VIR golf tournament an ace for disadvantaged students

VIR’s editor-in-chief Nguyen Anh Tuan

It is being co-organised with the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s (MPI) Foreign Investment Agency and will be held at King’s Island golf resort in Hanoi. An awards ceremony will take place in the evening of the same day.

The aim of the tournament is to raise funds for poor pupils and students with excellent marks and to host golfers from a social and professional diaspora.

According to the organising board, since it was launched in 2007 it has presented 7,000 scholarships to poor but excellent pupils and students while also helping upgrade numerous training and education establishments in 38 cities and provinces nationwide. Since its inception, the tournament has raised more than VND6.4 billion ($304,800).

“VIR is well aware of the importance of excellent pupils and particularly supporting those who are disadvantaged toward building a study-oriented society. While our contribution may be small, we hope the scholarships help them to realise their potential and drive the nation forward,” said editor-in-chief Nguyen Anh Tuan, also the head of the organising board.

Nguyen Thi Phuong, former student of Public Health University, was a Swing for the Kids scholarship recipient for three years. Her siblings were all already attending university when she passed her entrance exams. Not long after, her father passed away. “VIR’s scholarship fueled my passion for my studies and my family was so proud of me,” she said.

Thao Seo Si, a first year student at Thai Nguyen Agriculture and Forestry University, is also a scholarship holder.

“I will use this scholarship to pay for my study materials and will try to study harder to meet the organising board’s expectations and contribute to Vietnam’s development,” Si said.

Tuan called for more organisations, enterprises and donors to support the annual golf tournament.

“We hope to see even greater interest and involvement from the business community in supporting poor pupils and students. We invite them to join us this year and in the coming years at Swing for the Kids,” he said.

The tournament’s 2014 diamond sponsor is BRG-SeABank, which was the gold sponsor in 2012. Vingroup is the platinum sponsor this year, while the gold sponsor is Singaporean-backed education group KinderWorld.

Swing for the Kids is also joined by media sponsors including VTC, VITV, InfoTV, Dan Tri, VnExpress, Vietnam Economic Times, Education and Times, and Golf and Life.