11 Feb 2025
Towngas partners with Hong Kong Federation of the Blind for cake-making competition to deliver “Sweetness Beyond Sight”
(11 February 2025) As the Lantern Festival and Valentine’s Day approach, The Hong Kong and China Gas Company Limited (Towngas) has partnered with the Hong Kong Federation of the Blind to host a cake-making competition called “Sweetness Beyond Sight”. The competition paired visually impaired participants with their partners to create cakes together. Towngas volunteers, consisting of couples and married pairs, assisted with the event. Beyond strengthening bonds between partners, the event aimed to raise public awareness about visually impaired individuals and their carers, promoting social inclusion.
The competition attracted 18 married couples, with at least one visually impaired person in each team. Some teams included two visually impaired participants, and one pair consisted of a visually and hearing-impaired couple. Following the theme “Sweetness Beyond Sight”, Towngas Cooking Centre instructor Jodie Au taught participants how to make strawberry cream cakes. After receiving instructions, teams independently created their cakes with unique designs. Judges evaluated entries based on appearance, creativity, theme interpretation, and teamwork to select the champion, 1st runner-up, 2nd runner-up, and the winner of the Best Teamwork Award.
Married for 40 years, Loong Gor and Loong So (Mr and Mrs Loong) won the championship with their creation “Sweet Family”. Loong So said, “Sweetness makes people think of bees, so we used cookies to make bee decorations on the cake, representing our family and spreading love. Although Loong Gor is visually impaired, he was previously a designer and took charge of the design for this cake. He also handled physically demanding tasks like kneading the dough.” Loong So also shared her thoughts on married life, “Many people assume I am the carer, but actually Loong Gor is often the one taking care of me. Couples need to care for and support each other to go far together.”
The Laus won the Best Teamwork Award with their creation “Heart To Heart”. Mrs Lau, who is visually impaired, smiled as she explained, “The two hearts on the cake – one big and one small – represent our complementary personalities, as he’s usually less detail-oriented while I’m more meticulous. When the hearts connect, we complement each other’s shortcomings, just like when he stirs the flour and I hold the bowl – we divide the work and that’s how we achieve harmony.” Mrs Lau and her husband said they thoroughly enjoyed their first time making a cake together, “It’s rare to have an activity that the visually impaired can participate in with their partners, and we got to interact with other contestants and volunteers – the atmosphere was wonderful.”
Five couples from the Towngas Volunteer Service Team (TVST) assisted the contestants, and they expressed admiration for the participants’ teamwork. Volunteer Anson Chow Kai-yui, who brought along his newlywed wife Jacqueline, said, “Although some participants are visually impaired, most of the procedures posed no challenge to them. For example, they could determine whether the egg mixture was properly beaten by feeling its consistency – it was very impressive.” Jacqueline felt abundant love from the contestants and learned lessons about marriage, “Many contestants have been married for many years. Seeing how they accommodate and support each other, I learned what it truly means to make a lifelong commitment.”
Towngas is committed to organising more activities for the visually impaired to promote social inclusion of all individuals regardless of their disabilities.
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Press photos:
Photo 1:
Towngas and the Hong Kong Federation of the Blind co-organise the “Sweetness Beyond Sight” cake-making competition, bringing together visually impaired participants and their partners to raise public awareness about visually impaired individuals and their carers.
Photo 2:
Visually impaired participants and their partners demonstrate great creativity as they work together to design their cakes.
Photo 3
Teams show excellent coordination, with partners dividing tasks naturally – whilst one beats the eggs, the other prepares ingredients, creating sweet and romantic moments.
Photo 4:
Visually impaired participants and their partners demonstrate perfect teamwork and coordination.
Photos 5 & 6:
Championship winners Loong Gor (centre) and Loong So (right) named their creation “Sweet Family”, decorating it with cookie bees to represent their family spreading love.
Photos 7 & 8:
Mr Lau (centre) and Mrs Lau (left) won the Best Teamwork Award with their creation “Heart To Heart”.
Photo 9:
TVST member Anson Chow Kai-yui (right, back row) and his wife Jacqueline (left, back row) served as volunteers, experiencing the abundant love from contestants and learning valuable lessons about marriage.
Photo 10:
Towngas Cooking Centre instructor Jodie Au (left) teaches participants how to make strawberry cream cakes.
Photo 11:
In appreciation of Towngas organising this event, Hong Kong Federation of the Blind Executive Director Mr Tony Shing Li-lim (centre) presents a commemorative flag to Towngas General Manager – Corporate Affairs Ms Judy Chan Kar-po (left) and Towngas Volunteer Service Team Chairman Mr Raymond Tai Hung-yuen (right).
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The Hong Kong and China Gas Company Limited