Giant globe enters Give Kids the World orbit

Give Kids The World

Made for the masses to see and enjoy, the 40–by-28-foot globe looked over Times Square for seven years before making the journey to Orlando last year. In New York’s famous square, the huge globe was the centerpiece in a billboard advertisement for AT&T Inc. on the New York Marriott Marquis Times Square hotel.

Designed by Orlando’s Brett Kingstone along with his company at the time, Super Vision International Inc., the globe’s fate came up for discussion once the ad campaign wrapped up.

With help from AT&T, Kingstone’s current companies Max King Realty and HeavenOfficeCondos.com, both of Orlando, have donated the fiber-optic piece of artwork, worth more than $2 million, to Give Kids the World Village in Orlando.

The nonprofit resort provides accommodations for children with life-threatening diseases and their families during a free vacation in Orlando, along with meals and donated tickets to attractions. It has hosted more than 75,000 families from each state and more than 50 other countries.

Give Kids the World Village is currently under construction to almost double its capacity. The globe will serve as the centerpiece of that expansion, lighting each country on the globe that has been represented at the village.

“Brett is a huge supporter and longtime friend to the village. . . . He’s always stepping up to the plate for us in various areas where he can lend a hand,” said Christian Cascone, director of communications for Give Kids the World. “It was just amazing to me that something that was in Times Square and seen everywhere is now here; and what a natural gift to all the families that come from all over the world.”

Building a frame for the globe and installing it is the next step for the nonprofit, to which Maxim Crane Works and Central Moving & Storage donated services for moving and lifting the 10-ton globe.

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