MEDIA RELEASE

EVERY STEP COUNTS IN PROMOTING AWARENESS AND RAISING FUNDS FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES AT THE SPD ABILITY WALK & RUN

SINGAPORE, 24 November 2021 – The SPD Ability Walk & Run returns with a second year of its virtual edition, rallying individuals and corporates to advance the disability cause and raise much needed funds for persons with disabilities. 

Organised in conjunction with the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) which falls on 3 December annually, the virtual SPD Ability Walk & Run is being held from now until December 2021.  

This year’s walk was launched last Saturday on 20 November with a simple cheque presentation at the SPD Ability Centre. Gracing the occasion were Guest-of-Honour, Dr Tan See Leng, Minister for Manpower and Second Minister for Trade and Industry, as well as several sponsors of the event. 

Close to $170,000 has been raised so far from the event this year, with over 3,600 participants having signed up to show their support for people with disabilities. Eleven corporate partners have also committed their support, including diamond sponsor TechnipFMC, which has been a sponsor of the Walk since it was first held in 2016. 

Mr Philip Pang from TechnipFMC, who is one of the participants of the Walk, said: “This is an event we always look forward to every year as it had provided our staff with the opportunity to come together to do good and enjoy the camaraderie. We continue to support the Walk although it has not been able to take place physically in the last two years because we see how critical our support is especially during this difficult time and that SPD’s beneficiaries need support more than ever. We are very happy that we are still able to do our part for the community this period.”  

Fellow participant of the Walk, Ms Helern Tan echoed Mr Pang’s thoughts: “I’m proud to be working with a company like TechnipFMC that supports organisations like SPD during this tough period. This strengthens our commitment and our bond with the beneficiaries. I look forward to this Walk every year.” 

While missing the disability simulation activities that used to be the mainstay of the physical event prior to the COVID-19 situation, the virtual edition allows participants to walk anytime and anywhere at their convenience, within a two-week window.  

Activities and Challenges for the Event 

In this virtual edition, participants are encouraged to make a donation or set up online campaigns to raise funds for the people with disabilities SPD serves. Those that team up to clock the longest distance collectively will receive customised event T-shirts sporting their team name and the distance they had covered. 

What’s New this Year 

To up the challenge this year, a corporate challenge trophy was introduced for corporates to meet the duo objectives of doing their bit for charity while encouraging their staff to exercise and boosting team bonding in their organisations. A milestone challenge was also introduced for participants to challenge themselves in achieving 50km in total for the duration of the event. 

Employees from ASML have also stepped up to raise funds for persons with disabilities by participating in the corporate challenge. Mr Kevin Choong from ASML, said, “The SPD Ability Walk & Run has offered us an ideal platform for our employees to band together to get fit, bond with each other within safe measures, while contributing to a meaningful cause. It is also heartening to see the number of employees who have come forward to show their support for persons with disabilities. We strongly encourage other corporates to come onboard this worthwhile endeavour.”  

Participants who post their Walk photographs on social media will also stand to win 10 goodie bags comprising an SPD tote bag and $20 worth of vouchers from ice-cream and coffee life-style café Creamier. They just have to follow SPD and tag @SPDSingapore and #SPDAbilityWalkRun in their photographs.   

Interested individuals can register for free for the SPD Ability Walk & Run 2021 on https://web.42race.com/race-bundle/spd2021 or make a donation at https://www.giving.sg/spd/spd_ability_walk_and_run_2021 . 

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