[Photo: Ms Sally Chua, Managing Director of Q’son Kitchen Equipment]

Q'son Kitchen Equipment Pte Ltd has made a $75,000 donation to establish the Q'son Kitchen Equipment Bursary, which will provide financial assistance to SMU students in need.

A total of fifteen bursaries worth $5,000 each will be given out over three years starting AY2013/14.

Prior to this gift, Q'son Kitchen Equipment has also been providing financial support for charitable projects and organisations in Singapore such as the Handicaps Welfare Association, and was also a sponsor for the Raffles Charity Day 2012.

 “We are glad to help, especially when we are in a position to. Q'son Kitchen Equipment is committed to providing holistic assistance to low-income and vulnerable students so they can be responsible to the role they are called to - and that’s study. Hopefully, our contribution will serve as a reminder to them to help others in future just as they had been helped.” said Ms Sally Chua, Managing Director of Q’son Kitchen Equipment and winner of the Entrepreneur of the Year - A Rotary Singapore-ASME Award (EYA) for Service Excellence in 2013. “Basically, we want to motivate students to study without having to worry unduly about their finances.”

Three recipients of the inaugural Q’son Kitchen Equipment Bursary for AY2013/14 share their thoughts.

“I grew up meeting people with different backgrounds, different affluence and different attitudes, and therefore I am indeed extremely grateful and appreciative when Q'son kitchen equipment decided to award me their bursary. The bursary goes a long way to affect me, it lightens my parents’ education burden for me, and also impart to me that there are people out there to show you a hand when you need help without expecting any reward. I will always remember this in my life journey, and always constantly remind myself to give that helping hand in the future, if I am able to. Thank you Q'son Kitchen Equipment, I really am grateful for your help in my life,” said Law Sheng Xun, a third year student at the School of Information Systems.

“The Q'son Kitchen Equipment Bursary has empowered me to live my SMU life to the fullest. I was able to go on multiple overseas exposure trips, to represent SMU for Ultimate Frisbee tournaments, to impact the underprivileged communities and to experience studying abroad ecause of financial support from generous donors like Q'son Kitchen Equipment. My holistic education in SMU helped me to grow in areas such as leadership, social responsibility and interpersonal skills. I would remember how this support has impacted my life, and I will pay it forward to the less fortunate I meet in my everyday life,” shared Loon Wan Swen, a final year student at the Lee Kong Chian School of Business.

“Having grown up in a single parent family since I was two, I deviated from my studies and got into trouble with the law thrice. When I was sixteen, disaster struck me as my grandfather, who was a father figure for me, passed away unexpectedly. I was distraught and swore to change my ways. Coming to SMU has exposed me to a wide spectrum of different opportunities and trained me to think critically in class and question information we receive. This bursary has allowed me to focus on pursuing my goal of eventually becoming a fund manager. Moving forward, I want to eventually set up a study fund for children who come from a single parent family to support counseling and education," said Terence Chua, a third year student at the Lee Kong Chian School of Business.

About Q'son Kitchen Equipment Pte Ltd

Q'son Kitchen Equipment Pte Ltd started out in 1996 as a three-man outfit but has a staff strength of about 130 today. In FY2012 it posted revenue of about $16 million and profit of $3.8 million. The company has also expanded overseas to Malaysia and Vietnam.

For more information about Q’son, please visit www.qson.com.sg.