Hasbro - Spreading cheer during the "Global Day of Joy" event

As part of Hasbro's annual "Global Day of Joy" event, all their staff across the world took part in volunteer activities to benefit children on the same day—15th December 2016. HandsOn coordinated all the activities for Hong Kong which covered 11 different volunteer events, including the following:

• A playhouse session for pre-school children with learning disabilities;
• An outing to the airport for 51 mentally disabled students, with volunteers acting as facilitators and guides;
• A public-transportation-themed outing giving students with mental disabilities the chance to explore the Star Ferry;
• An educational trip to the Wetland Park to enhance students’ understanding of nature;
• A Christmas party for children from the Hong Chi Morning Light School, where volunteers sang songs, played games and delivered gifts for all the students.

Over 650 Hasbro volunteers took part throughout the day, and 666 beneficiaries were served.

Bloomberg - Recycling soap to send to disaster-affected areas in Southeast Asia

Did you know that the simple act of using soap could save the lives of half a million children each year? Which is why soap recycling is such an important volunteer activity. 63 volunteers from Bloomberg spent their day sorting and carving soap donated by Hong Kong hotels. A massive 480kg of soap was recycled during the activity which means that 960 children from poor and disaster-affected areas of Southeast Asia will have access to soap for one year.

Providing these families with soap is key in helping them to improve their children’s health and hygiene, and may help to lessen the spread of diseases.

AXA - Developing financial literacy by playing board games with children

14 volunteers from AXA spent made the festive season extra special for a group of 20 children from the H.K.S.K.H. Kowloon City Children and Youth Integrated Service Centre. The volunteers spent time playing educational board games with the youngsters as part of the center’s Financial Literacy Education Program. They ended the visit by giving each of the children a special gift pack.

The center supports local youths experiencing difficulties in any areas of their lives, including with their family, relationships or at school.

Manulife - Christmas gift drive for children in need

Christmas came early for 300 mentally and physically handicapped students from the Red Cross Margaret Trench School, when a group of big-hearted volunteers from Manulife arrived at their Christmas party with gifts.

The volunteers organized a toy drive for the children ahead of the party, and helped to pack the 270 toys and stationary sets, as a festive surprise for all the students.

KRC - Fun-filled rugby training for students with intellectual disabilities

11 students with intellectual disabilities from the Hong Chi Tuen Mun Morning Light School were treated to an exciting rugby training session run by the KRC on 3rd December 2016.

This was a rare opportunity for the students and their families to take part in a sport they would only ever have seen on television, if at all. A wonderfully uplifting start to the festive season for both the volunteers and the beneficiaries.

Manulife - Visiting the homes of impoverished elderly

A group of 37 volunteers from Manulife gave their time to visit and spend time with some of Hong Kong’s elderly most affected by poverty. They first attended a briefing session run by the Pok Oi Hospital Chan Ping Memorial Neighbourhood Elderly Centre, which educated them on the situation of the elderly in the area and offered guidelines for communicating with them.

By the end of the day the volunteers had visited 34 elderly in their homes, offering them soup, taking the time to chat with them, and observing their living environments so they could then report back to the centre.

HK Baptist University - Recycling soap for under-privileged communities in HK & SE Asia

We were delighted to launch our partnership with HK Baptist University with a soap recycling session. 10 of their volunteers donated their time to sorting and carving slightly-used soaps donated by Hong Kong hotels. 30kg of soap was recycled during the session, meaning that 60 children from impoverished communities in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia will have free soap for one year.

Access to soap is key in helping families to improve their children's health and hygiene, and can help to lessen the spread of some potentially fatal diseases.

Kowloon Rugby Club - Rugby fun with students with intellectual disabilities

A group of 26 volunteers from KRC ran a fun-filled rugby training session for students with intellectual disabilities from Hong Chi Tuen Mun Morning Light School.

Most of these students had never seen a rugby match in action, let alone played the sport themselves. It was a fantastic and uplifting experience not just for the 16 students who took part, but also for their 31 family members who were able to join them.

Telefonica - Creating artistic Lego displays for underprivileged children

A group of volunteers from Telefonica put their time to excellent use when they created artistic Lego displays at a Toy Bank for underprivileged children, run by the Jockey Club Lei Tung Integrated Services Centre.

The centre provides critical services for children and their families including community outreach, recreational activities and centre-based training. The Toy Library is at the heart of the centre and all the children who visit will enjoy Telefonica's eye-catching Lego installations.

Axiom – Delivering soup to the elderly

A committed group of volunteers from Axiom dedicated a total of 54 hours of their time to serve some of Hong Kong’s elderly in need. They attended a session led by Yau On Lutheran Centre For The Elderly to learn how best to communicate with Hong Kong's impoverished elderly, and they then visited 26 of their homes.

The volunteers delivered soup — and smiles — during each visit, spent time chatting with the residents and reported back to the centre at the day's end.

Amex - Making eco-friendly gift packs for children with special needs

31 volunteers from Amex spent half a day learning how to make eco-friendly gifts including lip balm, eco-bags and body lotion. The workshop was led by instructors from a social enterprise who taught the volunteers each process step-by-step.

By the end of the session a total of 93 gift packs had been made by the volunteers. These were then distributed by HandsOn Hong Kong to 93 children with special needs from disadvantaged families.

Davis Polk - Recycling soap to send to disaster-affected areas in Southeast Asia

A group of 19 volunteers from Davis Polk, including 5 children, spent their day sorting and carving soap donated by Hong Kong hotels. They were able to recycle 82kg of soap during the activity which means that 164 children from poor and disaster-affected areas of Southeast Asia will have free soap for one year.

Providing these families with soap is key in helping them to improve their children’s health and hygiene, and may even help to lessen the spread of potentially fatal diseases such as pneumonia and diarrhea.

You can watch a video of the activity here

Li & Fung – Installing energy-saving devices in the homes of the elderly

Volunteers from Li & Fung visited the homes of under privileged elderly in one of the oldest public housing estates in Shek Kip Mei on September 7th. They brought with them energy-saving devices which would reduce the monthly water bill and overall consumption of each household.

This group of 16 volunteers dedicated a total of 48 hours to installing 11 water-saving shower heads and 7 water flow controllers, all of which will last for at least 3 years. They also brought gifts with them and brightened up the day of each elderly beneficiary they visited.

AXA - Playing board-games with disadvantaged children in Aberdeen

A group of 21 volunteers from AXA took part in a Financial Literacy Education Program by playing board games with children at a youth center in Ap Lei Chau. The center provides a safe place for youngsters and their families to do their school work, take part in social activities and receive ongoing training and support. The volunteers were split into groups, each playing a different educational board game with the 16 children.

These volunteers dedicated their day to explaining to, playing with and talking to this group of children, who rarely have the chance to take part in these kinds of activities.

Li & Fung - Playing bubble soccer with intellectually disabled students

A group of 26 students with intellectually disabilities were treated to a day of high-energy sporting fun when they were taken to play bubble soccer with 14 volunteers from Li & Fung. This was the first time any of the students (and some of the volunteers!) had ever played bubble soccer which requires energy, agility and a sense of humor. By the end of the activity the volunteers and beneficiaries had bonded with each other, had a good laugh and received an excellent work-out. An unforgettable day for everyone involved.

J.Crew - Organised A Bowling Outing with Underprivileged Children

A group of 14 volunteers from J. Crew had a bowling fund day with 60 underprivileged children. Volunteer assisted and guided them to learn basic bowling skill.

Thanks to our new corporate partner, J. Crew, 60 children from H.K.S.K.H Kowloon City Children and Youth Integrated Service Centre were able to have their first ever bowling experience! Volunteers from J. Crew were proactive and energetic to guide the children to get familiar with the sport rules and bowling skill. Children can the chance to learn a new sport and explore their interest.

PIMCO - Learned Children with Hearing Impairment How to Have Fun Ice-skating

A group of 16 volunteers from PIMCO accompanied a group of 17 hearing-impaired children to attend an ice-skating lesson and enjoyed a fun day at The Rink.

In this wealthy city, many children with special needs had seldom tried ice-skating due to limited resources. Thansk to the support from PIMCO, we created this opportunity for these children to experience different sports like other children do.

Partnering for the first time with HandsOn Hong Kong, PIMCO's volunteers were very impressive with their enthusiasm in having fun with the children.

Trinseo - Lit Up The Day of Underprivileged Elderly

A group of 35 corporate volunteers from Trinseo accompanied 29 underprivileged elderly to visit the Peak and Trick-Eye Museum.

Elderly who live under poverty line seldom have chance to visit places other than their living area because they cannot afford the transportation or admission fee. Thanks to Trinseo, our elderly had a chance to visit downtown of the city and enjoyed a exploring the Peak and some facilities around. For some of them who had not been to Hong Kong Island for more than a decade, this opportunity was truly memorable for them to savour the moments.

This is the second year Trinseo partnering with HandsOn Hong Kong. All volunteers made great contribution to the local community through this on-site volunteer event.

American Express - Helped in Recycling Unsold Food from The Market

A group of 26 volunteers from American Express went to wet market to recycle unsold food. The collected food was then cleaned, sorted and redistributed to underprivileged families.

Together with 26 volunteers from American Express, we recycled 50kg leftover fresh vegetables from the wet market, which otherwise would be trashed to landfills. Volunteers carried the collected vegetables to warehouse for screening, sorting and repacking. These 50kg vegetables were then redistributed to needy groups of people, including underprivileged elderly and families from our community.

Under Armour - Armour Day Volunteer Service

On 28th June, 87 volunteers from Under Armour Hong Kong participated in a Sports Camp. The staff - divided into 16 groups - enjoyed a fun day with 61 underprivileged elderly from Tin Shui Wai and Sha Tou Kok!

Together, the volunteers and the elderly learnt Tai Chi and the Chair Dance. Both activities are actully great exercises for elderly to keep them healthy and maintain their body flexibility. Some groups also enjoyed Ping-pong, archery, karaoke in the camp. Each elderly received a gift pack and instant photo as to memorize this meaningful day.

The elderly who took part truly enjoyed the event. They even considered this day camp as one of the best activities they ever joined. Under Armour also shared positive feedback about their contribution to the elderly and regarded the day camp as “fun, touching and meaningful”.

Moody’s Hong Kong and Shenzhen - 11 Corporate Volunteer Programs That Contribute to Our Community

Between April and June 2016, more than 200 volunteers from Moody’s Hong Kong and Moody’s Shenzhen supported to the local community. Moody’s staff took part in 11 volunteering programs, spending more than 600 volunteer hours supporting various social needs like youth’s empowerment, LGBT’s right, environment protection, people with disabilities and elderly care.

World Venture Foundation – 3 Corporate Volunteering Programs With More Than 200 Staff in One Day

This summer, 203 volunteers from World Venture Foundation participated in three volunteer programs on their Volunteer Day. The three services included making eco-friendly gifts for underprivileged kids (1), enjoying mass games with the students with special needs (2), and visiting a special school in Yuen Long (3). Volunteers from World Venture Foundation made up 726 service hours in one day!

Natixis - Contribution to Hong Kong’s community

Recently, a group of volunteers from Natixis participated in 2 volunteer activities in one day! Volunteers went to a farm and helped renovating the interiors with sewing, drilling and other preparation to create an exhibition wall that will serve an educational purpose. From there, Natixis volunteers headed to a local bowling alley with a group of students with intellectual disabilities to teach them bowling.

Pernod Ricard - 2016 Responsib’all Day

On 2 June 2016, 178 volunteers from Pernod Ricard Asia gave back to their community as part of their annual Responsib’all Day. Pernod Ricard Asia staff worked in three groups to donate their time to organic farm and visit with underprivileged elderly as well as to install energy-saving devices and clean their homes.

Neuberger Berman - Delivers Warm Soup and Smiles

On 5 May, 23 volunteers from Neuberger Berman visited and delivered freshly prepared soup to 19 underprivileged elderly. Volunteers and the elderly enjoyed the time together. Since many elderly in Hong Kong have very little interaction with others, the visit brought them laughter, warmth, and nourishment. Many thanks to the volunteers from Neuberger Berman for showing their care for the elderly of Hong Kong.

Watermark Products - Support the green and save children's lives

14 volunteers from Watermark Products participated in soap recycling volunteer activity to sort and crave the used soaps. 150kg soaps are recycled and will be delivered to underprivileged families and schools in disadvantaged communities in South Asian countries. With their contribution, the hygiene and sanitation can be improved and many children will be saved from Pneumonia.

AXA - CNY Elderly Visit

Elderly poverty is a pressing social issue in Hong Kong, as our city has one of the highest rates of elderly poverty in the developed world. This was top of mind for AXA volunteers over Chinese New Year. Twenty eight volunteers from AXA supported 14 elderly households with warmth and kindness over the holiday. Volunteers prepared gift packs of traditional snacks and delivered them to the elderly during visits to their homes.