05 Oct 2023
October was a month of getting fit and doing good.
Held from 5 to 27 October 2023, DSTA embarked on our very own Walk for Rice campaign, where staff were encouraged to go for walks or runs, and the total distance clocked was converted to bags of rice to be donated to the Sunshine Welfare Action Mission Home.
To kickstart the campaign, staff worked up a sweat at our Exercise and Mass Walk Day, participating in yoga, zumba and kickboxing classes.
Senior Engineer (Systems Engineering and Command, Control and Communications Centre) Seah Yee Loong shared: “I thoroughly enjoyed the line-up of activities planned as it gave me a great opportunity to engage and participate in healthy living activities with my colleagues. It also provided a good opportunity for us to connect outside of work hours.”
The day ended with staff bonding over a DSTA-wide mass walk, which saw an enthusiastic turnout.
DSTA’s Chief Executive Mervyn Tan gave a short address at the mass walk.
The fun continued over three weeks, where staff participated in a friendly distance clocking competition to clock the most distance and donate the largest amount of rice that they can.
With everyone’s hard work and dedication, we managed to donate a total of 300,000 bowls of rice to the needy!
Data Scientist (Enterprise Digital Services) Victor Cheong shared: “I find it encouraging and inspiring that more than just exercising, we could do our part to help the needy. When I found out that the rice we donated could sustain those in need for more than 6 months, it hit me that simple act of walking could make a big difference to someone else. I’m grateful to have been given this opportunity to do that!”