Jockey Club joins annual Together We Care programme to support thousands in need across Hong Kong

The Hong Kong Jockey Club (the Club) volunteer team turned out in force for the 20th annual Together We Care programme in support of families in need and the elderly across Hong Kong.

The Jockey Club’s CARE@HKJC volunteer team supported Together We Care programme.

Initiated by the Hong Kong Elite Athletes Association (HKEAA) and co-organised by the Hong Kong Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA), the programme will see over 160 members of the Club’s CARE@HKJC team join other volunteers as well as elite athletes in delivering goody bags to some 2,800 people in need.

Jockey Club volunteer team members including jockeys helped to prepare goody bags to distribute to families in need and the elderly. (Photo 7, from left) Keagan De melo, Ben Thompson, Keith Yeung, Dylan Mo with his spouse, Matthew poon, and Antoine Hamelin.

Photo by The Hong Kong Jockey Club

A launch ceremony was held at Po Leung Kuk Riverain Primary School today (17 November). Officiating guests included the HKSAR Government Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Kevin Yeung; Commissioner for Sports George Tsoi; the Club’s Executive Director, Corporate Affairs, Raymond Tam; Chairman of HKEAA Daniel Lee and the Chief Executive of YWCA Yvonne Yeung. Tam, Tsoi and elite athletes took turns sharing their volunteering experiences at the event.

Officiating guests at the launch ceremony included HKSAR Government Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Kevin Yeung (4th right); Commissioner for Sports George Tsoi (1st right); Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Executive Director, Corporate Affairs, Raymond Tam (2nd right); Chairman of Hong Kong Elite Athletes Association Daniel Lee (3rd right); the Chief Executive of Hong Kong Young Women’s Christian Association Yvonne Yeung (4th left) ; Hong Kong Jockey Club Assistant External Affairs Manager and Olympic gold medallist in women’s epee fencing Vivian Kong (3rd left); Hong Kong wheelchair badminton athlete Chan Ho-Yuen (1st left), and Hong Kong tennis athlete Zhang Ling (2nd left).

The Club’s Executive Director, Corporate Affairs, Raymond Tam said he was delighted to join the Club’s volunteer team together with elite athletes to visit people in need across the community and spread a message of warmth and love. He said that the Club was dedicated to acting continuously for the betterment of society, and keen to continue working hand in hand with athletes and Hong Kong citizens to extend a spirit of togetherness in the community.

Hong Kong Jockey Club Executive Director, Corporate Affairs, Raymond Tam (2nd right); HKSAR Government Commissioner for Sports George Tsoi (1st right); Hong Kong Jockey Club Assistant External Affairs Manager and Olympic gold medallist in women’s epee fencing Vivian Kong (centre), and elite athletes, including Hong Kong wheelchair badminton athlete Chan Ho-Yuen (1st left) and Hong Kong tennis athlete Zhang Ling (2nd left) shared their volunteering experiences at the launch ceremony.

The theme of this year’s programme is “Jointly spreading warmth in the community”. The Club is serving as the programme’s main sponsor, providing goody bags containing food and daily necessities. Jockeys Keagan De melo, Antoine Hamelin, Lyle Hewitson, Dylan Mo, Matthew Poon, Ben Thompson and Keith Yeung joined the Club’s volunteer team yesterday (16 Nov) in preparing goody bags at the school, which is a supporting organisation for the programme.

Visiting families after the ceremony were Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Executive Director, Corporate Affairs, Raymond Tam (3rd right), Head of External Affairs Freely Cheng (1st right), External Affairs Manager and Olympic fencing gold medallist Vivian Kong ( 1st left); Hong Kong Elite Athletes Association Vice-President Amy Chan ( 4th right); the Chief Executive of Hong Kong Young Women’s Christian Association Yvonne Yeung ( 5th right); Hong Kong wheelchair badminton athlete Chan Ho-Yuen , 3rd left), along with other guest.

Photo by The Hong Kong Jockey Club

Photo by The Hong Kong Jockey Club

Photo by The Hong Kong Jockey Club

To encourage everyone to lend a helping hand, The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust initiated and funded the JC VOLUNTEER TOGETHER starting from 2022. This includes support for the Hong Kong Volunteer Award, which recognises the many eople who have contributed to the betterment of our society.

Today (10 December) saw the presentation of this year’s Hong Kong Volunteer Award, co-organised by the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau and the Agency for Volunteer Service. Officiating guests included Warner Cheuk, HKSAR Government Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration; Clarence Leung, HKSAR Government Acting Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs; Tian Guiyu, Deputy Director of Department of Social Affairs, Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR; Lester Huang, Steward of The Hong Kong Jockey Club; and Melissa Kaye Pang, Chairman of Agency for Volunteer Services.

Warner Cheuk, HKSAR Government Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration (centre); Clarence Leung, HKSAR Government Acting Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs (2nd left); Tian Guiyu, Deputy Director of Department of Social Affairs, Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR (1st right); Lester Huang, Steward of The Hong Kong Jockey Club (2nd right); and Melissa Kaye Pang, Chairman of the Agency for Volunteer Services (1st left) officiate at the Hong Kong Volunteer Award 2024 presentation ceremony.

Club Steward Lester Huang said the Club has been closely collaborating with the Agency for Volunteer Service since the 1970s to promote volunteering. Last year, through JC VOLUNTEER TOGETHER, the Club supported new awards under the Hong Kong Volunteer Award scheme to recognise volunteers from different sectors and backgrounds. Moving forward, the Club will continue to launch volunteer projects designed to encourage more people to volunteer and to help people in need.

Lester Huang, Steward of The Hong Kong Jockey Club, delivers a speech at the HongKong Volunteer Award 2024 presentation ceremony.

Since last year, the Club has supported awards under the Hong Kong Volunteer Award scheme through its JC VOLUNTEER TOGETHER initiative. The awards include theJC VOLUNTEER TOGETHER Outstanding Evergreen Volunteer Award, the JC VOLUNTEER TOGETHER Outstanding Caring School Award, the JC VOLUNTEER TOGETHER Evergreen Volunteer Award (Volunteer Hours) and the JC VOLUNTEER TOGETHER Top 10 Caring School, all of which celebrate exceptional volunteering efforts. The Club is also supporting the JC VOLUNTEER TOGETHER Outstanding Rising Star Volunteer Award, which recognises people who are volunteering for the first time or returning to volunteering for their achievement and contribution.

Lester Huang, Steward of The Hong Kong Jockey Club (centre), and Freely Cheng, the Club’s Head of External Affairs (7th right), with members of the CARE@hkjc Volunteer Team.

The Club has always been a strong supporter of volunteering. In addition to the volunteer awards supported by its Charities Trust, the Club has its own CARE@hkjc Volunteer Team, comprising employees who actively help out in the community. In 2023, the Club’s volunteer team contributed over 23,000 volunteering hours, positively impacting more than 670,000 people. At this year’s Hong Kong Volunteer Award, The Hong Kong Jockey Club was awarded an Outstanding Corporate Award, Corporate & Non-Commercial Organisation (Volunteer Hours) Top Ten Highest Volunteer Hour, and Corporate & Non-Commercial Organisation (Volunteer Hours) Gold Award in recognition of the achievements of the CARE@hkjc Volunteer Team.

Lester Huang, Steward of The Hong Kong Jockey Club (centre), and Freely Cheng, the Club’s Head of External Affairs (1st left), with recipients of the JC VOLUNTEER TOGETHER Outstanding Evergreen Volunteer Award and the Outstanding Rising Star Volunteer Award.

Further details can be found on the Hong Kong Volunteer Award website: https://www.hkv-award.hk/

JC VOLUNTEER TOGETHER, initiated and funded by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, was launched in collaboration with 12 partner organisations. It is designed to encourage and mobilise primary and secondary school students, families, working adults, people aged 50+ and retirees as well as the general public to do good for the community. It has also created the JC VOLUNTEER TOGETHER PLATFORM to help people identify volunteering opportunities, and register for and keep track of their volunteering activities.

Lester Huang, Steward of The Hong Kong Jockey Club (left), and JC VOLUNTEER TOGETHER Outstanding Evergreen Volunteer Awardee Kitty Siu.

The Club’s support for the JC VOLUNTEER TOGETHER, like all its charity donations,is made possible by its unique integrated business model through which racing andwagering generate tax contributions, charity support and employment opportunities forthe community.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club was honoured with an Outstanding Corporate Award,Corporate & Non-Commercial Organisation (Volunteer Hours) Top Ten Highest olunteer Hour, and Corporate & Non-Commercial Organisation (Volunteer Hours)Gold Award.

The Club’s CARE@hkjc Volunteer Team comprises employees who actively help out in the community.