KTJ STUDENTS RAISE RM58,716 FOR COVID-19 CHARITIES

from Kolej Tuanku Ja’afar (KTJ) International School in Mantin, Negri Sembilan, have raised RM58,716 for charities and organisations involved in Covid-19 and Movement Control Order (MCO) relief efforts.

KTJ students launched their fundraising campaign on March 28, with a target of raising RM40,000 in just one week. Students, teachers and parents of the KTJ community made donations through a specially developed website created for the campaign, including RM5,000 from the KTJ school fund. The fundraising target exceeded the target by the closing date of April 3.

KTJ Form 6 student Ivan Avannus Jacob Jimbangan, who initiated the fundraising campaign, said: “When the prime minister announced the extension of the MCO, all I could imagine was the plight that many people within our community would face. My friend Luqman put it best when he said: ‘To us it might just be RMO (restricted movement order), but to them it means RM0.’ In light of this, my friends and I decided to dedicate our scholarship allowances to these families to help them. When I informed KTJ about our plans, they were thrilled and requested to make it a communitywide movement, so we started the fundraising campaign.

“Initially, our target was to reach RM40,000 and we certainly did not expect to surpass this goal by such a considerable amount. It is incredibly heartwarming to see the broader KTJ family collectively coming together to help those less fortunate than ourselves. I’m truly grateful for this experience and for the opportunity to be able to help so many people.”

The charities selected to benefit from the fundraising initiative are

Mercy Malaysia, Charity Right Malaysia, Generasi Gemilang Urgent Covid-19 Needs and NGO Hub.

These organisations provide relief for vulnerable, elderly and underprivileged individuals who are struggling through the Covid-19 crisis.

KTJ principal Dr Glenn Moodie said: “This is an amazing achievement and I am extremely proud of our students. However, this is not unexpected.

KTJ students are very concerned with ensuring that they give back to those less fortunate than themselves. The leadership that our Lower Sixth students have shown in this situation represents the sort of initiative and resourcefulness we have come to expect from the young people at our institution. Everyone at KTJ recognises the needs of others at this time and we will continue to do what we can to support the communities around us. ”