Community Spotlight: Kenneth Lui, IT Professional

Curious about what volunteerism and Time Auction events are all about? Meet our community who has shared their memorable experiences in their volunteering journey and meetings with our featured guests!

“My love and will to help was inspired by those around me. ”

It was a great pleasure to have Kenneth to share his insights and thoughts from his work involving medical health care and also his experiences meeting with Hong Kong leaders through Time Auction. We were inspired by his willingness to serve the elderly, the poor and the ill.

Meet Kenneth Lui!

As a Programmer at the Hospital Authority, Kenneth manages the systems to track the medical records of patients. Having two master's degrees in both computer science and health service management, he dedicates his career to applying information technology in the health care system.

Kenneth first came into contact with Time Auction 5 years ago, making him one of our earliest supporters. He is most interested to meet leaders in the health care system such as Dr. Lam Ching Choi, CEO of Haven of Hope Christian Service and Shalini Mahtani, Founder of The Zubin Foundation & HospitalAdvisor.

Meeting influential figures and making new friends

Recalling his most memorable Time Auction experience, Kenneth recalled the dinner with Anson Chan, the former Chief Secretary of HKSAR Government. Kindly accommodating our eagerness to ask questions, Mrs. Chan had not finished her sandwich by the end of the dinner and hence suggested to keep it with her. Despite her high and respectable stature in society, Mrs. Chan still kept the virtue of being thrifty and environmentally friendly in mind. Kenneth was very impressed by this small action, demonstrating characters of the “Lion Rock spirit” generation who worked hard to develop Hong Kong from the deprived post-war city to a wealthy modern city but had not forgotten the difficult days.

“I learnt that you should stay true to your roots, no matter how far and how high you go.”

At another Time Auction event, he met a friend who was also working in the medical sector. The two came together and worked on a project to provide a platform for patients to gauge the costs of medical services provided by the private and public sectors, hoping to increase the transparency of the pricing of medical services in Hong Kong.

On the mission to serve the medically needy

His volunteering journey started at the Hong Kong Association for Cleft Lip and Palate. As a patient suffering from a similar condition, he has been a member of the Association from a young age and helped with their daily operations from time to time. Later in life, he began to participate in volunteer work on a more regular basis in Volunteer Space where he visited elderly homes and hospitals.

“Volunteer work helps me see multiple facets of society, meet different people and experience different ways of life.”

Through his many volunteering experiences, Kenneth witnessed the many struggles faced by the poor, the elderly and the ill and how they coped with the many hardships in life. For example, he met a visually impaired person before and due to the lack of walking stick training services in Hong Kong, he experienced tremendous difficulty navigating in real life. In another case, he came across an elderly woman who received regular meal delivery services, but only on weekdays, not on weekends, under the assumption that her family would provide catering services on weekends. These experiences have made Kenneth realize the various flaws in the health care system and the social welfare system in Hong Kong.

In his journey, he has also met many like-minded individuals who upheld the same ideals as him. Some of them have even become his lifelong friends that accompanied him in his volunteering journey.

“Cleverness is a gift, kindness is a choice. ”

Kenneth wishes that Hong Kong people, especially young people, can nurture a spirit to serve Hong Kong. It’d be a shame if those who are capable set their sights on places outside Hong Kong only. No new change can be brought to the system if that spirit is lost.

Thanks Kenneth for volunteering 84 hours to charities and joining 8 Time Auction experiences!

To see our upcoming experiences, head over to the Time Auction website!

Interviewed & written by Isaac Chang