Rehda Youth to 'green' children's home

KUALA LUMPUR: The Agathians Shelter will be transformed into the country's first "green" children's home by Rehda Youth, the youth wing of the Real Estate & Housing Developers' Association (Rehda).

Chan Kin-Meng, Rehda Youth chief, said the renovation and refurbishment of the home is the organisation's maiden project under its corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme.

Rehda Youth represents the second generation of property developers.

"As builders, this is what we do. We build homes. We always say that things begin with educating the future generation and we hope that when these children get older, they will do something similar in giving back to the community," Chan told a news conference on Wednesday, June 29.

"In a way, this project is a chance for Rehda Youth to give back to the community and a gesture of thanks to all the people and developers who have supported us. All members are coming together and everyone is contributing. The cost of the project is pro bono," Chan added.

To refurbish the Agathians Shelter, Rehda Youth has enlisted the help of some professionals and experts in the building industry including architects, electrical contractors, paint suppliers and others. Chan said work on the orphanage will start at the end of 3Q11 and that there are plans to extend the refurbishment programme to more homes in the future.

Rehda Youth's current focus is on green living. Its next project will be a Green Tour of Singapore — a guided tour of four green-rated developments in the city state — this October. The Green Tour of Singapore follows the Green Tour of Malaysia held in March.

Rehda Youth recently gave the children of the Agathians Shelter a special treat — dinner at Burger King in 1Utama, in Bandar Utama Petaling Jaya, followed by the movie premier of Transformers: Dark of the Moon.­