PR078/20 2 December 2020

MTR Brings Customers Sign Language and Musical Instrument-Making Workshops to Foster a Green and Inclusive Musical Christmas

Santa Claus is ready to come to town! To ramp up the celebrations for a fun-filled and socially- distanced musical holiday, the MTR Corporation will organise a series of family friendly online workshops to make the festive season inclusive and green.

In collaboration with the Dialogue in the Dark (HK) Foundation, a familiar Christmas carol has been rewritten with amusing new lyrics incorporating MTR elements. The song will be performed by MTR station staff and broadcast together with a quiz from 8 December 2020 onwards to allow the public to learn some simple sign language phrases about railways as well as Christmas greetings.

Parents and kids can also attend free online workshops on 15 and 17 December 2020 to learn how to make upcycled musical instruments and play Christmas songs with the hand-made instruments. An online influencer on upcycling and reuse, Mr Norman Mak (環保爸爸) will demonstrate how to use face mask boxes, toy train track and paper rolls to creatively assemble a guitar, a drum and a maraca. To promote and foster the social inclusion culture among the community and bring the Christmas delights to more people, the Corporation has also collaborated with the Jockey Club South Kwai Chung Children and Youth Integrated Services Centre of The Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs Association of to offer the kids materials kits for joining an online workshop on 19 December 2020 to celebrate the Christmas holiday in advance by making DIY musical instruments and playing Christmas carols.

“Wearing a mask and social distancing is a new norm under the pandemic. We hope the series of Christmas delights programmes can help relieve the stress at this difficult time and bring some enjoyment, while also helping to foster an inclusive and sustainable culture and break through the communication barriers created by the masks through sending holiday greetings in sign language to your family and friends,” said Ms Linda Choy, Corporate Affairs Director of MTR Corporation.

Details of the workshops can be found in the appendix and are also available on the MTR website (www..com.hk), MTR Facebook fan page and in posters at MTR stations.

MTR Corporation would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and an enjoyable holiday with family and friends.

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About MTR Corporation

Every day, MTR connects people and communities. As a recognised world-class operator of sustainable rail transport services, we are a leader in safety, reliability, customer service and efficiency.

MTR has extensive end-to-end railway expertise with more than 40 years of railway projects experience from design to planning and construction through to commissioning, maintenance and operations. Going beyond railway delivery and operation, MTR also creates and manages dynamic communities around its network through seamless integration of rail, commercial and property development.

With more than 40,000 dedicated staff*, MTR carries over 13 million passenger journeys worldwide every weekday in Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Australia and the Mainland of China. MTR strives to grow and connect communities for a better future.

For more information about MTR Corporation, please visit www.mtr.com.hk.

*includes our subsidiaries and associates in Hong Kong and worldwide

Photo Caption:

1. The sign language shown by the staff of Station means “happy” in . MTR staff perform Christmas carols in sign language to wish Hong Kong people a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

2. The music video also includes sign language lessons where members of the public can learn simple sign language phrases about railways as well as Christmas greetings. Keith (left) from the Dialogue in the Dark (Hong Kong) Foundation demonstrates the sign language of Causeway Bay Station to the station staff.

3. Mr Norman Mak (環保爸爸) shows how to make upcycled musical instruments using different materials via the online workshops.

Appendix Date Class Broadcast channels

From 8 December 2020 Christmas carol MTR website: onwards performance in http://www.mtr.com.hk/en/customer/main/christmas- (Tuesday) sign language delight-2020.html workshop

From 15 December 2020 DIY upcycled 8pm musical instrument

(Tuesday) workshop - Drum and maraca MTR YouTube channel: making www.youtube.com/user/mtrhongkong

From 17 December 2020 DIY upcycled MTR Facebook fan page: 8pm musical instrument www.facebook.com/mtrhk (Thursday) workshop - Guitar making