The 2019 Hong Fook Gala was hosted on Saturday, June 8, 2019, at Hilton Toronto/Markham Suites, Conference Centre and Spa in Markham, with a full house of over 600 guests and raising over $278,000 in net proceeds for resources supporting East Asian youth mental wellness.
Louie Castro (YouTube Video), the featured performer on the evening, shared his personal experience recovering from depression. Louie pointed: “in the mental health sector, the long wait time is still a huge barrier for clients to access services in a timely manner. I am surprised to know it would take from 9 months to a year or even longer for a person diagnosed with mental illness to access culturally competent, quality community mental health services. I am glad to support the Hong Fook fundraising gala and help Hong Fook raise more resources to narrow the gap, which is critical to create meaning, purpose, hope and belonging to our Asian immigrants.”
Early intervention and treatment is critical and cost effective. In Canada, 70% of mental health problems have their onset during childhood or adolescence. Young people aged 15 to 24 are more likely to experience mental illness and/or substance use disorders than any other age group. In Ontario, wait times of six months to one year are common for children and youth to access counselling and therapy. The longer they are left untreated, the more debilitating they become. Those situations often lead to other costly, long-term chronic conditions.
The 2019 Hong Fook Gala again focused on youth mental health, to subsidize the current youth programs and to seek new partners supporting the newly launched Hong Fook Youth and Family Hub. Noemi Weis, President of Filmblanc, the keynote speaker on the evening, shared her insights on youth mental health from a global perspective, through her experience writing and producing the upcoming documentary Connecting the Dot. She called upon everyone’s “shared energy to bring new light to create a healthier society and give the future leaders of our world a chance to thrive.”
We are happy to announce the raffle draw result for the 2019 Hong Fook Raffle. The Winners are…..
1st Prize Winning Number: #02038 – Jeannie Wu
Description: Two Round-Trip Air Tickets to New York City & Three-Night Stay at Midtown Manhattan Springhill Suites Marriott Hotel (Valued at $2,610) Sponsored by Sogo Travel Inc. and Springhill Suites Marriott Hotel
2nd Prize - Winning Number: # 00694 – Doris Chan
Description: One Visa Gift Card (Valued at $650) Donated by Anonymous
3rd Prize - Winning Number: # 00391 – Sunny Wang
Description: One Hugo Boss Leather Briefcase (Valued at $600) Sponsored by Soprano Handbags & Accessories
4th Prize - Winning Number: # 00162 – Mei Zhou
Description: One Spa Gift Certificate (Valued at $500) Sponsored by R Spa
5th Prize - Winning Number: # 00815 – Meilin Ma
Description: One Apple Ipad, 6th Generation, 32 GB (Valued at $486) Sponsored by Rez-One Management Corp.
6th Prize - Winning Number: # 00497 – Doris Wong
Description: One Apple Ipad, 6th Generation, 32 GB (Valued at $486) Sponsored by Rez-One Management Corp.
Thank you to all the sponsors, guests, volunteers, and staff for an amazing night. For more information about the event, please find in the Gala Program Book .
Event Sponsor: TD Bank Group
Entertainment Sponsor: JD Development Group
Official Airline Sponsor: Air Canada
Official Hotel Sponsor: Hilton Toronto/Markham Suites, Conference Centre & Spa
Platinum Sponsors
- Fogler, Rubinoff LLP
- Otsuka and Lundbeck
- Skymark Place Shopping Plaza
Gold Sponsors
- BDO
- Bell Canada
- Best Deal Graphics and Printing
- Bob Lo Professional Services
- Congee Wong Restaurant
- RESCO Mortgage Investment Corporation
- Scotiabank
- Sing Tao Foundation
- University of Toronto Scarborough
Corporate Sponsors
- Acadia Frontier Development Ltd.
- All For Your Home
- Applaud Realty Inc.
- Century 21 Atria Realty Inc.
- CIBC
- Condo Wong Realty
- CoStone Group
- Dr. Andrew Chung
- Dr. Ming -Hin Ryder Law Dentistry Professional Corporation
- Edward S.C. Lee Medicine Professional Corporation
- Great Gulf
- Re/Max Excel Alliance Realty- Cherry Yuan Shui
- Re/Max Excel Realty Ltd.
- Re/Max Realtron Realty Inc.
- Rogers
- Shan Feng Realtor
- Tradeworld Realty
All the net proceeds will go directly to fund Hong Fook Mental Health Association programs and services. Join us and “Take the Mental Health Journey Together.” To know how to become a sponsor of the Gala, please read our sponsorship information.
