Shangri-La Hotel, Kuala Lumpur held its ‘Embrace the Gift of Life’ Buka Puasa Charity Dinner on 15 June, 2017. The annual charity event, which took place between 6.30pm to 9pm at the Sabah room was held in conjunction with the Embrace the Gift of Life Charity Project, where a total of RM 400,700 was donated by the hotel to aid 11 children suffering from severe heart ailments to undergo life-saving heart surgeries.
The event was graced by guest of honour, KDYMM Sultanah Tuanku Nur Zahirah, the Sultanah of Terenganu who presented the cheques to the parents of the children together with Mr. Manfred Weber, Area General Manager of the Shangri-La Hotel, Kuala Lumpur. The age of these children range from two months to 16 years.
“Since 1985, the ‘Embrace the Gift of Life’ charity project, by Shangri-La Hotel, Kuala Lumpur has successfully raised over RM 4 million and helped over 300 children suffering from congenital heart disease to undergo operations. Staying true to our CSR commitment, we are delighted to donate funds to help 11 critically ill children to attain a new lease of life year” said Mr Weber.
The funds raised are paid directly to the hospital so that the children can be operated on without delay. Some of the children have already gone for their operations and are recovering well.
The Buka Puasa Charity Dinner this year was also joined by 100 children from four charity organisations – Tasputra Perkim, Pusat Penjagaan Kanak-Kanak Cacat Taman Megah, Pusat Jagaan Kasih Harapan and The National Cancer Society of Malaysia. These four charity organisations each received a donation of RM5,000 from the hotel.
In the spirit of the festive season, KDYMM Sultanah Tuanku Nur Zahirah, Mr Manfred Weber and Datuk Rosemarie Wee, Area Director of Communications presented the children with duit raya and goodie bags. The children had an enjoyable time mingling with the staff of the hotel who were present to assist and keep them company.
About Embrace the Gift of Life
The Embrace Gift of Life charity programme is an annual fundraising project initiated by Shangri-La Hotel, Kuala Lumpur since 1985.The charity programme is a long-term commitment to raise funds through donations to provide medical funds for children suffering from congenital heart disease or hole-in-the-heart disease to undergo life-saving operations and post-operative treatments.
The hotel’s “Embrace the Gift of Life” charity project raises funds through a Christmas Charity Tree with a unique theme each year. In 2016, the tree had the theme Santa and His Elves. A total of 140 sets of Santa and His Elves, which were sponsored by donors at RM 1,000 each were created by the hotel’s pastry artists.
The Hotel’s charity project has raised over RM4 million in donations for the past 32 years and has successfully helped over 300 children in Malaysia to undergo life-saving surgeries.