FMCC Charity Gala Dinner raises MOP61,000 to support ARTM


The France Macau Chamber of Commerce (FMCC) held their annual Charity Gala Dinner on Friday and raised some MOP61,000 to support activities of the Association of Rehabilitation of Drug Abusers of Macau (ARTM).

The dinner, held at the Grand Ballroom of MGM Macau, attracted the attendance of some 290 guests, including a number of officials, business and community leaders.

The theme of the gala dinner this year, “Around the World in 80 Days”, drew inspiration from the eponymous adventure novel by renowned French writer Jules Verne.

The funds collected during the dinner will be channelled to support ARTM’s “Alcohol Abuse Awareness Campaign” programme, which will include a community awareness campaign targeted at both local youngsters and adults, the set-up of a 24-hour hotline for alcohol problems and domestic violence, and others.

Rutger Verschuren, chairman of FMCC, underlined the importance of contributing to ARTM’s programme to raise awareness around the abuse of alcohol, and its impacts. “It is vital for our society to have a programme that provides professional counselling when a crisis point is reached, with aftercare and means of recovery,” Verschuren said at his opening speech.

In his address, the FMCC chairman also highlighted the near three-year journey of the local society and businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Almost three years down the road, we found ways to survive yet not easy and we have gone through a lot of changes and new normals. Sourcing and implementing new technologies, new organization structures and concepts, rethinking our business processes and we became more efficient and stronger this way.”