It is through our love and generosity towards others that we express gratitude for the benefits we have received.  Last night, the College held its second annual fund raising dinner.  Li Po Chun United World College is unlike most schools in that all the funds we raise will be used to benefit needy causes outside the College – we do not fund raise for our own benefit.  It is not that we don’t have significant funding needs – our lack of an auditorium springs immediately to mind as we do not have a place where the entire community can gather together and communicate under shelter!  Nonetheless, the spirit of a true serving community is to ignore whatever needs you have for yourself and focus on the needs of others – those who suffer through illness, through deprivation, through persecution, through poverty, through discrimination.  At our fund raising dinner, we attempted to express our concern for others through positive action.

There are four worthwhile causes that will receive the funds from last night’s efforts:

1. Providing scholarships for needy primary aged children of the Yao minority group in rural areas of China.

2. Initiative for Peace (IFP), a student group at the College that is working to build better understanding between young people in India and Pakistan over the disputed region of Kashmir.

3. Global Concerns Action Team (GCAT), a student group at the College that engages in active service to help lepers in south-west China, needy primary school students in rural China and homeless children in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

4. The Mandela Fund, named after the UWC President, Nelson Mandela, supports students from Africa who find themselves in desperate need due to poverty or political upheaval.

The dinner was a great success in every sense of the word.  Our canteen was overflowing as we did not have enough space to accommodate all those who wanted tickets.  The waiters at the tables were the students from GCAT and IFP, many dressed in their colourful national costumes, and even the dinner auction was conducted – with great enthusiasm and good humour – by our own students.  Dinner was followed by a spectacular international cultural performance in the sports centre.  To rapturous applause, the audience appeared to be in awe of the immense talents of our students as they performed to a professional standard of excellence for over two hours.

The evening was a great success, due in large part to the work of Esther Chau who organised the dinner and Li Ping who co-ordinated the cultural performances.  But the greatest credit is due to our students, whose tireless efforts and seemingly boundless energy have raised tens of thousands of dollars that will make a huge difference to many people whose genuine needs make our own wants seem glib by comparison.