Meet the teenage philanthropist behind 1000 Suns and YouthCORE
Philanthropist and social entrepreneur Brian Yip's passion for making a difference started early. Very early. Like, age five early.
'My earliest memory is helping out at a book fair,' says Yip, founder of charitable platforms 1000 Suns and YouthCORE. 'Back then my mum instilled in me the importance of service and being involved in my community,' taking him along to recycling events, helping pack food for homeless people and visiting elderly people living in cage homes. 'As I got older, it taught me about giving back and the importance of compassion.'
Aged 13, Yip started volunteering with
Mother's Choice , a Hong Kong charity supporting children without families and pregnant teenagers. Growing up as an only child, 'whether it's my friend's siblings or other children', he says, 'I really try to be the big brother'.
On his first day as its youngest-ever child care home volunteer, Yip 'wasn't sure how the kids would react to this guy who's only 10 years older than them', but 'five minutes after I walked in, a baby girl grabbed onto my leg, looked up and smiled'.
Carers and children at the Mother's Choice home in Mid-Levels. Photo: courtesy Mother's Choice
He remembers her smile 'shining like 1,000 suns', which inspired his first charitable initiative, in 2022. 'I founded 1000 Suns because, during Covid, I knew a lot of organisations were struggling to keep themselves alive.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
24 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
Student jailed for more than 25 weeks for attacking 5 at Hong Kong campus
A student has been given more than 25 weeks in prison after admitting to attacking a woman who asked him to turn down the volume on his phone, and striking another four people, including two police officers, at a university campus in Hong Kong. Advertisement Wang Haoyu, 23, was sentenced on Friday after earlier pleading guilty to two counts of common assault, a count of theft, criminal damage, another for obstructing a police officer in the due execution of duty and a wounding charge over the incident at City University on March 31. Psychiatrists said the defendant, who is from mainland China, showed signs of struggling to control his emotions and interacting with other people. Magistrate Li Chi-ho of West Kowloon Court said on Friday that Wang's crimes were 'very serious'. He noted that the defendant had made no effort to calm down even after police arrived at the scene. 'Your behaviour was barbaric, showing you disregarded the law. Our society won't accept that,' Li told the defendant. Advertisement 'Your emotional issues cannot be used as an excuse for your misbehaviour.'
South China Morning Post
43 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
Glass window on MTR train cracks on Kwun Tong line, prompting passengers to alight
A glass panel of a window on a train travelling on the MTR's Kwun Tong line cracked on Thursday night, prompting shocked passengers to disembark at Lok Fu station. Advertisement The MTR said on Friday that it would investigate the cause of the incident, saying no injuries were reported due to the window's double-glazed safety glass design. The rail operator said the incident happened at around 7.30pm on Thursday as the train was approaching Lok Fu station and the captain was alerted by passengers to the cracked window in one of the carriages. 'Since the window is made of double-layered safety glass with an interlayer which prevents shards of glass from flowing, no passengers were affected,' the MTR said in a statement. 'As a precautionary measure, the Operations Control Centre arranged for all passengers to alight at Lok Fu station and transfer to the next available train to continue their journey.' Advertisement The rail giant said the affected train had been taken out of service and sent back to the depot for a thorough inspection and follow-up.
South China Morning Post
an hour ago
- South China Morning Post
Student jailed for more than 25 weeks for attacking 5 on Hong Kong campus
A student has been sentenced to more than 25 weeks in prison after admitting to attacking a woman who asked him to turn down the volume on his phone, and striking another four people, including two police officers, on a university campus in Hong Kong. Advertisement Wang Haoyu, 23, was sentenced on Friday after earlier pleading guilty to two counts of common assault, a count of theft, criminal damage, another for obstructing a police officer in the due execution of duty and a wounding charge over the incident at City University on March 31. Psychiatrists said the defendant, who is from mainland China, showed signs of struggling to control his emotions and interacting with other people. Magistrate Li Chi-ho of West Kowloon Court said Wang's crimes were 'very serious'. He noted that the defendant had made no effort to calm down even after police arrived at the scene. 'Your behaviour was barbaric, showing you disregarded the law. Our society won't accept that,' Li told the defendant. Advertisement 'Your emotional issues cannot be used as an excuse for your misbehaviour.'
