• Singapore’s biggest Christmas charity project joins hands with grassroots organisations in its aim to fulfil all 40,601 Christmas wishes this year

Singapore, 20 November 2013 -Riding on the success of its foray into the heartlands, The Boys’ Brigade Share-a-Gift (BBSG) project has relocated its main gift box to Bishan. Mrs Josephine Teo, Senior Minister of State for Finance and Transport, graced the opening ceremony as Guest-of-Honour, where she personally put together a BBSG food hamper to signify the project’s launch.This year marks the 26th time that BBSG is bringing festive joy to the less fortunate.

On the project’s longevity, Mrs Teo said, “I am very heartened to see BBSG returning year after year to light up the city with Christmas cheer. BBSG being able to sustain throughout the years, and grow from strength to strength, is a reflection of the nation’s strong, unwavering spirit of caring and giving. This year, BBSG has been posed with a bigger challenge- they have a greater number wishes to fulfil. I hope that all of us can join hands this year to help surmount this challenge, and touch the lives of even morepeople.”

At the opening ceremony, BBSG shared its plans to achieve the aim of fulfilling the large number of wishes. To this end, the team is working with the People’s Association and its network of grassroots organisations to rally more people to participate in this meaningful project. They are also tapping on the vast reach of Facebook to call out to the public to have a heart and share a gift.

Mr Lui Chong Chee, Chairman of the BBSG 2013 organising committee, said, “We have a huge number of wishes that we are aiming to fulfil this year. In our bid to ensure that all beneficiaries are able to experience the joy of Christmas, we are working to expand our volunteer poolthrough various channels. These include our partnerships with grassroots organisations as well as through social media. We urge all Singaporeans to join us in experiencing the BBSG journey, and brighten up the livesof the less privileged by letting them know that many people in our society are thinking about them.”

This year, longtime sponsors NTUC FairPrice and Prudential Singapore have lent their generous support to BBSGonce again.

Chief Executive Officer of NTUC FairPrice Mr Seah Kian Peng, shared, “As we celebrate the festive season, it is also important that we share the joy of the occasion to include the less fortunate in our society. This year, in addition to serving as the official collection partner, FairPrice, has also continued to pledge a contribution of $50,000 to help the project achieve its objectives. Over the last 13 years, we have donated a total of $400,000 towards this meaningful cause. To encourage more donors to play a part, we have made this project more convenient for the community to participate; customers can either dedicate their gifts through our FairPrice Online portal in the comfort of their homes or simply drop them in our selected supermarkets and Xtra hypermarkets.”

On top of their donation of $100,000, Prudential Singapore will also be adopting wishes and joining in the packing and delivery process.Mr Tomas Urbanec, Chief Executive Officer of Prudential Singapore, said,”Prudential Singapore is honoured to be supporting The Boys’ Brigade Share-a-Gift project again. Our staff and agency force will be actively participating in the various activities and we hope that more Singaporeans will join us in helping to make the festive season a happier one for the beneficiaries.”

This year, BBSG aims to fulfil the wishes of 40,691 beneficiaries, its most ambitious target to date. This includes 32,556 general wishes beneficiaries who will each receive general food and household items that can last them for three months or more, as well as 8,135 specific wishes.

From now till18 December, donors can drop off their donations of non-perishable general food and household items at the open space in Bishan Community Club, or 12 other boxes located at various NTUC FairPrice outlets (Refer to Annex A for list of BBSG 2013 gift boxes and wish tree locations).

To fulfil specific wishes, the public can adopt a Wish from any of the three Specific Wish Trees located at Ang Mo Kio HUB (FairPriceXtra), Jurong Point (FairPriceXtra) and nex Mall (FairPriceXtra). They may also purchase and donate general food and household hampers valued at $30 and $50 via NTUC FairPrice’s online portal (www.fairprice.com.sg). Wish contributions can also be made through over 840 AXS stations located island wide.

BBSG also invites Singaporeans to experience a deeper involvement by delivering gifts to the beneficiaries at the public car delivery flag-offs on 7and 14 December. Volunteers who wish to take part must register with the BBSG in advance via www.bbshare.sg.

For more information, the public can contact:

BBSG hotline at 1800 227 4273 (1800-BBSHARE) or visit the website at www.bbshare.sg