Assistant Professor Calvin Chin and the Brave Hearts runners raised more than $19,000 for hypertension research by taking part in the 2016 Standard Chartered run.
Gala dinners and wine-and-cheese bashes may be some common ways to raise funds, but the Cardiovascular Sciences and Pathology ACPs have come up with novel methods to garner funds and awareness for their causes. And they are enjoying every part of the journey by combining the efforts with personal passions!
Pathology ACP’s Associate Professor Kenneth Chang, Head of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at KKH, along with four other pathologists gamely decided to perform at a classical music recital alongside guest musicians.
Taking place on February 10, 2017, the recital will be held at the Academia Auditorium, and will include a pre-concert lecture entitled “Music, Madness and Microbiology” by KKH’s Senior Consultant of Microbiology, Adjunct Associate Professor Matthias Maiwald.
“This is our first fundraising event for the Pathology ACP, and we wanted to do something that aligns with our personal and research interests,” Assoc Prof Chang, who plays the piano, said. “We hope to reach out to donors and supports through music, while at the same time, raising the awareness for the importance and potential of pathology research.”
Above: The Jipson-Octaviani Piano Duo are part of the line-up for the Pathology ACP Recital
Over at the Cardiovascular Sciences ACP, Assistant Professor Calvin Chin, Consultant, Department of Cardiology at NHCS and his team of “Brave Hearts” runners recently raised $19,410 by participating in the Standard Chartered 42-kilometre run in December 2016. The funds raised are being channelled to the NHCS Hypertension Research Fund.
An avid runner since his National Service days, Asst Prof Chin rallied support from five running enthusiasts in NHCS to amplify the fundraising experience.
Dedicated to their mission, the “Heart To Heart Run” saw Asst Prof Chin and his colleagues conquer a gruelling four-and-half-hour long marathon. NHCS also used social media platforms to lend support by covering the team’s progress ‘live’, while at the same time, highlighting facts about hypertension, its risks and the importance of research into this prevalent chronic condition.
"Our participation as researchers sent a strong message about our strong belief in the importance of our research and efforts..."
The runners’ efforts have definitely hit a home run. The team received encouragement as people reached out to show their support via social media. The team initially had a modest fundraising target, but the total amount raised eventually exceeded their goal by almost four times.
“Persuading the general public to donate to medical research can be tough as it is not easy to understand the work that we do. The run and the online publicity efforts in the lead-up enabled us to reach out to the non-research community,” Asst Prof Chin said.
“Our participation as researchers sent a strong message about our strong belief in the importance of our research and efforts in preventing heart diseases. Hopefully, it also influenced people to partner with us in our journey as donors.”
Just as ACPs have promoted collaboration across institutions, opportunities are abound for more people to get involved in philanthropic pursuits – to promote or support the research and education causes in the different ACPs. No effort is too small, and sometimes, all it takes is a dash of creativity and lots of passion.
Assoc Prof Chang felt that while events like the recital and Cardiovascular Sciences ACP’s run may be fundraising efforts done on a smaller scale, they are just as instrumental in perpetuating a culture of giving. He shared, “Creating the awareness for giving and the importance of research and education as an AMC is an ongoing process. We don't have to wait a whole year just for a big event.”
Show your support for our Pathologists and purchase a ticket to their recital!
Book your tickets through tan.xiao.hui@sgh.com.sg or samantha.chua.x.y@sgh.com.sg
The run may be over but the race to conquer hypertension continues.
Give our researchers that extra wind by donating to the Heart To Heart Run by 15 Jan 2017!
Update: As of 22 March 2017, the Pathology ACP has raised $100,523 through the recital.
