For the last 15 years, the Consulates General of the five founding ASEAN member countries in Vancouver have organized an annual golf tournament to raise funds for local charities.
“Its our small way of showing our appreciation in Vancouver and helping the needy locally,” said Mohd Hassan Bal, the Consul General of Malaysia in Vancouver and the incoming chairman of the ASEAN Golf Tournament committee.
This year’s recipient of the group’s largesse was the St. Paul’s Hospital Foundation.
Wibanarto Eugenius, the acting Consul General of Indonesia presented the Foundation’s representative Jennifer Cheung with a $10,000 cheque at a dinner last Sunday night at the Sheraton Four Points hotel in Richmond.
St. Paul’s Hospital Foundation President and CEO, Stephen Shapiro said:
“This generous contribution will help improve the heart and lung health of hundreds of thousands of people who live, work and visit British Columbia every year. St. Paul’s Hospital Foundation applauds the Vancouver ASEAN Committee for their dedication to both the international and local communities and looks forward to building on this new partnership.”
Over the years, The Asean Golf Tournament Committee in Vancouver has raised more than $130,000 and donated the money to various charity organizations such as the BC Epilepsy Society, BC Children’s Hospital Foundation, BC Blind’s Sport & Recreations Association, Multicultural Helping House Society (Vancouver), victims of the natural calamities in Southeast Asia, and the Tapestry Foundation of the Mount St. Joseph Hospital as the beneficiaries.
This year, the tournament was held in July at the Northview Golf & Country Club.
Two of the over 140 participants struck holes-in-one. One won a car, the other got $500.
“This is a fun and challenging event which builds relationships,” said Mohd Hassan, who is planning to improve his game for next year’s tournament.