Tag Archives: Willing Hearts

Chefs from the World Gourmet Summit Volunteer at Willing Hearts

Three chefs from the annual World Gourmet Summit – Australia’s Ian Curley, Lucas Glanville of the Grand Hyatt Singapore and Dallas Cuddy of Prime Society — have volunteered their time at Willing Hearts to help cook-up over 3500 meals for the underprivileged, following an introduction by ONE (SINGAPORE).

27 March 2014 (SINGAPORE) – Non-profit community organisation Willing Hearts had extra hands today as world-renowned Chef Ian Curley spent the morning in their soup kitchen, helping the team of dedicated volunteers prepare close to 3,500 meals for the underprivileged in Singapore. Chef Curley was joined by Grand Hyatt Singapore’s Executive Chef Lucas Glanville and the Head Chef from premium Australian Steakhouse Prime Society,Dallas Cuddy. All three Chefs are taking part in this year’s 18th World Gourmet Summit. Chef Curley, a champion of similar initiatives in Melbourne, Australia, and a close friend of both Chef Glanville and Chef Cuddy rallied the gentlemen to take part in this charitable cause close to his heart.

 

27 Mar 2014 (1)

[L-R] Chef Lucas Glanville (Grand Hyatt), Chef Ian Curley, Willing Hearts Vice President Charles Liew and Chef Dallas Cuddy (The Prime Society)

 

Speaking after his morning at Willing Hearts, Chef Curley said, “It’s a privilege to be able to volunteer here at this incredible organisation and support this amazing team of volunteers, day-in, day-out. As an advocate for similar initiatives in Australia, I wanted to spend my time wisely when in Singapore for the World Gourmet Summit, not only with the events lined up over the next week but also getting in touch with the community at all levels and helping out wherever I can. It was even more special with Chef Glanville and Chef Cuddy joining me and sparing their time for this incredible cause.”

 

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Chef Ian Curley (Left), The Prime Society Head Chef Dallas Cuddy (Centre) and Grand Hyatt Executive Chef Lucas Glanville

 

Speaking after his morning at Willing Hearts, Chef Curley said, “It’s a privilege to be able to volunteer here at this incredible organisation and support this amazing team of volunteers, day-in, day-out. As an advocate for similar initiatives in Australia, I wanted to spend my time wisely when in Singapore for the World Gourmet Summit, not only with the events lined up over the next week but also getting in touch with the community at all levels and helping out wherever I can. It was even more special with Chef Glanville and Chef Cuddy joining me and sparing their time for this incredible cause.”

Chefs Curly, Glanville and Cuddy were introduced to Willing Hearts by a partner organisation, ONE (SINGAPORE), which works to raise awareness of social issues and eliminate poverty both locally and overseas. “This partnership between the World Gourmet Summit and Willing Hearts is a great example of how companies can apply their core competencies to make a positive contribution to the community,” says ONE (SINGAPORE) President Nichol Ng. “Food issues are close to our heart and we take our hats off to Chefs Curly, Glanville and Cuddy for taking time to volunteer and share their expertise, despite very hectic schedules.”

Charles Liew, Vice President of Willing Hearts, said, “We consider every volunteer a blessing, and were very happy to hear that an international chef such as Chef Curley and his friend, the renowned Executive Chef of the Grand Hyatt, Lucas Glanville, were making time to spend with us here at Willing Hearts to help in our mission to help prepare daily meals to the underprivileged, needy, and marginalised members of our society. Chefs Curley, Glanville and Cuddy have been an incredible help here today, and more importantly, we hope that their time with us this morning will help to spread the word of what we are doing and to inspire others in Singapore and beyond to volunteer their time for those less fortunate, even if it is just a few hours a week.”

27 Mar 2014 (3)WGS International Masterchef Ian Curley (Front) and Grand Hyatt Executive Chef Lucas Glanville (Back) help cook meals at Willing Hearts

 

Mr. Peter Knipp, CEO of Peter Knipp Holdings, parent company of World Gourmet Summit organisers A La Carte Productions, said, “Food and water are perhaps the most critical elements in our existence. As a former Chef, I absolutely loved preparing meals for my diners, be it for their special evening or a simple night out. When I prepare a meal now, I still know it makes a difference and means a lot to those close to me.”

“But it goes beyond my kitchen – the work done by Charles and his team at Willing Hearts is simply incredible. Charity is a big part of what we do, specifically our annual World Gourmet Summit Charity Dinner which has raised over S$5 million over the years. But what Chef Curley, Chef Glanville and Chef Cuddy have done today is simply incredible. We are proud of the three Chefs and their dedication to helping the community,” said Mr. Knipp.

Chef Curley was full of praise for the Willing Hearts volunteers. “I’ve only been able to spend a morning here, but together with Chefs Glanville and Cuddy, we were just blown away by these wonderful folks at this kitchen, led by Charles. It was incredibly heart-warming for all of us to see people giving up their own time for those around them, and I would encourage everyone to find the time to spend even just a few hours here whenever they can,” said Chef Curley.

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For media enquiries please contact:

Ananya Singhania
Fulford Public Relations
E: asinghania@fulfordpr.com
D: +65 6327 2284
M: +65 9847 5306

Alex Jafarzadeh
Fulford Public Relations
E: ajafarzadeh@fulfordpr.com
D: +65 6324 5286
M: +65 9698 2472

  

About Willing Hearts

Willing Hearts is a 100% volunteer-based non-profit organisation, registered as a society, with a vision of improving the lives of the underprivileged and marginalised by providing them with daily meals, and helping them to become useful members of society. Founded in 2005, the organisation operates a soup kitchen, preparing, cooking and distributing 3,500 meals across Singapore everyday.

Would-be volunteers can visit the Willing Hearts website at www.willinghearts.org.sg/volunteer to find out more on how they can help.

About the World Gourmet Summit
The World Gourmet Summit is an international gastronomic extravaganza organised by À La Carte Productions (a division of Peter Knipp Holdings Pte Ltd), supported by the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), and presented by Citibank. The World Gourmet Summit will celebrate its 18th anniversary in 2014.

An annual epicurean festival that showcases the intricate craftsmanship of prestigious chefs; it is also an exposition of internationally acclaimed vintners. Encompassing a series of dazzling events like the vintner dinners and celebrity dinners, it is a gourmet spectacular specially crafted for discerning individuals who appreciate fine wines and gourmet cuisine.

Since 2000, the World Gourmet Summit has been raising funds through its annual Charity Dinners in support of the Community Chest, the fund-raising arm of the National Council of Social Service (NCSS). The charity dinners have raised over S$5 million (approximately U$3.9 million) with the generosity of its distinguished guests through table sales, charity auctions as well as donations.

www.worldgourmetsummit.com

Impressions from the ONE Food Drive

By Melissa Chong

Cars stream in during an 8-hour food drive, greeted by ONE (SINGAPORE) volunteers and Class 95FM DJs Vernetta Lopez, Jean Danker, Glenn Ong and Marilyn Lee. The DJs are visibly touched by the overwhelming generosity of donors opening their hearts as well as their wallets.

The event – The ONE Food Drive – is organised by ONE (SINGAPORE) with the support of Class 95FM to collect food for the hungry.

Wait – hunger in Singapore?

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“It’s amazing, I didn’t realise our car boot could fit so much stuff!” chuckle a group of ladies while unloading thirteen sacks of rice into the warehouse. They vouch that they are loyal Class 95FM listeners who heard the radio announcement and emptied the shelves of a NTUC supermarket to help out.

Joseph Sim, a father of two young children, also hit the stores the same day after hearing the radio announcement. He arrives with bags of assorted groceries worth $480.

“I wanted to teach my children from a young age that we should donate when we can”, he tells us.

Jointly organized by ONE (SINGAPORE) and Class 95FM, a publicity campaign including social media has been launched to encourage the donation of non-perishable food items to the those in need.

“We traded a few ideas and decided – let’s start with something really basic which people can grasp, something which everyone can get involved in. So we said ok, let’s tackle hunger”, explains Michael Switow, co-founder of ONE (SINGAPORE).

And yes, hunger does exist in prosperous Singapore. While there are no official statistics, a commmunity survey by Food for All in 2009 noted that some 12,000 Singaporean households rely on supplementary food rations provided by Family Service Centres, Residential Committees (RCs) and charities.

Food items collected in the drive are being given to two beneficiary group: The Food Bank Singapore and Willing Hearts.

“ONE (SINGAPORE) would like to bring attention to groups which don’t receive as much attention”, Michael adds.

Bulk items collected in the food drive are donated to Willing Hearts – a local soup kitchen that cooks 3,000 meals for various distributions points across the island, every day of the year. To run operations at such a massive scale, they depend heavily on the goodwill of donors and say the food collected through this drive will go a long way.

“It’s about one-months supply of food. From here, the food will go to our kitchen. We’ll serve meals to old folks, the sick, single parents and jobless. Many live in one-room, two-room flats. It’s a wide range of people”, says Charles Liew, Treasurer of Willing Hearts.

Assorted bags of food collected in the drive are donated to The Food Bank Singapore, which partners with a broad range of charities and volunteer welfare groups to distribute food to families and individuals in need. Although operations started in April 2012, this organisation is already a media sensation, receiving recognition in the 2012 National Day speech.

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According to The Food Bank Singapore, corporate donors often want to donate food in bulk but beneficiaries rarely have sufficient storage space.

“Because of our linkage with FoodXervices, we can settle the logistics of sending the food to beneficiaries. For example, recently a company donated 250 cartons of French fries. Where is the charity going to store it? That’s when we come into the picture,” explains Michael Teo, a co-ordinator at The Food Bank Singapore.

A convoy of 25 to 30 cars arrives from Schneider Electric, a multinational electric engineering company, pledging more than $10,000 worth of food. Not long after, a truckload arrives from Nestle with cartons of Nestle products including Milo, Nestum cereal and Maggi noodles.

The food collected is helping thousands of individuals from the unemployed to the elderly and making a clear stance that no one in Singapore should go hungry.

This article was edited by Emma Gatehouse. Photos by Joy Wong.

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And yes, hunger does exist in prosperous Singapore. While there are no official statistics, a commmunity survey by Food for All in 2009 noted that some 12,000 Singaporean households rely on supplementary food rations provided by Family Service Centres, Residential Committees (RCs) and charities.

Food items collected in the drive are being given to two beneficiary group: The Food Bank Singapore and Willing Hearts.

“ONE (SINGAPORE) would like to bring attention to groups which don’t receive as much attention”, Michael adds.

Bulk items collected in the food drive are donated to Willing Hearts – a local soup kitchen that cooks 3,000 meals for various distributions points across the island, every day of the year. To run operations at such a massive scale, they depend heavily on the goodwill of donors and say the food collected through this drive will go a long way.

“It’s about one-months supply of food. From here, the food will go to our kitchen. We’ll serve meals to old folks, the sick, single parents and jobless. Many live in one-room, two-room flats. It’s a wide range of people”, says Charles Liew, Treasurer of Willing Hearts.

Assorted bags of food collected in the drive are donated to The Food Bank Singapore, which partners with a broad range of charities and volunteer welfare groups to distribute food to families and individuals in need. Although operations started in April 2012, this organisation is already a media sensation, receiving recognition in the 2012 National Day speech.

23 Jan 2013 (3)

According to The Food Bank Singapore, corporate donors often want to donate food in bulk but beneficiaries rarely have sufficient storage space.

“Because of our linkage with FoodXervices, we can settle the logistics of sending the food to beneficiaries. For example, recently a company donated 250 cartons of French fries. Where is the charity going to store it? That’s when we come into the picture,” explains Michael Teo, a co-ordinator at The Food Bank Singapore.

A convoy of 25 to 30 cars arrives from Schneider Electric, a multinational electric engineering company, pledging more than $10,000 worth of food. Not long after, a truckload arrives from Nestle with cartons of Nestle products including Milo, Nestum cereal and Maggi noodles.

The food collected is helping thousands of individuals from the unemployed to the elderly and making a clear stance that no one in Singapore should go hungry.

This article was edited by Emma Gatehouse. Photos by Joy Wong.

Related Articles

Every ONE Can – The Numbers Are In!

10 Nov 2011 (1)
The FoodXervices’ Team at Every ONE Can

Every ONE Can was a whopping success this year! More products, more purchases at wholesale prices and donations for Willing Hearts that filled a truckload! In a nutshell, products purchased have a wholesale value of more than S$17,000. However patrons actually spent about S$13,000, because of the discounts offered on the day of the event. This is actual savings as opposed to retail prices where they would have spent at least S$19- 20K!Willing Hearts

Among the items purchased for donation: cranberry juice, chilli garlic sauce, rice, noodles and much more. We filled up a truck and then some. Charles Liew of Willing Hearts says the donation would probably last two weeks if used all at once, but since the organisation has other ingredients in stock as well, it “will use some items now and others later.”

Willing Hearts prepares and delivers meals to some 2500 people everyday. Unfortunately the number of people needing assistance keeps growing. When ONE (SINGAPORE) first met Willing Hearts at the beginning of the year, it was serving about 1500 people a day.

Several partner organisations — Gift & Take, Hummingfish Foundation (Ai-Funan), Mother and Child Project, TWC2 and Willing Hearts — set up booths at Every ONE Can to raise awareness of their causes and funds for disadvantaged groups. So in addition to grocery shopping, customers also had the chance to look for that”one of a kind” item during the event and show their support for these awesome boutiques. Among the items for sale by the social enterprises, there were organic soaps made by East Timorese women, candles, children’s books, t-shirts, unique eco-friendly gifts and handicrafts.

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We would like to express our heartfelt THANKS to FoodXervices, as well as the partners and patrons who made Every ONE Can a fun and eventful day for all!

Every ONE Can feeds a hungry person. Every ONE Can Stand Up and Make a Difference. Every ONE Can Make Poverty History!

Additional Resources

  • Every ONE Can 2011
  • Check out the photos on our Flickr page and let us know which is your favorite!