2015.03.24

Can walking contribute to public welfare? As long as you own a smartphone, you can become a volunteer by walking, staving off hunger for people in need and helping to "deliver" caring meals. More than 100 enthusiastic people participated in such an activity on the site, taking a total of 992,121 steps. Times Property Charity Foundation turned the steps into donations for caring meals to be provided by the Times Property Charity Foundation, doing so by exchanging those steps for donations of RMB 992,121 and delivering hot meals to people in need.and support facilities to build an ecologically friendly neighborhood for its clients and help more people experience the lifestyle they have always wanted.

Your 9,000 steps equal a meal for a needy person

Certainly we all appreciate the importance of exercise, but have you ever imagined that you could do good for others just by exercising? Presently, the two can be fulfilled with each and every stop you take. Simply download the "Doing Good" app on your smartphone and then join the team of "Times Property Charity Foundation · One Step for Love." Open the app, and as you walk it will tally your steps. When the count reaches 1,000, you can choose to do good in a caring meal held by Times Property Charity Foundation (once per day), and then Times Property Charity Foundation will donate RMB 1. So, when you reach 9,000 steps, Times Property Charity Foundation will donate RMB 9 and the Guangzhou Volunteers' Union will deliver a caring meal to poor empty-nesters, low-insurance, low-income and single-parent families, homeless persons and other disadvantaged citizens of Guangzhou.

The Times Property Charity Foundation has effectively established a charity platform with the "Doing Good" mobile app, introducing the concept of "one good deed each day." The Foundation advocates that all staff, owners and compassionate people in society spend their positive energy through daily walking so that the energy can be transformed into donations to help the socially, economically challenged in Guangzhou.

The Times Property Charity Foundation

The Charity Foundation was launched in 2003 by Mr. Shum Chiu Hung, the chairman and president of Times Property, as one of the first charity foundations in China to be established by a real-estate developer. It was registered with the Department of Civil Affairs of Guangzhou Province in 2007, and in 2012 it was renamed as "Guangzhou Times Property Charity Foundation."

Times Property Charity Foundation, with the objectives of "sincerity, kindness, virtue and joy," advocates the charity philosophy of "corporate citizen responsibility," publicizes the charity values of "practicing and receiving love," innovates charitable practices in the new era by "combining material support and cultural charity," promotes the development of life renewal and the reshaping of civilization, and spreads the public message "More Beautiful with Love."

The Times Property Charity Foundation has, to date, sponsored the establishment of a special-education and rehabilitation building for children, two comprehensive hospitals and 13 "Hope" primary schools. It has organized nearly 300 public activities, helped more than 3,000 cataract patients to see again and enabled 30,000 students from needy families to complete their education. Moreover, it has set up and run the Times Museum, actively promoted the civil development of the local cultural and artistic ecology centered on the Museum, and donated more than RMB 300 million to worthy causes.

This year, Times Property Charity Foundation launched the project called "One Step for Love." Motivated Times members, owners and compassionate people in the society have pledged to do "one good deed per day" in daily life and have donated RMB 270,000 to support the undertaking of the project.

Each project benefits more than 10,000 people

According to Mrs. Mo, a social worker and director of the Guangzhou Volunteers' Union, the caring meal project of Times Property Charity is held each quarter. A total of three projects will be held over three quarters, running till the end of this year. Accordingly, each project will benefit at least 10,000 citizens. Needy people in the community can file applications with their street Integrated Family Service Centers. Additionally, volunteer teams can submit applications to the Guangzhou Volunteers' Union. Subsequently, the Guangzhou Volunteers' Union will buy meals and bread-and-soymilk packages from Likoufu, doing so in a wholesale manner. Mrs. Mo commented that the caring meal project and plan by Times Property Charity will offer 450 meals per week to disadvantageous groups in the community and offer 330 bread-and-soymilk packages per week to the homeless.

The Guangzhou Volunteers' Union launched the caring meal project called "Love Alliance and Voluntary Activities" last April. Then, after the successful implementation of Phase I, the Phase II caring meal project was launched in late December. Guangzhou Volunteers' Union worked with Diandude Restaurant, Likoufu and other large chain enterprises in Guangzhou to deliver caring meals for needy people in Guangzhou. The project has garnered widespread social attention. Up till now, the two phases of the caring meal project have cooperated with 32 social-service agencies (volunteer teams) and benefited a total of 6,440 people in seven districts of Guangzhou (Yuexiu, Haizhu, Liwan, Tianhe, Baiyun, Huangpu and Panyu).

Corporate volunteerism has become a trend

Concurrent with the development of the Guangzhou program, enterprises have become eager to participate in charity and volunteer services. The latest launch ceremony demonstrates that Times Property employees and owners can contribute simply by walking. Mrs. Mo said the Guangzhou Volunteers' Union will set up a mechanism for the fostering and development of corporate volunteers, advocating that enterprises establish their own volunteer teams, take an active role in volunteerism and organize training appropriate to the services. Meanwhile, the Guangzhou Volunteers' Union will establish a complete mechanism for rewarding volunteers, encouraging the enthusiasm of volunteer corporate employees through selection and recognition, praise and incentives as well as other means. Thus the message will be conveyed that every person and entity can volunteer.

The participation of enterprises in volunteerism will bring a new element to community services and stimulate enthusiasm for the endeavor, say members of the Guangzhou Volunteers' Union. Additionally, enterprises can enhance service quality by making use of the current social resources and employees' specialties. Moreover, enterprises can enhance the quality of service by making use of the current social resources and their employees' special talents. The Guangzhou Volunteers' Union will develop more voluntary services with enterprises in order to more fully serve the needy residents of the region.