Malcolm Goh helping a boy to ice-skate.

WHOOPS of joy and excitement resounded at Sunway Pyramid's ice-skating rink as children from Angel Home and Lovely Nursing Home skated and made ice-balls and threw them at one another.

Kyan Yap (left) and Regina Yau.

The children seemed to be skating effortlessly and with good reason. Their trainers were members of the national ice hockey team led by captain, Gary Tan.

The Sunway Group was the sponsor of the ice-skating session, part of a charity drive by Soroptimist International Petaling Jaya (SIPJ) and UK Women's Alumni Network (UKWAN) in aid of the Breast Cancer Welfare Association (BCWA).

Assisting the ice-hockey team were several bachelors who will be "auctioned" off in July at the Westin Hotel Kuala Lumpur as part of a charity event to raise funds for BCWA.

The bachelors at this year's auction will not only help to raise funds but also volunteer their time working for non-profit organisations supported by SIPJ and SI Clubs in the Klang Valley.

Malcolm Goh, a bachelor who will take part in the charity gala, said: "It makes me happy when I see children, especially those from less fortunate backgrounds having a good time. I enjoy giving back to the community."



"The bachelors are required to volunteer a full weekend of their time to carry out work for charities selected by SIPJ," said Regina Yau, project lead organiser for the Time-and-Fund Raising Charity Bachelor Auction 2008 and co-head of UKWAN.

Kyan Yap, a bachelor, said his friend had nominated him to take part in the auction.

"I didn't say no since I thought it was a good way of giving back to society and meeting women at the same time."

Mandy, 9, from Angel Home expressed her happiness and said "I really enjoyed playing with ice-balls. Skating was fun!".

Ezra, 11, from Angel Home said: "I enjoy ice-skating with my friends. It's so cold in the ice-skating rink!"

Gary Tan, leader of the national ice hockey team, said: "We are constantly training hard to win tournaments and put Malaysia on the map in terms of ice-skating. But we always make time to teach the underprivileged to ice-skate.

"Last year, we taught this same batch of kids to ice-skate. Now, as you can see, they are ice-skating very well!"

Later, the children were treated to lunch at Pizza Hut.