The growing needs and demands from our community has prompted HKCS to work with business corporations to meet those challenges. In recent years, we had become close partners with the Bauhaus Company Limited and the Image by Y.Y. Limited.

These two companies not only sponsored but also participated in a number of our youth service projects, especially in caring for the unemployed and school dropouts. The projects included Youth Employment Scheme (1996), Project City (1999 - 2003), Path Creation Project (2003 - 2004) and Life Engagement Training Scheme (2004 - Present). Their great support and cooperation fostered confidence among the unemployed and school dropouts. As a result, some of the service recipients resumed schooling and others became a source of skilled manpower for society.

Our service users also received endless care and concern from GE International Limited and its volunteers, the Elfun group. Our collaboration with GE could be traced back to summer of 2004. Upon learning that a group of elders was suffering from financial difficulty due to house removal, GE offered immediate help by giving 300 sets of fluorescent lights to 150 elderly families.

Last Christmas the GE Elfun group dressed up as Santa Clauses and participated in our Secret Santa program, which aimed to cultivate a caring attitude among deprived children in spite of the tough times they were going through. Children from deprived families were invited to write up well wishes as Christmas gifts to their loved ones. Other collaborations included the Beautification Project for our Elderly Home and the Collection of Second Hand Story Books for the Day Care Centre, Integrated Children and Youth Service, Project SASA and Project Connection.

Our business partners strongly advocate that the business sector should be actualizing corporate social responsibility via different platforms, as well as providing society with care and support for the needy. We were very impressed that our corporate volunteers became so involved in promoting corporate citizenship.

It is our intent to acknowledge all our business partners through the Good Corporate Citizenship Scheme, launched by the Hong Kong Council of Social Service. The idea involved awarding the Caring Company Logo to nominated companies in recognition of their contributions in the areas of volunteering, employing the vulnerable, mentoring, being family-friendly, partnering and giving.

The companies nominated by us and were presented the Caring Company Logo Awards (2004) included Bauhaus, Crest Consultants (Far East) Ltd, Fast Base Enterprises Ltd, General Electric International Inc, Handi Design Ltd, Image by YY Limited, Lai On Products Industries Ltd, Mattel Asia Pacific Sourcing Ltd, Multiaccess Trading Company, Securicor Hong Kong Holdings Ltd, Sino Estates Management Limited and The Firm Ltd.

A spirit of care for the community and a cohesive society can be built through cultivating corporate citizenship and strategic partnership between the business and social service sectors. It would be great to see more and more corporations join in the force of volunteering in the future.