President's Star Charity show raises $10.5m, a new record

Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin, who ran the last leg of the 2,000km Relay Majulah fund-raising run, passed the baton to President Halimah Yacob during Sunday's President's Star Charity show.
Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin, who ran the last leg of the 2,000km Relay Majulah fund-raising run, passed the baton to President Halimah Yacob during Sunday's President's Star Charity show. PHOTO: MEDIACORP

This year's President's Star Charity show raised almost $10.5 million, breaking last year's record of $8.3 million.

The show, which was televised live on Sunday, is an annual fund-raiser by Mediacorp under the President's Challenge.

President Halimah Yacob, who was the guest of honour at the event, said on Facebook on Monday that the show was an evening filled with touching stories of those who have overcome adversity to turn their lives around.

Noting the record amount raised during this year's show, Madam Halimah thanked the public for their support of the President's Challenge over the past 19 years.

"Together, we can work towards a caring and inclusive Singapore," she said.

Sunday's charity show was hosted by news presenter Glenda Chong and actor Chua Enlai, and had a segment featuring artists performing a rendition of Teresa Teng's The Moon Represents My Heart - a tribute to the President's Star Charity founder and late former president Ong Teng Cheong.

A clip of Mr Ong delivering a piano performance of the ballad during the 1999 charity show was played alongside Sunday's rendition of the song.

The first President's Star Charity show was held in 1994.

Another highlight of the show was a segment featuring Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin running the last leg of Relay Majulah, a President's Challenge fund-raising relay run that saw 200 runners cover 2,000km in about 200 hours.

Mr Tan ended the eight-day relay by symbolically passing the baton to Madam Halimah onstage.

All proceeds from the charity show will help the 67 beneficiaries backed by the President's Challenge.

The beneficiaries include Club Heal, a charity that supports the societal reintegration of individuals with mental health issues; Very Special Arts; and Touch Community Services, a multi-service organisation that provides eldercare, childcare and family support services.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on November 13, 2019, with the headline President's Star Charity show raises $10.5m, a new record. Subscribe