This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on March 16, 2016.
One of the most important things in life is to give back to the community and Naza TTDI is doing just that with their Swing For the Children charity golf event. The event which will take place tomorrow at the Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club aims to raise RM500,000 and the money is to be distributed evenly to 20 children’s charity homes nationwide.
The money will be used to assist in improving the quality of life and education of under-privileged Malaysian children. Between the period of 2003 and 2011, the Naza Charity Golf Tournament has raised a total amount of RM7.8 million for various charitable organisations. This noble effort will also include prizes for lucky participants including a Peugeot 308 for a hole-in-one prize and three grand lucky draw prizes for trips to Istanbul, Maldives and Yangon.
Charities that benefit from this fundraiser will include the Ti-Ratana Welfare Society, Pertubuhan Rumah Amal Cahaya Tengku Ampuan Rahimah (Ractar) and the Spastic Children’s Association of Selangor and Federal Territory (SCAS FT) all of which would do a great deal for underprivileged children.
The Ti-Ratana Welfare Society is a shelter that provides education and care to underprivileged children in the community. More than half of the children at the society come from broken families and a background check is done before they move in to the shelter. The Ti-Ratana Welfare Society currently runs three orphanage homes for boys and girls, three old folks homes and one women’s shelter. All children who live at the shelters must attend school and complete their education until SPM level. There have been several success stories from the centre, with a girl receiving a scholarship to study nursing at International Medical University and a boy receiving a scholarship from Megatech University to study engineering.
Established in 1990 by Yang Amat Mulia Tengku Puan Sri Datin Seri Puteri Nor Zehan Binti Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah Alhaj, RACTAR is a non-profit organisation (NGO) that offers a home to orphaned and poor girls from all over the country. The girls that live in the home have gone through a great deal in their lives and are either orphaned, abused or abandoned. This NGO is dependent on public donations and corporations. The centre offers vocational training services to all girls living there. At the moment, there are 50 girls staying at RACTAR aged between five and 28. The home has also recently partnered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to accommodate a 17 year old Rohingya refugee with a seven month old baby.
The SCAS FT is an organisation that helps disabled people with cerebral palsy by giving them education therapy and rehabilitation training at the centre. There are currently 102 disabled people receiving therapy and training at the centre. The association is equipped with various services including physiotherapy, speech therapy and occupational therapy. Facilities at the organisation include clinics, classrooms, hydrotherapy pool, training kitchen and special sports training equipment. The SCAS FT has been funded solely by private corporations and individual donations, after government grants ceased in 2014.
The Edge Media Group is the official media partner for the Swing for Children golf tournament.