Manulife nourished a Hundred Families

Manuilfe Holdings Berhad joined hands with MyKasih Foundation to reach out and render assistance to 100 families in the underserved communities of Selangor and Johor Bahru through the MyKasih ‘Love My Neighbourhood’ food aid programme.

During a cheque presentation ceremony held at Sekolah Kebangsaan Bukit Lanjan (Asli) Damansara Perdana on 29th February 2016, Manulife Holdings Chief Executive Officer, Mark O’Dell said in his speech, “I am truly saddened to hear about the plight of families who are not having enough food to eat, particularly those with young children. I am concerned about their wellbeing, as it would certainly have a bearing on their performance in school and therefore, their future.”

“Through MyKasih, we hope to be able to meet the families’ basic need for nourishment. We find this to be a worthy cause to continue supporting, as we can see that what we do makes a difference, “added O’Dell.

In addition to the food aid sponsorship, Manulife also sponsored 67 sets of Back-To-School kits which were distributed to the children of its Selangor beneficiaries in conjunction with the cheque presentation ceremony. The kits comprised of school uniforms, shoes, stationery, lunch boxes and water bottles. Meanwhile, Present & Pleasant Enterprise, a long-time community partner of MyKasih Foundation, sponsored 67 BakProtek school bags.

MyKasih Foundation Chairman and Co-Founder, Tan Sri Dr Ngau Boon Keat acknowledged Manulife’s generosity in nourishing underserved communities in Selangor and Johor.

“I am grateful for this new community service partnership with Manulife. Raising the living standards of low-income households in order to meet the country’s aspiration of a high-income nation starts with helping the vulnerable poor cope with escalating costs of living,” said Tan Sri Dr Ngau.

Thanking Manulife in his speech during the event that day, MyKasih Foundation Managing Director, Jeffrey Perera said, “Without Manulife’s gift of RM72,000 towards the food aid programme, the basic needs of the families and children who are here today could not have been met.”

“When we feed a hungry person and when we nourish a child in school, we are building resilience into a community.

The impact may seem insignificant at first, but through the power of goodwill, technology and sustained actions, we can achieve the impact we seek,” added Perera.

Others in attendance at the event included Present & Pleasant Enterprise’s Director, Howard Lai, and Manulife’s food aid beneficiaries and their school-going children.

Mark O’Dell (left picture, for left) handing over the Manulife-sponsored school stationery in the BakProtek 3D Back Protection school bags sponsored by Howard Lai (right picture, centre).