Flying further together with new Cathay community engagement programmes
Anniversaries present an important opportunity to reflect on past achievements and take strides towards a brighter future. As Cathay enters its eighth decade, we’ve been thinking about our deep ties to the people of Hong Kong, who have flown countless journeys with us since we were established in 1946. When our 80-year milestone arrived, we knew we wanted to celebrate with the people of Hong Kong – and give back to the community that made us who we are today.
“We’ve always been a big part of the community,” says Marc Fancy, Head of Community Engagement at Cathay. “That’s why, when we were planning our 80th anniversary celebrations, it was important not only to celebrate with our customers, but also to give back to the wider Hong Kong community.”
Our new charitable goal
For our 80th year, we set ourselves a symbolic goal: to improve 80,000 lives in Hong Kong by the end of 2026. Central to that ambition are new partnerships with two local nonprofits: Rugby For Good , which promotes youth wellbeing through sport, and HandsOn Hong Kong , which delivers more than 5,000 volunteer-led programmes across the city.
“There’s a strong culture of volunteering throughout Cathay, with people regularly dedicating time to community service,” Fancy says. “Our 80th anniversary represented an opportunity to amplify our community-based initiatives and develop new partnerships with organisations that align with our strategic focus on youth development, sport, and art and culture.”
Supporting student wellbeing through sport
Launched earlier this year with Rugby For Good, Cathay’s Get, Set, Move programme fosters the physical and mental wellbeing of Hong Kong students through sport and play-based activities. The initiative also reinforces the Hong Kong Education Bureau’s 4Rs Mental Health Charter, encouraging healthy habits centred on Rest, Relaxation, Resilience and Relationships.
Community service with HandsOn Hong Kong
Our partnership with HandsOn Hong Kong allows us to make a broader contribution across the community by mobilising resources for a wide range of service programmes, from delivering food to low-income families and providing support to people with disabilities to caring for the elderly.
“Leveraging our 80th anniversary milestone to spotlight the meaningful work carried out by organisations like HandsOn Hong Kong and its network of charity partners will hopefully inspire more people to get involved,” says Fancy.
“Community service has always been an important part of what we do, and we’ll keep working with our nonprofit partners to lead with compassion and drive positive change. There’s always room for improvement. There’s always more we can do.”