November Capsule Launch | Wellness Forum

Keeping busy with our monthly S.Nine Capsule Release, this month we are adding in more gorgeous selections in lustrous fabrics and styles. I am inspired by the new energy of strength and positivity that have sprung back after all the struggles with adjustments in our lives. With the new small batch releases, I love how S.Nine is now even more capable to reflect the true essence of our spirits as well as answering to the S.Nine woman's needs. 

As for our Wellness Forum this month, I would like to highlight the Nov 25th global awareness - "Elimination of violence against women's day". I have immediately think of our locally focused charity, The Women Helping Women Hong Kong (WHWHK), that focuses on the exact same issues in our own city. Check out our conversation on her journey and how to extend your help.

Wellness Forum: 

Elimination of violence against women's day

On November 25th, the world brings the issue of violence and abuse against women into the spotlight. This is an issue that happens not just in developing countries, but also some deeply rooted traditional views and culture that have not been eradicated for centuries. In here, I would like to highlight a local charity, Women Helping Women Hong Kong (WHWHK) and a deep-dive conversation with the founder.

1. Do you remember the pivotal moment when you decided to start WHWHK? What was the driving force behind such decision? Why focusing on violence and abuse against women and children in Hong Kong?

Having worked in the corporate business for some years, I wanted to do something more meaningful, to do more than just issuing cheques to local charitable organisations. Which is why, in 2010, I co-founded the Women Helping Women Hong Kong (WHWHK), a non-profit organisation that strives to help less fortunate families facing domestic violence and abuse in Hong Kong. My work experience and leadership skills prepared me for my journey of giving. I felt passionate about helping women and I have the heart and interest in charity work especially the women and children who are facing domestic violence and abuse in Hong Kong. 

The main reason we decided to focus on our cause was the research revealed that Domestic Violence and Child Abuse in Hong Kong was on the raise and there was a lot of room to contribute to this meaningful cause.  The cost of living in Hong Kong is high, one out of five people living in the city is in the low-income sector. Hong Kong is our home and to monitor the programs and measure the success and its effectiveness it is best to keep the organization focused on this cause. 

2. What are the difficulties you have encountered through this journey?

Our organization is run by a group of dedicated dynamic ladies who are like-minded and want to serve their community, therefore we bare the operating costs in our organization in order to maximize the funding toward our programs. We always aim at keeping our programs targeted, on-going and sustainable. However, due to the Covid-19 global epidemic affected us as we continue to raise funds for our programs. We are unable to do our annual gala and have lost many major corporate funding. We desperately need funding to keep our programs running. There is a bigger need right now that many single mothers have lost their jobs and may not be able to support themselves. Domestic violence numbers are raising and there is need for additional funding to help this sector. We are grateful for our donors and sponsors who believe in us and continued their support over the years. We hope for more funding from the general public so we can continue our mission. Please visit our website https://www.whwhk.org/and support this important cause.

3. What are some of the ways people can help?

As long as people have a caring heart, everyone can help, no matter how big or small by donating to WHWHK. 100% of funds raised will go toward our programs which directly aid women and children. We need funding and welcome all donations.

How do you feel that household violence and abuse could be prevent?

Domestic Violence and abuse always have been a real issue in many countries, especially in big cities where there is a big gap between rich and poor. It is hard to totally eradicate violence and it needs a lot of education and building awareness in the community. This is what some of our programs were aimed to do to raise awareness and educate. Low income families tend to have lower level of education and are more likely to face violence at home. We strive to educate couples and children through therapy sessions, counselling and group workshops to learn such skills to avoid conflict and anger. We are taking steps toward educating and empowering families to deal with domestic issues and live a happier and more productive lives. We certainly need more help to raise funding so we can continue our programs. So far we have assisted over 50,000 women and children in Hong Kong, there is still a lot of work to be done.

4. Which was your all time favourite story during this journey? How have the charity changed people’s life?

I am proud of creating WHWHK as a platform to bring about a spirit of giving among my friends and a positive force of good to help those in need in our community. During the last 10 years I have met many women who come through our programs and I have seen many touching stories that brought tears to one’s eyes. Our program users are always thankful for these programs that helped them overcome their crisis and share their success story with us as well as those who made big changes and gained back their dignity and were able to start new fulfilled lives. I am moved by these positive stories and gives me the courage to continue my charity work. We wanted to empower women to do better for themselves and be a contributing member in the society, and we also wished their kids to grow up with love and good family values, to get educated and have productive lives. The future of Hong Kong depends us to lend a helping hand to those in need.

5. Any upcoming projects, activities or updates you could share with us?

We are very excited we are celebrating the 10th Anniversary of WHWHK. It is a decade of progress toward a meaningful cause. We are certainly happy that we are a beacon of hope for many women and a voice for those who cannot speak out. It is tough issue and we strive to continue this positive momentum. We plan to collaborate with different NGOs to set much needed programs to continue assisting women and children. We like to invite brands and welcome CSR funding. We intend to raise awareness as well as much needed funds for WHWHK in the coming years. Currently we have a program in collaboration with Hong Kong Young Women’s Christian Association (YMCA) & Hong Chi Association which provides urgent accommodation and immediate cash assistance to the affected women and children facing hardship during Covid-19 global epidemic. Please visit our website: https://www.whwhk.org/ to read more about our current programs and updates as well as how to donate to this worthy cause.