Singapore, 29 July 2005 - StarHub donated S$250,000 from the StarHub IDD Charity Fund to The Society for the Physically Disabled (SPD) at the StarHub Golf Invitational 2005 for its corporate customers. The donation will be used to set up the StarHub-SPD Learning and Development Centre (LDC), that will cater to the academic, personal, mental and social development of physically disabled students.
Mr Yong Lum Sung, Chief Operating Officer, StarHub, said, “Our customers will be heartened to know that since July 2000, with each IDD call they make, they are also doing their part for charity, as StarHub donates one per cent of our IDD revenues from all 008 and 018 calls to the StarHub IDD Charity Fund. The donation to the StarHub-SPD LDC will help the disabled children to be more confident and independent as well as develop their ability to integrate better into our society through motivating programmes and informative workshops.”
“This is the second time we are making a donation to SPD. In 2002, StarHub donated computers and assistive technology equipment like alternative keyboards and mouse, special educational software, and speech devices to help set up the SPD Assistive Technology Centre and SPD Computer Lab. 625 people with physical disabilities have benefited from the assistive technology training and assessment at the SPD Assistive Technology Centre. The donation from StarHub has also kick-started SPD’s training programme, which provides 300 IT training places for people with physical disabilities,” Mr Yong added.
Aimed at encouraging and enhancing each physically disabled child’s potential for development outside the mainstream school setting, StarHub-SPD LDC will initiate, coordinate and organise educational and enrichment programmes to develop each child to his/her fullest potential and pave the way to becoming independent adults.
StarHub-SPD LDC will organise activities and enrichment programmes to encourage constant interactions among disabled and non-disabled students. The Centre will also help disabled students in mainstream schools overcome their physical disabilities by working closely with their family and school. This will be undertaken with the aid of assistive technology equipment and caregiver training workshops, so as to better understand and encourage physically disabled children.
StarHub-SPD LDC aims to become the second home of learning and socialising for physically disabled students. The LDC’s programmes will take a two-pronged approach: to help to boost the confidence of disabled children through interactions to develop their self-confidence, and concurrently provide an opportunity for non-disabled students reach out to those less fortunate and learn to care for them.
Mr See Cher, President of SPD said, “We believe in partnering individuals and corporations to bring out the best in people with physical disabilities, so that they can be self-reliant and independent. We are grateful to StarHub for helping us to fund the LDC, to help disabled students from mainstream schools build up their self-confidence and learn useful skills.”
StarHub-SPD LDC will be located at the SPD Ability Centre at Peng Guan Street. The Centre will be staffed by a full-time Programme Development Officer, who will be assisted by two social workers, to help the physically disabled students. A minimum of 400 training places will be offered to these students over a period of two years.
The StarHub Golf Invitational 2005 event is an annual occasion organised by StarHub Business Markets, in appreciation to its corporate customers who are golf enthusiasts, for their valued support. StarHub’s senior management and its strategic corporate customers pitted their golfing skills against other companies for novelty awards like the Longest Drive, Nearest to the Pin, Best Individual and Best Team, that tested the accuracy and distance of the golfers’ tee-off shots.
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