Lions greeting residents of the Silver Jubilee Home for the Aged who were invited to the McDonald's ‘Makan Besar’ at its McDonald’s Birch House, Penang. – LIM BENG TATT/The Star
McDONALD's Malaysia continues to give back to local communities, ushering in the Chinese New Year with its tradition of sharing joy and the “True Meaning of Prosperity" with senior citizens from more than 120 old folk homes all over the country.
The quick-service restaurant is continuing with its seven-year-old community initiative, whereby personnel from McDonald's restaurants across the nation will visit old folk homes from Jan 15 to Feb 15 to bring some cheer to the residents.
On Jan 16, McDonald's in Penang brought over 50 residents from the Silver Jubilee Home for the Aged, as well as police, Fire and Rescue Department, Rukun Tetangga and Penang Hospital personnel for a “Makan Besar” at its McDonald’s Birch House outlet in Jalan Datuk Keramat.
At the event, McDonald’s Malaysia managing director and local operating partner Datuk Azmir Jaafar said this is McDonald's effort to bring cheer to the northern part of Malaysia, with activities such as lion dance, tossing of yee sang and karaoke session with McDonald's staff.
"We had earlier held a similar event at the McDonald’s Mutiara Damansara outlet for the old folks from My Father’s House in Petaling Jaya on Jan 11.
“McDonald’s has always championed familial bonds through communities. As we enter the Year of the Rabbit, we will continue to support and care for the people, especially the old folks.
“This Chinese New Year outreach programme is to invoke McDonald’s ‘True Meaning of Prosperity’ principle and share precious memories with loved ones,” he said.
McDonald’s Malaysia managing director and local operating partner Datuk Azmir Jaafar (front row, far right) at the Makan Besar programme.
This nationwide outreach programme is part of the Program Komuniti @ McDonald's and Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) Malaysia.
Present at the McDonald’s Birch House “Makan Besar” event were McDonald's Malaysia senior director of strategic operations Felina Lim, and McDonald’s Malaysia director of corporate communications Shamsidar Yahya.
Lim handed over RM5,000 worth of electrical household products to Silver Jubilee Home secretary Jennifer Geraldine Danker.
Police, Fire and Rescue Department, Rukun Tetangga and Penang Hospital personnel also were the guests at the Makan Besar event which featured lion dance performance, tossing of yee sang and karaoke session with McDonald's staff.
Resident Kang Joo Lye, 80, a former cargo ship worker, said he had a good time at the event and enjoyed tossing the yee sang with the other residents.
Fellow resident S. Sathiaseelan, 64, a retired teacher, liked the food, especially the burgers. He was happy to be out of the home for a few hours, and said he enjoyed the karaoke session very much.
KL-based singer and keyboardist Loh Kah Hoo sang a few old tunes like Teresa Teng's The Moon Represents My Heart (Yue Liang Dai Biao Wo De Xin) as well as several CNY favourites and some of the old folks got up to dance.
With 40 years of presence in Malaysia, McDonald's serves over 13.5 million customers a month at more than 330 restaurants nationwide.
McDonald's employs more than 15,000 Malaysians in restaurants across the nation, providing career, training, and development opportunities.
