to twitter to show his painting to those who were being shot at in the Maidan square to give them hope and strength that they are not alone, and there is hope.

It was retweeted 50 times, and seen by some at the Euro Maidan square in Ukraine. A couple days later, Yanukovych was removed from power. He then auctioned it off at a fundraiser with all funds going to support Ukrainians injured in the square. This woman bought it. It is called Glory to Ukraine. It sold for $250.

James Makienko was told, if one painting could do so much good, he should paint 10. So he painted another painting dedicated to those who lost their lives .

Each bird symbolizes a person who was killed in the square. Ukraine is one colour of a steal-metal symbolizing the strength and unity of the people. The heart, Kiev is bleeding but birds flying out into a candle of hope are flying from it. It is called Geryom Slava or Glory to the Heroes. It has a bible verse symbolizing the faith of Ukraine, saying: John 15:13. That verse means: Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends

James Makienko needed to get the painting to auction it off it off in Toronto. He was leaving to the Silicon Valley Human Rights Conference in San Francisco, and needed to get the painting to Toronto fundraiser in Parkdale, Toronto, Canada. He called the member of parliament and asked if they could take it with them to the riding where it was to be auctioned to raise funds for the victims. SUCCESS! MP Peggy Nash

This is Peggy Nash, the member of Parliament for Parkdale-Hyde Park. She spoke in parliament about the Ukraine and has been very supportive of her Ukrainian-Canadian constituents not only in word but in deed.

James will be flying out the Silicon Valley Human Rights Conference in a few hours !