People of Giving Week

By City Of Good  /
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Giving Week is all about contributing your time, talent, treasure and voice. What better way to demonstrate this than through shining the spotlight on some givers!

Giving Week is drawing nearer! Happening from Dec 1-7, there are many activities for brands, non-profits and individuals to participate in. With a month to go, we can start igniting our giving spirit.

To inspire you, here are four lovely people who contributed their time, talent, treasure and voice for Giving Week last year. How can you make a difference this festive season?

Julie Tan: Waterways Warrior

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Above: Julie (centre) led a group to clean up Marina Reservoir with Waterways Watch Society.

Appalled by the trash swept up and accumulated on our coasts, celebrity Julie Tan switched to reusable utensils, and took a bolder step with Giving Week by leading an initiative to clean up Marina Reservoir with Waterways Watch Society! Traversing our beaches by foot, bike and power boat, she led a group of individuals and employees from influencer agency Gushcloud to pick up 21.9kg of trash. A productive use of time that was, as they also got to understand how waste gets onto our coasts.

Melissa Tan: Arts for All

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Above: Melissa hosted a pro bono workshop for kids who don’t have access to art lessons.

Art classes are wonderful avenues for children to have fun and express themselves but can be expensive and out of reach for some! Artist Melissa Tan tapped on her talent and hosted a pro bono workshop for kids who wouldn’t normally have the means to have art lessons. With the support of Pilot Pen Singapore, she guided the children through doodling and having fun – and her biggest takeaway? Hearing that some of the kids had the best time during this session!

Charmaine Seah-Ong: Just my Type!

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Above: Charmaine donates blood for the first time!

Donating took on a whole new meaning for Charmaine Seah-Ong, co-founder of Elementary Co., when she decided to donate a different kind of treasure – blood – for the first time last year in support of Giving Week! It took half an hour, but Charmaine used it as a chance to advocate the importance of donating blood on social media – understanding that with a shrinking pool of young donors and a rapidly ageing population, Singapore will need more regular blood donors. Since her maiden experience, Charmaine is taking steps to become a regular donor with her most recent donation in July. Maybe you’ll see her donating blood once again at Giving Week this year!

Stephanie Yeo: A Special Shout-out to “Ah Gong”

Together with her children Evangeline and Ethan, mummy Stephanie was inspired after watching the story of elderly peddler Ah Gong on Channel News Asia. They were amazed at how Ah Gong only sought to earn his minimum of $40 a day selling second-hand goods, and would give the remaining goods for free to those in need. To wrap up the year, Stephanie brought her children to pack some of their items, both unused new ones and used ones in good conditions, for Ah Gong to sell and to learn about his philosophy of giving in practice.

We are inspired by how proud mummy Stephanie shared this beautiful giving journey on her Instagram, knowing her voice has impact and can bring about a change!

You don’t need to be someone of ‘status’ to give back your Time, Talent, Treasure or Voice – this Giving Week, every little act counts and makes a world of difference! Share your good stories and tag us @GivingWeekSG on Facebook/Instagram – together, let’s build a #CityofGood!