University YMCA (Uni-Y) Singapore wins Singapore Youth Award 2014

*Photo credit: National Youth Council

For its exceptional humanitarian efforts and outstanding contribution in cultivating a spirit of volunteerism and leadership amongst the youth of Singapore, University-YMCA Singapore (Uni-Y) was conferred the Singapore Youth Award 2014, the nation’s highest accolade to honour exceptional young people who enrich the hearts and souls of the community and bring distinction to the nation.

Volunteers Mr Zhao Wen Wei, Member, Council of Uni-Y Singapore 2014 and Mr Terence Khoo, Director, Community Service, Uni-Y NTU received the Award from Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance at a presentation ceremony at the Istana on Sunday, 6 July 2014.

In his acknowledgement speech, Wen Wei said, “Uni-Y is humbled to receive this award. As volunteers, we serve because we are passionate about making a positive difference to society.”

The Singapore Youth Award (SYA) was established in 1975 to honour exceptional young people who enrich the hearts and souls of the community and bring distinction to the nation. Through these young Singaporeans who have the vision, a “can-do” attitude towards challenges, a “never-say-die” spirit in the face of adversity, the courage to "walk the talk", and the passion to “serve by doing”, they have helped to make a better world for all.

Mr Jimmy Ong, Manager, Youth Development Programmes, YMCA of Singapore said that the award will spur Uni-Y to strive harder in its mission to develop and empower youth to be servant leaders who will impact our local and international communities.

“2015 will mark the 10^th anniversary of Uni-Y Singapore, and we hope the celebration of this milestone will be a reflection of what we have done and what we will continue to do, that is to create social impact through youth empowerment,” said Mr Ong, “We will continue to rally more youths to join Uni-Y in serving the community, and to enrich these youths holistically as they commit their time, skills and talents to touch lives and lift spirits among the less-privileged.

Mr Ong also hopes that the Award will serve as an inspiration. He said, “We hope that youth would be able to live out the 4C’s – Commitment, Competence, Confidence, and Character; to complete what we start, use our skills to serve others, and to Lead through service to be the positive difference!

Uni-Y is the University Service Club under the YMCA of Singapore and was first established at SMU in 2005. Subsequently, Uni-Y clubs were also established at NUS and NTU in 2007 and 2009 respectively.

For more information about the award and to view the highlights and videos, please visit the YMCA website at www.ymca.org.sg/SYA2014 or YMCA of Singapore's Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/YMCA.Singapore.