Jockey Club supports Hong Kong Volunteer Award 2024 in recognition of the outstanding contributions of Hong Kong’s volunteers

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.

In Hong Kong, many underprivileged families experience financial pressures that compel parents to juggle work and family responsibilities. This makes it difficult for them to spend quality time with their children, impacting family relationships.

To address these needs, especially among low-income families and non-ethnic Chinese families, the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust is supporting the HK United Youth Exchange Foundation Limited to launch a three-year Jockey Club Home Harmony Programme with an approved donation of HK$10.14 million.

The programme was launched today (9 December) during the 32nd Anniversary Celebration and Inauguration Ceremony of the Executive Committee of the Hong Kong United Youth Association cum Launch Event of the Jockey Club Home Harmony Programme. Officiating at the event were Deputy Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR Liu Guangyuan, HKSAR Government Chief Secretary for Administration Chan Kwok-ki, Deputy Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the HKSAR Fang Jianming, Secretary for Security Tang Ping-keung, Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs Alice Mak, The Hong Kong Jockey Club Deputy Chairman Martin Liao, Chairperson of the Hong Kong United Youth Association Dr Lam Ho-yi, Secretary-general of the All-China Youth Federation Zhao Bo, Deputy Director of the United Front Work Department of Jiangsu Provincial Committee Li Weihua, Deputy Director-General of the Youth Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR Wan Ning and other guests.

Officiating at the launch of the Jockey Club Home Harmony Programme were Deputy Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR Liu Guangyuan (front row,5th left), HKSAR Government Chief Secretary for Administration Chan Kwok-ki (front row, 5th right), Deputy Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the HKSAR Fang Jianming (front row, 3rd left), Secretary for Security Tang Ping-keung (front row, 1st left), Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs Alice Mak (front row, 3rd right), The Hong Kong Jockey Club DeputyChairman Martin Liao (front row, 4th left), Chairperson of the Hong Kong United YouthAssociation Dr Lam Ho-yi (front row, centre), Secretary-general of the All-China Youth Federation Zhao Bo (front row, 4th right), Deputy Director of the United Front Work Department of Jiangsu Provincial Committee Li Weihua (front row, 2nd left), Deputy Director-General of the YouthDepartment of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR Wan Ning(front row, 2nd right) and other guests.

The Jockey Club Home Harmony Programme seeks to enhance family harmony and resilience through a range of activities targeting both young people and their families. Mentoring workshops will connect underprivileged youth with mentors from various professional backgrounds, enabling them to expand their social circles and access new resources. Family bond-building and adventure based activities such as local cultural tours, will provide more opportunities for families to spend quality time with each other. So too will volunteering activities, for dedicated young volunteers and their family members, culminating in an annual tour to the Greater Bay Area. Furthermore, by bringing families with similar backgrounds together the programme will help build a caring and supportive network in the community.

The programme will commence in February 2025 and is expected to benefit 2,400 underprivileged youth and their parents and 1,200 community service recipients.

The Club’s support for the Jockey Club Home Harmony Programme, 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.