The Children-At-Risk Empowerment (CARE) Association of Singapore is one of six selected beneficiaries of the Dollar Matching programme recently launched by Microsoft Singapore this year to increase its fundraising support to nonprofit groups in Singapore.
Established in 1997, CARE Singapore is a registered charity and a youth development agency that provides school-based social work services, especially in reaching out to youth at risk of academic failure, behavioural problems and delinquency. CARE's work is funded by government grants and donations from corporations or individuals. Donations made by Microsoft and its employees will contribute significantly to enriching the lives of more than 1,000 young people.
Microsoft will match the donated sum made by its Singapore employees (up to SGD500 per employee) to support various CARE projects, which are designed to motivate, inspire and redirect at-risk children toward positive life choices. Microsoft’s donations to CARE Singapore are coordinated by Ammado, one of Microsoft’s global nonprofit partners.
“Microsoft Singapore employees are committed to supporting CARE Singapore in impacting the lives of young people in Singapore. Youth development is a core focus of Microsoft’s community outreach and philanthropy programmes worldwide, and we want to support our Singapore employees in raising funds to sustain CARE projects,” said Yun Seong Yong, General Manager, Microsoft Asia Pacific Operations Centre.
The donation programme will go toward opening up more opportunities for CARE beneficiaries, such as secondary school student JY (not her real name), to develop and achieve their full potential. Abandoned by her parents since she was one, JY resorted to self-mutilation to cope with her emotional problems. The support she received through the CARE programme has helped JY to become more emotionally resilient and adopt a more positive attitude toward life.
Adelyn Poh, Co-founder and Director of Enterprise at CARE Singapore, said, “In the past few years, CARE Singapore has been able to expand our youth development services, thanks to the generous support of our corporate sponsors such as Microsoft. Donations made by the Microsoft Singapore employees will enable our
team to continue helping at-risk children gain confidence and overcome the social or economic disadvantages they face.”