HKJC volunteers spread festive joy to grassroots families at Expo

24 December 2009

The Hong Kong Jockey Club's CARE@hkjc Volunteer Team kicked off a heart-warming activity amidst the festive season by playing host to 200 members of grassroots families from Tung Chung and Sham Shui Po today (24 December) for visits to the Club's booth at the 44th Hong Kong Brands & Products Expo.  For many of the visitors, it was not only their first time to attend a large-scale exhibition, but also their first trip to Hong Kong Island.

This is the first of two visits being organised by the CARE team to share the joy of the Club's 125th Anniversary and its mission of creating a caring community, benefiting a total of 400 residents from Tin Shui Wai, Tung Chung and Sham Shui Po.  A similar exercise will be held on New Year's Eve.

During today's visit, CARE team members led the guests on a guided tour of the display items at the Club's booth, where they could learn interesting and educational facts about horses.  They were also able to cheer on some fabulous performances by talented young people from Tin Shui Wai.

The younger family members were especially enchanted by the "Racing Ahead for You" mult-media exhibition and could not wait to lay their hands on the horse bones, popping questions at the Volunteer Team members as to the use of special horseshoes and the secret behind how 1,000-pound horses could run so fast.  Meanwhile, the older visitors enjoyed reminiscing on the historical exhibits, which recall how the Club has been a part of Hong Kong through good times and bad, sharing the city's growth and development with its people.

Another highlight was an appearance by the Club's Equestrian Ambassador - a horse mascot - who left a memorable footprint not only in the visitors' cameras but also in their hearts!

The festive fun continued as the families enjoyed performances by young people from Tin Shui Wai whose inspiring songs and dances were aimed at instilling positive energy among Expo visitors.  The special performances, which included break dancing, Latin dance, popping dance and singing, were presented by TWGHs Jockey Club Tin Shui Wai Integrated Services Centre and SkyHigh Creative Partners.  The establishment of both these organisations was funded by the Club through its Charities Trust, with the aim of nurturing young people and realising their artistic potential.

Some CARE Volunteeer Team members also took to the stage themselves, joining scouts and cub scouts from the 10th Kowloon Group of the Scout Association of Hong Kong, as well as members of Kowloon City District Sports Association, to demonstrate the ten Hong Kong Can Do Exercise routines, which were specially developed for the Club's 125th Anniversary programme to promote a healthy lifestyle and spread a sense of positive energy in the community.

The heart-warming initiative undertaken by the Volunteer Team will be repeated on New Year's Eve (31 December) when they treat another 200 members of grassroots families from Tin Shui Wai and Sham Shui Po to the Expo.  The Club's special programme will commence at 12:00 noon with performances by SkyHigh Creative Partners, winners of an anti-drug band sound competition, and a demonstration of the ten Hong Kong Can Do Exercise routines by the Volunteer Team members and members of Kwun Tong district organisations.

125th Anniversary of The Hong KongJockey Club

Founded in 1884, The Hong Kong Jockey Club is celebrating its 125th Anniversary in 2009/10 season.  Over the past 125 years, it has become one of Hong Kong's best known and respected organisations, providing the public with world-class sporting entertainment as well as being the city's major non-Government community benefactor, now donating more than HK$1 billion a year to charitable and community projects.  It has been a part of Hong Kong through good times and bad, sharing the city's growth and development with its people, and is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for future generations.