Tom Cochrane's highway has also been World Vision Canada's. Honouring both the Canadian singer and songwriter's 25-year humanitarian association with Christian charity organization World Vision Canada and the 25th anniversary of his landmark album, Mad Mad World, the charity threw Cochrane a tribute bash at the Fermenting Cellar in Toronto's Distillery District on Oct. 24.

There's a closer connection than many might realize: the biggest hit of Cochrane's formidable career, 1991’s "Life Is A Highway," was written following his first World Vision-sponsored trip to Africa.

"With the African experience, I came back and it was a different Tom, you know, because of the trauma," Cochrane explained in 25 Years On The Highway, a World Vision documentary that also had its premiere screening at the Fermenting Cellar during the party. "We saw a celebration. Most desperate people express this joy, this generosity. I came home and…how do you deal with it? I got up early that morning, 5 a.m. until 7 or 8 (a.m.):  ‘Life Is A Highway,’ for the most part, was completed.

-- Read the complete Samaritan article here