Proper guidance and training can help inmates successfully rehabilitate and reintegrate into society upon their release. To support this journey, The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust approved a HK$43 million donation last year for the Correctional Services Department to establish the Jockey Club Education Fund for Rehabilitation. The fund supports the work of Ethics College, which provides continuing education for inmates to equip them with the knowledge and skills necessary to rejoin the community and lead productive lives.
Tang Ping-keung, HKSAR Government Secretary for Security (2nd left); Anita Fung,Steward of The Hong Kong Jockey Club (1st left); Dr Conrad Wong, Chairman of the Council of Hong Kong Metropolitan University (2nd right), and Wong Kwok-hing,HKSAR Government Commissioner of Correctional Services (1st right) at the first Ethics College graduation ceremony.
Ethics College held its first graduation ceremony today (8 August) for those who completed their studies over the past year. Tang Ping-keung, HKSAR Government Secretary for Security; Anita Fung, Steward of The Hong Kong Jockey Club; and Dr Conrad Wong,Chairman of the Council of Hong Kong Metropolitan University, officiated at the ceremony and congratulated the students on their graduation.
In her speech at the graduation ceremony, Club Steward Anita Fung said the Club has beenactively supporting various types of educational and training programmes over the years,in line with its commitment to the betterment of society. She encouraged the graduates to sustain their passion for learning and apply the knowledge they had acquired to their future work and lives, and strive tirelessly for self-improvement.
Club Steward Anita Fung delivers a speech.
The Jockey Club Education Fund for Rehabilitation was established to expand educational opportunities for people in custody preparing for re-entry into society. This includes support for Ethics College students pursuing a full-time, one-year Applied Education Diploma and enhancing the college’s e-learning infrastructure. By improving students’learning experiences, the Club aims to help foster their overall development.
The Club’s support for this initiative, like all its charity donations, is made possible by its unique integrated business model through which racing and wagering generate tax contributions, charity support and employment opportunities for the community.
A spectacular 67-metre fire dragon crafted with burning incense sticks captivated over a thousand of festival-goers as it was paraded through the streets of Tai Hang tonight (16 September). Set to run for three nights to September 18, the Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance parade has been supported by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust since 2010, in collaboration with the Tai Hang Residents’ Welfare Association.
Club Chairman Michael Lee (front row, left) and the Director-General of the Hong Kong Island Sub-office of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR, Xue Hui jun (front row, right) decorate the Tai Hang Fire Dragon.
Officiating at the dance’s opening ceremony were Michael Wong, HKSAR Government Deputy Financial Secretary; Michael Lee, Club Chairman; Xue Hui-jun, Director-General of the Hong Kong Island Sub-office of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR; and Yuen How-kuen, Chairman of the Tai Hang Residents’ Welfare Association along with other guests.
HKSAR Government Deputy Financial Secretary Michael Wong (seventh right); Club Chairman Michael Lee (seventh left); the Director-General of the Hong Kong Island Sub-office of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR, Xue Hui-jun (sixth left); Chairman of the Tai Hang Residents’ Welfare Association Yuen How-kuen (centre) and other guests at the opening ceremony of the Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance.
Michael Lee said the Club was happy to have supported the Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance for many years. This includes helping the Tai Hang Residents’ Welfare Association to organise fire dragon dance training for children and young people to foster interest in this cultural heritage activity. In addition, through the Institute of Philanthropy, the Club is cooperating with the Palace Museum in Beijing to promote Chinese culture by restoring and conserving the historic Chengqiangong, organising exhibitions, and nurturing talents.
HKSAR Government Deputy Financial Secretary Michael Wong (right) and Club Chairman Michael Lee (left) lift the head of the 67-metre fire dragon at the opening ceremony of the Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance.
The Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance was first held in 1880 as an act to ward off a plague that had broken out in the district that year. It has since become customary to stage a fire dragon dance every year during the Mid-Autumn Festival to drive away infectious diseases and to bring good fortune.
The dragon is made of “pearl grass” and is about 67 metres in length. It takes more than 400 people to perform the dance. The ceremony starts with decorating the dragon and stuffing it with burning incense sticks before parading it through the streets of Tai Hang during the evening.
The Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance and sparkling night parade are believed to bring good fortune.
The dance was among the local traditions included on the third national list of intangible cultural heritage activities. In 2019 it was chosen as one of the Remarkable Examples of Good Practice for Safeguarding the National Intangible Cultural Heritage Items.
To foster deeper understanding of traditional customs and their origins among the public, the Club continues to support the Tai Hang Residents’ Welfare Association and the Hong Kong Resource Centre for Heritage in organising an educational workshop for schools and the wider community.
The Tai Hang Fire Dragon Dance and sparkling night parade are believed to bring good fortune.
The Club’s Charities Trust has also provided funding to help preserve two other local festivals on the national heritage list: the Tai O Dragon Boat Water Parade and the Cheung Chau Jiao Festival.
The Club’s support for these programmes, like all its charity and community donations, is made possible by its unique integrated business model through which racing and wagering generate tax contributions, charity support and employment opportunities.
