Sands China Team Members Return to Congjiang County to Visit Students and Families

Part of Sands China’s poverty relief efforts in Guizhou province

(Macao, November 20, 2019) – A group of around 60 Sands Cares Ambassadors and winners of the company’s Because We Care Team Member Awards recently went on a three-day trip funded by Sands China to visit families in Guizhou's Congjiang County, as part of Sands China’s ongoing poverty relief efforts in the county in response to the Macao SAR government’s call for targeted poverty alleviation in mainland China.

The team members visited a local primary school of around 270 students, passing out schoolbags and stationery packs in the classrooms and interacting with the students, who performed two songs to welcome their visitors. The Sands China volunteers then sang the song “My People, My Country” to express the bond between the two communities of Macao and Congjiang.

The students then led the way to their homes in the village, where team members visited with 25 families. The Sands China volunteers passed out items purchased for the families that they had brought with them, such as quilts, canned food, biscuits, and sweets. Some team members had also purchased scarves, gloves and clothing storage boxes for the families, and stayed to chat with them for a while.

While at the village, team members also took a look at the solar street lamps that Sands China had finished installing in September. A total of 560 solar-powered street lamps had been installed across five Congjiang villages, with the six-month project requiring MOP 1.6 million to accomplish.

The trip also included a visit to some local cultural spots and a chance to experience some of Congjiang’s native folk performances and local customs. Including this trip, around 100 Sands China team members have visited Congjiang to offer volunteer service.

“Sands China is very pleased to support this visit, so that we could provide our team members with a platform to personally take part in the company’s poverty relief programme in Congjiang,” said Dr. Wilfred Wong, President of Sands China Ltd. “These team members all chose to use their personal time to participate in this volunteer initiative and we are very proud of their commitment, their spirit of service, and enthusiasm in spreading love and goodwill. We hope this visit will help them to gain a better understanding of the situation in Congjiang County and would inspire many others to engage in volunteer work.”

Cheang Lai Heng, one of the team members who went on the visit, said: “It was important for me to take part in this project in order to challenge myself to translate my ideals into action, and to be an example to my friends and colleagues of how we can make our own contributions to society, no matter how small. It was also a chance for us to extend the circle of our volunteer service from Macao to the community in Congjiang, creating a stronger connection to the mainland for us. And it was especially nice to see the street lamps that the company brought to the village – it’s really improved visibility there at night.”

This week’s group of Sands China team members is the second to visit Congjiang, after a group of about 30 Sands Cares Ambassadors visited in June to share gift packs with local families. Sands China plans to organise additional Congjiang tours in the future, with the aim of contributing to the development of Congjiang’s tourism industry.

Sands China’s poverty relief efforts with Congjiang are ongoing, and the company is the first integrated resort operator in Macao to purchase goods from the impoverished county, having received four batches of products to date, including items such as chili sauce, mineral water, local oranges, and rice.

Sands China’s community service initiatives are part of Sands Cares, the global corporate citizenship programme of parent company Las Vegas Sands Corp.

Photo caption: A group of around 60 Sands Cares Ambassadors and winners of the company’s Because We Care Team Member Awards recently went on a three-day trip funded by Sands China to visit families in Guizhou's Congjiang County. This trip was part of Sands China’s ongoing poverty relief efforts in the county, in response to the Macao SAR government’s call for targeted poverty alleviation in mainland China.

Photo caption: Sands China team members visit a Congjiang primary school of around 270 students, passing out schoolbags and stationery packs and interacting with the students, as part of Sands China’s ongoing poverty relief efforts in the county.

Photo caption: Sands Cares Ambassadors visit families at a village in the mountains of Guizhou's Congjiang County Nov. 18-20, as part of Sands China’s ongoing poverty relief efforts in the county.

Photo caption: Sands China team members check out the solar street lamps that Sands China finished installing in September. A total of 560 solar-powered street lamps had been installed across five Congjiang villages, with the six-month project requiring MOP 1.6 million to accomplish.