Mercedes-Benz Malaysia (MBM), brought an early Christmas celebration to the folks at Yayasan Sunbeams Home through its annual social initiative; ‘Christmas in a Shoebox’. Employees, senior management from MBM and Datuk Nicol David, Mercedes-Benz Malaysia’s brand ambassador, made 40 children of Yayasan Sunbeams Home happier than usual with goodies, festive treats and enjoyable activities organised with the help of The Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPAC).
‘Christmas in a Shoebox’ is an annual social assistance initiative by Mercedes-Benz Malaysia and has reached over 6,000 children since it was first started years ago. The initiative sets out to fulfill Christmas wishes of a charitable organization (this time it was Yayasan Sunbeams Home) with each MBM employee contributing to a select wish list in order to make the children’s wishes come true.
This year, the 'Christmas in a Shoebox' were not just giving out gifts or presents wrapped in boxes, but, it included a speech and drama workshop organized by KLPAC to create even more meaningful interaction between the people giving and the children. The KLPAC workshop also aimed to foster team spirit, build individual skillsets and encouraged creativity and talent development. The children at foster homes like these do not get the opportunity to explore the arts and crafts like how children at most homes get to do. With this initiative by MBM, 40 children got to learn more than the usual. This is something memorable indeed in the long run.
Dr. Claus Weidner, President & CEO of Mercedes-Benz Malaysia explained, “Community responsibilities begin at a local level and we are proud to proactively contribute towards the needs of Malaysians in various significant ways. This annual initiative remains a key ingredient in building a positive corporate culture and allows us to share the festive cheer with the children of Yayasan Sunbeams Home. With our longstanding affair as the founding members of klpac, we were also able to showcase our support toward the local art scene by organizing mini drama and dance workshops to inspire positive character building through skillset development among the children.”
MBM employees gave the children a good morning surprise by picking them up from Yayasan Sunbeams Home in Ampang and chauffeuring them to the KLPAC grounds of the early Christmas celebration in various Mercedes-Benz models. The program started off with a picnic lunch which allowed the children an opportunity to experience relaxing outdoor spaces within the grounds where KLPAC is situated. This activity was chosen because it would allow the children to naturally come out of their shells and be more social.
As National Squash Champion Datuk Nicol David (Standing in the photo below) was also present, the children got the opportunity to meet the person who could be the greatest Malaysian professional squash player who ever played the game. Datuk Nicol took center stage to share her inspiring journey representing Malaysia in squash and continued the jovial atmosphere by getting the children to participate in a simple ball accuracy game, gathering cheers all around the room. Bringing a champion does make children have more hopes and dreams for the future. It is hoped that some of these children will have aspirations to be more like Datuk Nicol.
After that, the children were then brought to participate in a half-day speech and drama workshop, led by the Actors Studio Academy @ klpac. The workshop gave the children a chance to express themselves freely by recalling and sharing their best Christmas moments, performing Christmas carols and grooving to the familiar Christmas tunes. This is quite a rare opportunity for underprivileged children to explore the arts. A very good thing indeed.
A very sporting Michael Jopp, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, made a surprise appearance as Santa Claus. He brought gifts which were handed out to the children individually. Santa Jopp does not have Reindeers, but a nice Mercedes-AMG most likely.
“A huge thank you goes out to Mercedes-Benz Malaysia for organizing an early Christmas celebration for our children. All the activities put together for us has brought so much joy to the children and has certainly allowed them to have an unforgettable celebration with the Mercedes-Benz family and a brand they have immense adoration for,” said Pastor Alvin Tan, Chairman and Founder of Yayasan Sunbeams home.
The day must have been very memorable to the children of Yayasan Sunbeams Homes. It is good that MBM gives back to those in need in a way that is slightly different than the norm.
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