Avril Lavigne to Perform at National Hero Celebration

Avril Lavigne to Perform at National Hero Celebration

Volvo for life Awards Ceremony in New York City, April 12, 2006

$1 Million in Financial Contributions Awarded to Winning Heroes, Including a Volvo Car for Life

NEW YORK, Jan. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- International recording artist Avril Lavigne will perform at the nation's largest celebration of local heroes this spring. Lavigne will deliver a set at the fourth annual Volvo for life Awards ceremony on April 12 at the Rainbow Room in New York City.

Lavigne initially gained popularity in 2002 with her debut song "Complicated," and has released two albums to date, "Let Go" (2002) and "Under My Skin" (2004). Both have topped the charts in numerous countries, yielding four top ten singles on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.

The annual Volvo for life Awards ceremony is the culmination of the nation's largest search for and celebration of everyday heroes. Each year Volvo calls on individuals nationwide to nominate a local hero they know. Celebrity judges including Caroline Kennedy, Hank Aaron and Bill Bradley, select the winning heroes and present them with charitable contributions at the gala event. The ceremony features top music entertainment and a celebrity host, as well as documentaries profiling the winners. There, Volvo unveils the grand award winner -- "America's Greatest Hometown Hero" -- and presents a Volvo car every three years for the rest of his or her life.

Individuals can nominate a hero they know at www.volvoforlifeawards.com through Tuesday, Jan. 31.

Lavigne joins a long list of artists who have performed at past Volvo for life Awards events, including the Black Crowes, The Wallflowers, Los Lobos, Toots & The Maytals, Joss Stone and Heather Headley.

About the Volvo for life Awards

Now in its fourth year, the Volvo for life Awards seeks ordinary people who are doing extraordinary things in the areas of safety, quality of life or environment. Since its inception in 2001, Volvo has received nearly 10,000 nominations from all 50 states.

In March, Volvo will announce the names of 100 semi-finalists and honor their individual accomplishments with a Certificate of Merit. Three finalists in each nomination category will then be selected.

A panel of distinguished judges representing some of the world's foremost experts on conscience, care and character -- including Hank Aaron, Bill Bradley, Richard Branson, Caroline Kennedy, Maya Lin, Paul Newman, Sally Ride, Eunice Kennedy Shriver and last year's top winner, Hope Bevilhymer -- will name one winner for each of the three categories. The category winners each will receive $50,000 to be donated to the charities of their choice. The remaining six finalists each will receive a $25,000 charitable donation.

Volvo will honor the three category winners at the New York City awards ceremony. Winning heroes will receive $1 million in financial contributions, including a Volvo car every three years for life awarded to the top winner, "America's Greatest Hometown Hero."

To learn more or to nominate a hero, visit www.volvoforlifeawards.com before Jan. 31, 2006. A Spanish version of the site can also be accessed at this address.

Source: Volvo Cars of North America

CONTACT: Kim McMartin of Haberman & Associates, +1-612-372-6464,
kim@modernstorytellers.com, for Volvo Cars of North America; or Soren
Johansson of Volvo Cars of North America, +1-949-341-6719,
sjohan44@volvocars.com

Web site: http://www.volvoforlifeawards.com/

NOTE TO EDITORS: For photos and more information on the Volvo for Life Awards: www.volvocars-pr.com.

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