Celebrities to Grace Recession Fair

Sunday, Oct. 4, 2009 Posted: 4:51:02AM HKT

(Photo: Nanz Chong-Komo)

An event organised specially to help people affected by the economic crisis will have its share of celebrities.

The HOPE (Helping Our People) fair, to be held on October 17 by the Trinity Annual Conference of the Methodist Church in Singapore, will feature testimonies by Jacelyn Tay and Nanz Chong-Komo.

Tay and Chong-Komo, both of whom are known for having weathered major financial crises in their lives, will share how they overcame their storms of life.

This will be the third fair organised by the TRAC since March.

The full-day event aims to equip people and prepare them to overcome the economic crisis by providing information on existing resources they can tap on, providing them with practical and immediate help if they are facing difficulties, equipping or providing skills training to face changing market trends and providing resources to those who may be facing potential retrenchment.

There will be four components including workshops covering cash and debt management, job hunting skills and managing emotions; clinics providing one-to-one professional counselling on legal, credit and resume or career coaching matters; an employers’ corner offering direct jobs, interviews and job-matching services; and exhibitors’ booths featuring self-help groups, voluntary welfare organisations, training and educational institutions, associations and other organisations.

Scheduled to be held at Paya Lebar Methodist Church along Boundary Road, the fair will be opened by Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong, a Member of Parliament for Marine Parade GRC and Adviser to Marine Parade grassroots organisations.

Formerly one of the leading stars of MediaCorp, Tay was forced to declare bankruptcy after she owed $300,000 to a stockbroker.

Instead of giving up, she worked hard to put her finances back in order, producing a magazine show, writing two books and hosting a health and beauty show titled A New You in 2005.

A year later, she founded The Health Club, a medical spa with the vision of restoring the body’s natural ability to heal itself and bringing health to greater heights.

Another example of resilience, Chong-Komo saw her highly successful business venture ONE.99 close in 2003 but did not throw in the towel. She went on to write a book, One Business 99 Lessons, to help businesspeople learn from her mistakes and realise that failure is not ‘fatal’.

Launched in March 2006 with the first print-run sold out in three weeks, the book remains on the bestseller lists of major bookstores.

Chong-Komo is also one of the most sought-after corporate speakers and trainers today, as well as the face of Shi’jano, a Swedish science-based range of skincare recently launched in Asia.

Nathanael Ng
nathanael@christianpost.com