Charitable Choice Awards 2022

Charitable Choice is excited to announce the winners of the Charitable Choice Awards 2022 – celebrating the stellar philanthropic efforts of members of the Hong Kong community.

“Despite the backdrop of what has been a challenging year for Hong Kong and the world, the past 12 months saw Charitable Choice facilitate over $2.3 million in donations for our charity partners, the highest annual figure since our inception in 2011” said Cheryl Wilson, CEO of Charitable Choice. “2021 saw the continued adoption of online fundraising, not just by individuals and corporates, but also by our charity beneficiaries, as social constraints remained prohibitive on in-person events,” she added.

The record level of fundraising achieved through the Charitable Choice platform signifies a shift in philanthropic behavior as individuals, companies and charities effectively leverage technology to support social causes.

“We have seen this shift in retail habits and now we are seeing the same in charitable giving. It’s encouraging and, we believe, a move in the right direction as it frees charities to focus efforts on providing support and services to their beneficiaries,” Cheryl explains.

Now in its second year, the Charitable Choice Awards 2022 showcases the achievements of users of the online giving platform across five categories.

2022 Awards Winners
• Corporate Donor of the Year - Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre (Management) Limited
• Corporate Fundraising Campaign of the Year – Valley RFC Sports Club
• Fundraiser of the Year – Anthea Wong
• Charity Hero of the Year – Kershaun Mathew
• Charity of the Year – The Society for the Relief of Disabled Children

Our Corporate Donor of the Year winner, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (Management) Limited (HML) purchased corporate pre-paid charity gift cards as birthday gifts for their loyal customers. "Being named once again the Corporate Donor of the Year by Charitable Choice is motivating recognition for Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (Management) Limited. Since 2016, we have been purchasing gift cards from Charitable Choice as birthday presents for our loyal customers. We have received messages of appreciation and support from our customers for this meaningful gift. This wonderful idea does not only align with our organisation’s social responsibility strategy, it is also an effective way to engage our customers to support local community and vulnerable groups." Monica Lee-Müller, Managing Director at HML said.

Corporate Fundraiser of the Year Valley RFC Sports Club raised HKD 367,000 to support the Hong Kong Rugby Union Community Foundation, Harmony House, KELY Support Group and the Society for Community Organisation Limited (SOCO). “This past year, for Everest 2.0, we were able to achieve the equivalent of 27 Everests. The purpose was to help raise money and awareness for underprivileged kids within Hong Kong. Most of the focus we have as a club is based around sport but we also work with some charities to help them achieve their mission.” said Trey Deaver, Valley RFC Chairman, who organised the campaign. “We hope to inspire our members to take on the notion of charitable giving and not only do we want to be winning on the pitch but we want to be winning in this area off the field too.” said Samantha Scott, Valley RFC COO.

Fundraiser of the Year – Anthea Wong, a swimmer and 2024 Olympic hopeful swam 10,000 yards to raise funds for HELP for Domestic Workers and Mission for Migrant Workers. Her efforts raised more than $73,000 to support the domestic helper community during the pandemic.
“I started this fundraiser because I learned that there are a lot of domestic helpers who were being kicked out of their homes after catching Covid during the fifth wave of the pandemic. My family has had a Ya-Ya, which is the Filipino word for caretaker, for almost 20 years now. I know that there are other caretakers out there who play important roles in other households and I want to make sure that they are being taken care of during these difficult times.” Said Anthea Wong.

Our Charity Hero of the Year Award – goes to Kershaun Mathew who organized a virtual run to raise funds for his favourite charity, The Nesbitt Centre. This award encourages our next generation of philanthropists by educating them on the importance of supporting those in need. Kershaun said: “With this activity, my main aim was to integrate the learners at The Nesbitt Centre into the community. With the money that I raised I hope that Nesbitt Centre learners could be trained for work at different places such as cafes or restaurants. I hope that through my story I could inspire other people to begin similar campaigns to raise money for different charities.” “We are grateful to Kershaun and hope other students are inspired by his decision to help those less privileged in the local community,” remarked Cheryl.

Charity of the Year – The Society for the Relief of Disabled Children continued to support medical, surgical, rehabilitation and educational services of differently-abled children in Hong Kong during the pandemic. SRDC was the beneficiary of several fundraising campaigns as well as one-off donations via the Charitable Choice platform ranging from $100 to $20,000.

“The Society for the Relief of Disabled Children is a charity organization established in Hong Kong since 1953. We believe every child has the right to live happy and fulfilling lives. We steer for a world in which these disadvantaged children can grow fulfilled lives and contribute to the society and realize their full potential. Under the current pandemic, we are lucky to be the winner for the year 2022.” shared Ellen Tsang, Manager of The Society for the Relief of Disabled Children.

"It’s heartening to see Hong Kong people making generous donations amidst these economically challenging times, and encouraging to see the stronger adoption of technology in this process. Adding Charity Hero, our new portal designed especially for kids, we continue to innovate and extend our reach to a new generation of charitable individuals," Cheryl said.