Brighter Walls For The Kids: Company Spreads Cheer At Children's Home As Part Of Global Intiative - The Star

Gibraltar BSN Life Berhad recently organised its first Global Volunteer Day at Rumah Juara, a welfare home in Selangor with 37 children aged between three and 17 years.

Thirty employees of Gibraltar BSN brought smiles to young faces as they worked on making the home more comfortable for the children.

Gibraltar BSN is jointly owned by Prudential Financial Inc (PFI) of the United States through its subsidiary, The Prudential Insurance Company of America (PICA) and Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN).

The Global Volunteer Day was initiated by PFI in 1995 to celebrate the company’s community involvement and employee volunteerism around the world through activities such as building homes, cleaning up school playgrounds, beautifying local parks, preparing food for the needy and mentoring children.

Gibraltar BSN chief executive officer Vincent Kwo said, “We are inspired and committed to our effort in adding value to the community, so we have organised a day where our staff can volunteer to help make a difference in the lives of those who really need our support.

“We hope to be able to make these chil- dren feel special and spread a little cheer by spending time with them and making their home a little more comfortable.”

The employees, including the company’s senior management team, took time out to help paint the walls at the home and replace items such as mattresses, bed sheets, pillowcases, bath towels, curtains and shoe racks.

Seeing that the home lacked basic furniture, the company also donated new tables and chairs for a dedicated study area.

“Many of the children used to fall off their chairs while doing their homework.

“Now, they can read, write and study comfortably,” Rumah Juara home supervisor Elizabeth Billy Ratnam said.

The team also helped raise funds to support the children’s education through a charity sale of corporate merchandise to staff members. Proceeds from the sale were included in the company’s overall contribution to the home.

Later that day, the company organised a special tea party for the children, serving many of the children’s favourite food such as fried ice-cream, spaghetti bolognaise, deep-fried chicken wings, spring rolls, fried rice and noodles.

“We want the children to see that there are people in the community who care for them and want them to grow up happy and healthy,” Kwo said.

The children thanked the volunteers for their kindness and generosity by gifting them with special “thank you” certificates and photo frames made by them.