GivingNews

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world: indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has. ~ Margaret Mead

Our alumni are doing wonders for the less privileged community! KLASSics is proud to showcase the community work that these individuals are doing. Support our alumni by giving and encouraging their philanthropic causes.

Jacqui Brinkhorst, our former parent, (KLASS 2010-2019) is inspired by the colours, patterns and textures of the glass and other materials she uses, especially by the versatility and chameleon-like quality of the medium. Over the years, she has been evolving her way of working as an artist resulting in additional dimensions to her already mature techniques working with glass, ceramic and other mosaic materials. The base for her mosaic art consists either of shaped wooden panels, or cemented hand-shaped wire structures.

Masks have been a major preoccupation of Jacqui’s work reflecting those of the indigenous tribes of Borneo. Her current work looks further afield to other parts of Asia and Africa, in the serene beauty of a sleeping Buddha-, or a Geisha inspired piece, which again reflects in other projects, including 3D sculptures, wood- and cement-panels.

Last Christmas, Jacqui donated RM 4,000 to the Kechara Soup Kitchen Society in support of our Foundation’s #BuildKindness campaign. She raised money from her small mosaic animals, with the addition of bells, Christmas trees, stars and snowflakes, that quickly became lovely Christmas Hangers. Check out her work here.

In memory of Sophie Laking, a former parent (KLASS 2006 - 2013), a fund was set up in July 2013 to support the education and welfare of the girls at the Home of Peace, Kuala Lumpur.

During her time living in Kuala Lumpur, Sophie had volunteered at The Home of Peace. The home was established by Justine Morais in 1993 to offer a safe, family environment for girls born in KL, who were orphaned, abandoned or whose parents could no longer afford to keep them.

Sophie and her family were close to the girls, and to Justine, and it was decided it would be fitting to maintain a connection by establishing an educational fund to assist the girls in their development and education. You can support their cause here.

Former student (KLASS 1999 - 2004), Annabelle Hutter’s Born on Saturday was established in March 2020, with the aim to address the gap of 100% recycled cotton brands missing from the market. Founded and whollyowned by Annabelle Hutter, they are the first brand based in Bangkok with a certified fully sustainable supply chain and 100% recycled end product.

They recycle fabric waste and industrial waste to then make high-quality, circular product for everyday use. Each bag is a symbol of pioneering the use of natural plant-based recycled cotton, a recycling production process which is purely mechanical and uses no chemicals or bleaching processes to regenerate fibres. Support recycling, support her business here.

Tengku Zatashah, former student (KLASS 1978 - 1983) has been an advocate for multiple initiatives and charities. She is currently the Royal Patron for Make-A-Wish Malaysia, on the Board of Trustees of Selangor of Youth Community, Yayasan Raja Muda Selangor, Yayasan Food Bank Malaysia and The Alice Smith School Foundation.

During the fasting month, Tengku Zatashah initiated her #zerofoodwastage campaign which she kickstarted in 2016. The campaign collaborated with 14 hotels in KL to distribute excess food from their Ramadhan buffets. Through the #zerofoodwastage campaign in partnership with Kechara Soup Kitchen Society (KSK), they collected 1,737.62 kg of surplus food to feed 1,727 beneficiaries, comprising urban poor families, shelter homes, orphanages and elderly folks. She is an active KSK volunteer and strong supporter of our Foundation’s #BuildKindness campaign.

Datin Dr. Shireen Hashim, former student (KLASS 1970 - 1976) is the Group COO of KRU Group of companies. In 2017, she and her husband, Dato’ Norman established Yayasan KRU to support Malaysian youth from the B40 families to pursue skills based tertiary education programmes related to creative industry and digital entrepreneurship. They have recently developed a non-financial youth development programme to create a sustainable ecosystem to address the digital divide among Malaysian youth. The programme is known as “Kita Jaga Kita” (means “We Take Care of Ourselves”). The foundation welcomes all forms of contributions of ICT assets (smart mobile phones, tablets, laptops and desktops) that are in good working condition. Learn more here. Check out their official music video here.

Former parent, Datuk Dr. Vinod Sekhar (KLASS 2000 - 2018) is the Petra Group Chairman and Chief Executive. His Vinod Sekhar Foundation has been providing assistance in various forms to reach out to the marginalised communities in wake of the current pandemic. His Foundation has recently sponsored the food aid programme in Klang. To follow his charity work, click here.

Harith Iskander, former student (KLASS of 1971) and his wife Dr. Jezamine Lim established The Hope Branch, an initiative to raise funds for those affected by the pandemic. They have been delivering aid in the form of food, toiletries and basic supply to the homeless and urban poor in rural areas around Malaysia.

The Hope Branch is also fundraising to cover costs of purchase and delivery of PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) as well as daily supplies for daily wage earners, homeless and immigrants. They are also contributing PPE to health frontliners, Selangor Police, Perak Police, Hospital Kuala Lumpur, University of Malaya Medical Centre and other vulnerable hospitals. Learn more here.

Our #BuildKindness Journey. Making a Difference in our community.

The ongoing pandemic has brought out the best of our community when it comes to kindness, an important value at the heart of every individual.

In Aid of the 25 Urban Poor Families in Malaysia

Our community has donated generously to our #BuildKindness campaign, raising 16.6 months of food sustenance in cash and in-kind worth RM 165,734.30 to support 25 urban poor families of Kechara Soup Kitchen Society. As Malaysia was in full lockdown again recently, this donation together with the first RM 20,000 donated last year, has provided them with much needed food aid during these challenging times.

With over 5,000 alumni whom we are in contact with now, 40 alumni who represent 0.8% of our alumni community supported this campaign. Many thanks to the alumni who have donated and built kindness with us together. You did it! Your kindness has helped!

Our Year 9 students supported the campaign by developing promotional posters and videos to help raise funds as part of their service learning. They also branded and packaged 76 lovely sewn items made by the single mothers and vulnerable women of the Kechara Soup Kitchen. Watch the video here.

Volunteerism - A Form of Giving and Building Kindness

Our Foundation welcomes 47 alumni, parents, staff, students and individual volunteers who joined the Alice Smith Supporters Programme. They participated in their first volunteer work with Kechara Soup Kitchen Society. They distributed cooked food to the homeless people in KL city centre and donated dry food to the urban poor families. Watch the video here on the experiences of our volunteers.

Learn more here on how you can be part of this meaningful programme. Let’s #BuildKindness together.

In Support of Learning

To support the learning of the vulnerable Malaysian students who will be sitting for their SPM examination (IGCSE equivalent) later this year, our school’s Macbooks worth RM 17,900 were refurbished and donated to SMK Seri Kembangan, the partner of our Foundation’s inter-school project. This enabled the senior students to use the device for their online studies, assignments and research. Every gift counts and will make a difference on these students.

Building a Future Together

To ensure the long term sustainability of our school being a not-for-profit school and for the development of our students, Dotlines has generously donated toward the climbing wall at the Secondary Campus in Equine Park. Their kindness is deeply appreciated. Learn about our naming opportunities here to support our Foundation.