• SMU’s annual charity challenge raised over $60000 in nine-month project
• SMU community including the President of the university rallies together in a 8km charity walkathon to help underprivileged senior citizens

[Singapore, 14 September 2013 (Saturday)] – The President of Singapore Management University (SMU), Professor Arnoud De Meyer flagged off and took part in an 8km walkathon today, the culmination of SMU Challenge 2013 (新大慈善大挑战).  The highlight of the annual charity fundraiser saw 505 SMU representatives including students, faculty members and staff do their bit for underprivileged elderly in a journey from the SMU campus to the Queenstown Community Centre.  Each carrying a backpack load of 5kg of in-kind donations, the participants will deliver 2,500kg of food and necessities to the doorsteps of 170 households at Mei Ling Street under the care of Lions Befrienders Service Association.  SMU also earned a place in the Singapore Book of Records for ‘Largest Mass Walk Carrying Groceries’, a record previously set by SMU students, faculty and staff in 2010 with 197 participants.

The nine-month University-wide community service effort led by a group of 30 SMU students raised over S$60,000 in cash and in kind.  The cash proceeds raised will go towards supporting the underprivileged seniors under the Lions Befrienders Service Association’s outreach programmes conducted through its Seniors Activity Centres. 

The walkathon challenge capped off the annual social project which included two other phases – fundraising phase and interaction phase.  The progressive approach ensures that community outreach achieves maximum impact and creates opportunities for various stakeholders within the SMU community to contribute.

“Students have shared with me that their involvement enriches their own lives as much as it benefits the lives of their beneficiaries.  Indeed, such exposure not only widens your perspective of the world, it also empowers you to better understand your place in the community and develop a desire to make a greater positive impact on society. I would like to thank the students, staff, faculty, alumni and our partner – everyone who has volunteered their goodwill, time and effort to make the SMU Challenge a success.  Not only for our volunteers’ splendid achievements in raising donations, but also because of the extent that SMU Challenge 2013 has positively impacted and benefitted both the SMU Community and the senior citizens from Lions Befrienders,” said SMU President, Professor Arnoud De Meyer.

Over many weekends beginning January 2013, SMU students went door-to-door offering to do household chores in exchange for donations.  Additionally, street collection drives were carried out to encourage the public to donate food and other necessities for the project.  Volunteers also spent time interacting with the elderly in engagement sessions at Lions Befrienders (Mei Ling) Seniors Activity Centre who are living in one-room and two-room rented units, to bring some warmth and joy to the seniors.

“I believe it is important to spread the message of giving back to society.  It is something everyone of us can do by getting those within our circle of influence to be involved in meaningful events such as the SMU Challenge.  We are very pleased for the active participation and generous donation from members of the public as well as SMU’s own faculty and administration staff.  Having such an event not only allows us to create a greater impact on the people we serve, but also builds upon a stronger and more unified SMU family,” said Ler Jie Qi, second-year business student who is also the Chairperson of this year’s SMU Challenge.

Interesting Facts & Figures

S$64000           Total amount raised, incl in-kind donations from street collection

505                    Total number of walkers for the SMU Challenge 2013 Walkathon

4500                  Total number of hours contributed by the SMU Community to this project

8 km                  Total distance walked

500                    Total number of backpacks

2,500 kg            Total weight of all filled backpacks (5 kilograms each)

5000+                Total number of steps taken from start to end point of walkathon

170                    Total number of homes helped

470kg                Total weight of washing powder donated to households

1505                  Total number of soap bars donated to households

4140                  Total number of toilet rolls donated to households

679                    Total number of toothbrushes donated to households

956                    Total number of packets and tins of biscuits donated to households

2,600                 Total number of packets of instant noodles donated to households

40                    Total number of senior citizens from Lion Befrienders Senior Activity Centres attending lunch at the end-point

About Community Service at SMU

In grooming visionary entrepreneurs and global business leaders of tomorrow, SMU prepares its students to be responsible citizens demonstrating leadership and integrity. Community service is thus an integral component of SMU students' education. All SMU students are required to complete a minimum of 80 hours in community service as part of their degree requirement.

In SMU, many students go above and beyond the minimum 80 community service hours. There is a strong culture for students to take on community service projects out of their own initiatives. Overseas community service projects are initiated and led by students. To date, SMU has given back more than one million hours to society.

SMU Gives Back

SMU offers a wide variety of student initiative and leadership to give back to society. The Centre for Social Responsibility looks after the host of community service activities that take place. SMU offers a wide range of community service opportunities from Overseas Community Service Projects (OCSP) to Nepal, Cambodia, Kenya, and China, to local community service projects such as Ballooning Blitz, Starring SMU, SMU Red Cross Blood Drive and community service clubs such as Habitat for Humanity, Rotaract Club and Uni-Y.

About SMU Challenge 2013

SMU Challenge was first initiated in 2008 with the main purpose of rallying the SMU community to give back to society. Since its initiation, it has grown from a student-managed event to one that involves the entire SMU family. SMU Challenge 2013 aims to build upon the success of its previous editions and has exceeded its initial target of $60,000. With a total of 505 walkers comprising of SMU students and alumni, staff and faculty, it can truly be said that the SMU family moves as one.