Giving to VTC

Timely relief and assistance rekindle hope for future

Mr Ken Choi, Student Development Officer at Hong Kong Design Institute (HKDI) and IVE (Lee Wai Lee), pointed out: “Students are often forced to take up part-time work due to financial pressure, which not only hinders their studies but also prevents them from getting involved in extra-curricular activities, hence affecting their personal development. Bursary awards can help lessen their economic burden and let them concentrate more on their learning.”

Bursaries also offer students hope and the impetus to carry on. Ken added: “Students’ self-esteem is usually affected by their growing-up experiences.  Timely relief and assistance will let them feel the care and concern of others, and rekindle their hopes for the future, so they could continue moving forward.”

Li Zi Jun, a fashion design student who grew up in a single-parent family, needed to purchase designated fabric and equipment with her own money for schoolwork, which increased her study expenses considerably. Fortunately, she was awarded the bursary and it allowed her to purchase a wool-knitting machine she could use at home to complete her school assignments. As a result, she could spend more time with her mother who often worked for long hours. Expressing her gratitude to the Wu Jieh Yee Bursary for the support it offered, she said: “With the bursary, I had more options in doing design work as I did not have to give up my creative ideas out of cost concerns. I also no longer needed to be engaged in part-time employment after school, which relieved my mother’s worries.” Li’s creative excellence later won her a scholarship awarded by the Hong Kong Woollen & Synthetic Knitting Manufacturers’ Association.