25 Nov 2021

Colour Away Covid Week 2021

During the ‘Colour Away Covid Week 2021’ on 16 – 19 November, students raised over HKD$19,500 for supporting the underprivileged students who are in need of wi-fi for online schooling in the midst of the pandemic.

Partnering with the charities Yayasan Chow Kit and Dignity for Children, the event began on Tuesday with Year 7 and 8s taking a break from technology in an “Electronics Free Day”. Gavin Yao (7F) said, “I thought that it was pretty hard to not use my computer for such a long time.” Marcellus Whale (8N) also commented: “It helped me experience how people without the internet learn and how they feel everyday.”

The activity was followed by a spare change collection in which 13 jars of coins were collected. In support of student efforts, 30 teachers also volunteered to have their nails painted in bright colour for the next 13 days.

On Thursday, a second-hand book sale was held. Books were generously donated by the students, and have been sanitized by the team and resold at $10-20 per book.

The “dress colourful day” took place on Friday which saw students dressing in bright colourful garments, finishing the eventful week with a splash of colour.

Colour Away Covid is a student-led initiative and was founded in 2020 by Island School alumni to address social issues caused by the ongoing health crisis. In the past, it has focused on the mask shortage and the mental well-being of frontline hospital workers. It is currently managed by a small group of Island School students. Currently, the committee also organised a letter writing competition, where students wrote letters to the beneficiaries to share some positivity. The winning entry by Forbes Fong 7R will also be published in Imaginings 2022.

Yu Hang Hui from 13R, a member of the Colour Away Covid team, expressed: “Our campaign was inspired by the difficulties that all of us faced during online school, and we just wanted to help some of our peers with their internet connection so that their financial backgrounds are not an obstacle to their education. We are so glad to see the support of the Island School community!”

Colour Away Covid is also collecting donations for the beneficiaries of Yayasan Chow Kit and Dignity for Children on this page.