Group photo of Group 1 with the sub-theme “Road Safety”
Following the resounding success of their seniors, 218 Public Relations students are making waves again with their upcoming PR Campaign 2014/2015 Volunteerism IV.
Evenly divided into five groups with different sub-themes, namely, Road Safety, Food Tourism, Vandalism, Environment and Charity, the Year Two and Year One students will champion their respective group’s cause through a series of thematic activities which will not only raise awareness but also contribute to the community. To do so, each group will need to raise funds in order to ensure the sustainability of their activities throughout the campaign period.
Group 1, with the sub-theme of “Road Safety”, started the fund-raising ball rolling by organising a musical drama-cum-Christmas ball titled “Hogwarts Christmas: A Route to Magical Chamber” on 10 November 2014. The event proved to be a hit amongst UTARians for attracting more than 500 people. “The sub –theme of Group 1 focuses on educating the people in Kampar about road safety and creating awareness such as being a responsible road user and others,” introduced Director of Group 1 Melody Leong Wai Lok, who also extended her gratitude to everyone during the opening ceremony for their ardent support.
This was followed by Group 4’s Environment-themed “Go Green” Food Carnival which was collaboration with Restaurant Jia, Kampar at Jalan Masjid, Kampar on 16 November 2014. Aimed to instill a commitment to environmental protection amongst the community as well as to raise funds, the successful food carnival invited Deputy Minister of Ministry of International Trade and Industry Dato’ Lee Chee Leong represented by Special Officer Siew Shen Kae, Kampar District Police Chief Supt Ng Kong Soon, Dean of Faculty of Arts and Social Science (FAS) Dr Cheah Phaik Kin, Owner of Restaurant Jia, Kampar-cum-Vice Chairperson of Kampar Hawkers and Petty Traders Assocation Choi Yuet Lay and Head of Department of Public Relations Ng Eng Kiat. Director of Group 4 Tharneswaran A/L Gunasegaran introduced the group’s approach in raising awareness on being environmental friendly by encouraging the utilisation of reusable utensils and food containers instead of disposable ones. “By doing so, we’ll be able to reduce the amount of trash produced as well as the rate of deforestation,” he added. Siew thanked the organising committee for the invitation and lauded the effort in advocating for the improvement of the nature environment. Supt Ng concurred and said, “The recent landslides and muddy floods in Cameron Highlands are caused by excessive deforestation. Hopefully the upcoming projects by this group will be able to raise the awareness of environmental protection to a next level.”
Group 3’s blazing “Ibiza Summer Beach Party” on 17 November 2014 was also attended by Dr Cheah, Ng and sponsor Seeties representative Tang Kar Ming. According to Director of Group 3 Soon Chia Jun, the group is committed to creating awareness on the impact of vandalism, which is the sub-theme, amongst UTARians, and extending to the Kampar community. “Another purpose of this campaign would be to change the negative behaviour of youngsters in order to maintain the order of public properties,” he added. Dr Cheah commended the organising committee for their concerted effort in making the event a huge. “We are also thankful to Seeties for their generous sponsorship and also their representative, Tang, who is currently our Public Relations final year student. Tang is one of the outstanding UTAR students who have not only excelled in the industry during their internship, but also hired even before they graduate,” she said in her address to the 600-strong crowd.
The “Awakening Castle” musical drama on 18 November 2014 was another fund-raising event by Group 2, whose sub-theme is “Food Tourism”. “Compared to other cities and places, ‘Kampar’ might not ring a bell in the public’s mind as a food paradise. Therefore, through our group’s campaign, we hope to promote Kampar’s food culture so that it is more widely known. At the end of the campaign, we would like to present to everyone, a self-designed directory map which indicates the location of all the delicious food,” explained Director of Group 2 Bey Bun Kiat during the opening ceremony, which attracted more than 450 students. “Through our effort in promoting Kampar as a food paradise, we also hope to attract more tourists,” he continued.
Group 5’s “Purple Charity Flea Market” held at Learning Complex 1 from 18 to 19 November 2014 was also a hit amongst UTARians. Visitors were mesmerised by the Group’s creativity in making full use of the building’s architecture and natural lighting. They arranged 28 rainbow-coloured unfolded umbrellas above the building’s air well, transforming the venue into a colourful and vibrant flea market. Director of Group 5 Joycelyn Teh said that in line with the Group’s sub-theme, “Charity”, the charity flea market will first raise funds for the Group’s upcoming charities to ease the burden of the underprivileged communities by donating basic necessities to them. “To encourage participation from staff and students, the flea market offers free Henna drawing and free redemption of mystery gifts to all November babies. This is to spread the message that even the smallest act of giving could create differences or happiness in the life of others,” said Teh, who added that the organising committee also encouraged participants to bring along 1kg of sundry goods to be donated to the needy.
PR Campaign 2014/2015 Volunteerism IV will kick off in January 2015.
