Kuala Lumpur, 21 September 2019 – The haze may have resulted in the cancellation of the run for this year’s Chariofare but it did not cast a gloomy atmosphere for the fund-raising carnival that took place as scheduled. Instead, IMU students and staff as well as the general public continued to enjoy the day’s festivities and even showed their immense generosity so much so that this year’s edition raised a record-breaking RM330,000!
Thanks to the overwhelming support of sponsors, well-wishers, students and staff, this year’s Chariofare, which is the eighth edition running, is the most successful to date even without the race segment happening. Aside from funds raised, this year also saw a significant rise of 50% in student and staff participation rates compared to previous years. 
The funds will go towards the IMU Cares Humanitarian Fund, which will be used to reach out and aid deserving underprivileged communities in the areas of healthcare, education and disaster relief. In the past, money raised from Chariofare has benefitted victims of the Acheh Tsunami, Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, the Nepal Earthquake and closer to home, the flood victims in Kuala Krai, Kelantan. “Because of the haze, we decided to cancel the race segment for this year’s Chariofare as a preventive measure to protect the health and safety of our participants. It was truly unfortunate as the race has always been something our participants look forward to. However, our participants still enjoyed themselves at our carnival with our exciting line-up of activities specially planned for the event. It was disappointing to have to cancel the race but I am pleasantly surprised as well as humbled to learn that despite this, our participants were as generous as they were during previous Chariofare events, if not even more generous this year as we hit a record-breaking amount for the money raised. Once again, Chariofare proved that rain or shine, hazy or sunny, Malaysians will always come together in the name of charity to do their part. It is overwhelming to learn that our participants fully support the work we do via Chariofare and IMU Cares, and to have raised this amount that will change somebody’s live. Our theme ‘Uniting Hearts’ was definitely the perfect fit for this year’s event as Malaysians united through Chariofare to show that they care,” said Prof Peter Pook, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, IMU. 
“Like always, IMU is ever grateful to all our sponsors for this year’s Chariofare. They include Diamond Sponsor EXSIM, Platinum Sponsors MSIG and Kian Joo group, and Silver Sponsors Drs Wong & Partners, Amedix and King Koil. On behalf of IMU, I would like to extend our gratitude to our sponsors for their support and generous contributions,” said Prof Khoo Suan Phaik, Associate Dean, Community Engagement of IMU. A first this year, Chariofare 2019 included community service projects that took place prior to the event. IMU students and staff worked alongside the National Cancer Society of Malaysia (NCSM) to spend time at halfway homes for cancer-stricken children as well as with other voluntary organisations to help homeless individuals and spread love and care to patients at nursing homes. This was done with the hope of closing the social gap in our community where certain individuals experience social exclusion and disintegration as well as to cultivate a spirit of giving back. 
“Including this aspect to this year’s Chariofare gave our Chariofare team and the IMU community the opportunity to experience for themselves and understand first-hand how lives can be touched through the works of Chariofare. Guided by this year’s theme ‘Uniting Hearts’, we were reminded of the vulnerable communities that have been neglected and then inspired to serve and help these communities so as to foster close-knit relationships and inclusivity. Through these projects, we were privileged to have been shown what it means to put others’ needs ahead of ours and to provide care without judgment or biases,” said Prof Khoo. With the race cancelled, the fund-raising carnival took place from 8:30am to 1:30pm at the IMU campus in Bukit Jalil. A total of 60 booths were set up ranging from food and beverage stalls prepared by our very own IMU community, food trucks, healthcare products and services, games and activities. Hosting the event was Keanu Azman, popular Hitz.fm radio host, who lent a lively vibe to the carnival with his energetic personality. Popular booths included the “Dunking Machine” and the thrilling “Haunted Escape”. 
Visitors to the fair also got their health screened at various booths including dental, chiropractic, general health and eye screening for a minimal fee. On hand were medical professionals to share information and knowledge with fair visitors to better understand their health and how they can further improve on it. Aside from the usual food, fun and games, fair visitors were treated to an array of performances. These include popular beatboxer Brandon Surin, acapella ensemble The Singaholics, the Lepiexs crew, Top 8 finalist for The Voice Asia 2017 Xin Yao, Monash Chamber Orchestra and many more. There was also a lucky draw event whereby those who registered early for the run or bought coupons for the lucky draw were qualified to win amazing prizes such as a MacBook Air, an Apple Watch, two Tula Bike and more totalling up to more than RM60K worth. 
“Despite it not being your usual Chariofare, this year’s edition still turned out to be a rousing success. We are proud of our Chariofare organising committee; namely our students who worked tirelessly over 48 hours to turn around the event. We raised a lot of money, we had a lot of fun, we united as one. Serving our community is one of the core values of IMU, and Chariofare allows us to do so year after year. This is what makes the IMU community unique whereby we are encouraged to go beyond our role as an education institution and to contribute as a member of our community. Chariofare brings us all together – staff, students and even the public – in the name of charity,” said Prof Pook. Watch a video on the event: https://youtu.be/2dSTFVzGRIk
