Star Golden Hearts Award 2020 opens for nominations

PETALING JAYA: The Star and Yayasan Gamuda will team up once again to launch the Star Golden Hearts Award (SGHA) to honour Malaysian unsung heroes.

Entering its sixth year, this year’s award kicks off during a challenging time for the country amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Star Media Group (SMG) and Star Foundation chairman Datuk Fu Ah Kiow said there has been no lack of goodwill during these trying times as many Malaysians have stepped up and put their lives at risk to lend a helping hand.

“The recent challenges brought out the best in Malaysians. We read about unsung heroes dedicating their time and efforts to provide aid to the underprivileged and frontliners every day.

“Although faced with obstacles such as lack of funding and manpower, they demonstrate an indomitable will in reaching out to the less fortunate in our society.

“We want to recognise and celebrate these extraordinary Malaysians and urge the public to nominate their heroes for this award,” said Fu.

A committed partner for the fifth year since 2016, Yayasan Gamuda supports SMG’s call to recognise Malaysians who are dedicated to help.

“We laud initiatives that assist vulnerable groups to gain equitable benefits of health and education in shaping a more inclusive and caring society.

“In the wake of the pandemic, we are seeing fusion of minds and hearts that is setting new norms,” said Yayasan Gamuda head Sharifah Alauyah Wan Othman.

She said while the public kept to physical distance, it was speeding up latent trends and posing new questions on human-machine collaboration.

“We are seeing innovative minds breaking down cultural assumptions, archaic business models and regulatory barriers, including existing technologies,” she added.

Going forward, Sharifah Alauyah hoped to see unimagined and sustained solutions among SGHA winners that would ensure continuous progress in the communities.

Past winners of SGHA have also done their part by providing aid to the needy and producing personal protective equipment for frontliners.

SGHA chief judge and Malaysian Unity Foundation trustee Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye said he was proud to witness past winners making a difference.

“I am glad that past winners such as Masala Wheels, Sujana Mohd Rejab and Hopes Malaysia have gone above and beyond their usual initiatives to help those in need during these difficult times.

“That is what we are looking for this year as well, exemplary Malaysians or groups who step up to offer assistance wherever and whenever help is needed, be it one-off or long term initiatives.

“This is what makes Malaysia a beautiful country. We can count on each other when it matters most. I am proud of our past winners and I hope with the public’s help, we will uncover more Malaysian unsung heroes this year,” said Lee.

The winner for 2018 – Masala Wheels, a social enterprise which empowers youth at-risk through entrepreneurial initiatives have delivered over 20,000 meals to frontliners and vulnerable communities since the start of the movement control order.

Last year’s winner Sujana Mohd Rejab, who makes 3D-printed prosthetic limbs for disabled children, and Hopes Malaysia, an organisation which helps restore clean water access to rural communities in Sabah, both made face shields for the frontliners.

Nominees will undergo a stringent selection process which includes internal screening, shortlisting and final judging by the panel of esteemed judges.

Each year, 10 winners will be selected and among them, one will be awarded the coveted Star-Gamuda Inspiration Award.

Nominations are open to any Malaysian individual or group who carry out selfless acts or long term initiatives to help others irrespective of race, religion or background.

The public can now nominate candidates for the award at bit.ly/SGHA2020 until Sept 2.

SGHA is supported by Star Foundation, the charitable arm of Star Media Group, aimed at delivering meaningful initiatives with lasting outcomes to a diverse group of beneficiaries.