About Us - Chairman's Message

Dear Patrons,

It has been already 6 months since I was elected to serve as the Chairman of the Foundation.  Many things have happened during this time.  I would like to take advantage of this platform to update everyone on what the Foundation has been doing.  Indeed, thanks to the support of our trustees and many volunteers, the Foundation, a new charitable trust founded in Nov 2009, is meanwhile continuing to make steady progress.

In line with the changes of office-bearers of the Josephian Association (“JA”), new trustees have also been appointed over the last 6 months.  Mr. Anthony Mak (SJACS ‘90), Vice Chairman of JA, Dr. Sammy Chen (SJACS ‘95), Secretary of JA and Mr. Roger Lam (SJACS ‘82), Treasurer of JA, have since joined me as well as other existing trustees, Mr. Li Hon Keung (SJACS ‘72), Mr. Andrew Li (SJACS ‘72) and Mr. Ng Man Kin (SJACS ‘81), in overseeing the Foundation’s affairs.  Nevertheless, it was with much regret that Mr. Peter Yeung (SJACS ‘75), the first Chairman of the Foundation, had resigned from the Board. On behalf of the Foundation, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Peter for his significant contribution at the early stage of the Foundation.  On the other hand, I am pleased to report that Mr. Irving Koo, the newly appointed School Supervisor of St. Joseph’s Anglo Chinese School (“SJACS”), has agreed to become an Honorary Advisor of the Foundation.

Based on the outcome of the strategic workshop conducted for the trustees by Aon Hewitt Associates, a renowned management consulting firm, on a pro bono basis, in March 2011, we have since settled the vision and mission statements of the Foundation.  The Foundation’s vision is to become a leading education charity, making quality education accessible to all and inspiring our young to achieve excellence, while our mission is to continue the spirit and legacy of the late Rev. Bro. Paul Sun, in promoting quality education to our young and encouraging the achievement of excellence.  As the Foundation goes forward, these statements will constitute the cardinal principles on how our work will be guided.

The first project of this Foundation is to help raise funds for our mother school, SJACS, in support of adding facilities for the new campus and the development of new incentive programs for our younger brothers.  The target is HK$ 1.5 million, and the first HK$ 500,000 was donated to the School on March 19, 2011.  The Foundation has agreed with the School Principal, Mr. Paul Yeung, to make the second HK$ 500,000 donation again on St. Joseph’s Day in 2012, and on the same day, plans are now being made for a ceremony to name the School’s new hall, “Rev. Bro. Paul Sun Memorial Hall”.

With the strong support of our School Principals, teachers, alumni, including not only those in Hong Kong but also overseas (Toronto, Vancouver and  US West) and friends of the Foundation, I am very pleased to note that the Foundation has raised close to HKD 900,000 since Nov 2009.  Obviously, it is still some way before we can get to our target of HK$ 1.5 million.

In view of this, the Foundation has been very active in fund raising.  Working closely with JA, we have organized many functions, including a boat cruise, dinner gatherings at unique venues, football and basketball matches, and the Speakers’ Forum, over the last 6 months. These activities not only helped the Foundation raise funds but also offered opportunities for alumni and their families and friends to re-connect themselves.

As the Chairman of the Speakers’ Forum series, I am very pleased to report that through the past 3 Speakers’ Forum events, the Foundation has successfully raised more than HK$ 300,000.  The 4th event is scheduled to take place on Feb 16, 2012, and the keynote Speaker this time is our alumnus, Professor Johannes Chan (SJACS ‘76), Dean, Faculty of Law, University of Hong Kong.  I am sure that the topic of his talk, “Judicial Review: An Unnecessary Evil?”, would be as interesting and entertaining as those delivered by the three predecessors, namely Dr. Allan Zeman, the Father of Lan Kwai Fong, Professor K. C. Chan, another alumnus (SJACS ‘74) and Secretary of Financial Services and Treasury, and Mr. Francis Kwok, Marketing Director of Bright Smart Securities and renowned stock commentator.  Seats for this dinner event are meanwhile open for reservation and going fast.  Please contact any of the trustees to secure your reservation.

While your donation support is important, the Foundation would also need more volunteers and Trustee Li Hon Keung is coordinating the recruitment effort.  Please do come forward to offer your assistance and contact Hon Keung.

I expect that 2012 would be another busy year for the Foundation, and I am very much looking forward to reporting further progress in my next half-yearly update.  Meanwhile, on behalf of all the trustees, may I wish everyone a happy, healthy and fruitful New Year!