We hold an unconventional Flag Day where smokers donate fresh cigarettes that become food and household necessities for disadvantaged Cancer patients and their families.

How?

Smokers donate fresh cigarettes. Corporates pledge food and household necessities to the multiplied value of cigarettes collected. Disadvantaged Cancer patients and families get the said food and household necessities. Collected cigarettes get taken off the streets/destroyed. And smokers are left to connect the dots between smoking and Lung Cancer as they reflect on the good they do when they Give up for Good.

No preachy or judgmental anti-smoking message anywhere.

Singapore has never seen an idea like Give up for Good. And there's every chance, this is a world's first.

- Saturday, 18 November 2017 was Give up for Good Flag Day (go ahead given in Sep)

- Corporates like Gardenia, Lotte, Pokka and TSK Food bought into the idea and agreed to pledge food/household necessities for Cancer patients/families; Bugis+ was venue sponsor

- Event publicised through internal client channels and FB ad buys of S$150

- Mini-carnival with Health Check/Active Lifestyle stations organised to attract public; games included friendly competitions between public and Cancer survivors

- 40 volunteers were flagged off to collect cigarette donations from smokers for 6 permitted hours (11am – 5pm) with donation cans and a bi-lingual leaflet explaining how GUFG worked, who benefitted etc

- Smoking cessation kits were handed out to those who were interested

- Event ended at 6pm with speeches and announcement of total cigarettes collected

-Collected cigarettes were then stomped on and destroyed by Cancer survivors, volunteers, sponsors and the public

WE DID IT! We pulled off a never-done-before ground up anti-smoking initiative in 3 months without any Establishment support. So our most important objective was achieved!

GUFG Flag Day numbers

–2774 cigarettes worth S$1664.40 collected; remarkable given 6 permitted hours with only 40 volunteers; 2772 or 138.7 packs of cigarettes destroyed with willing support from smokers

–900+ smokers engaged (HPB’s best events usually attract 300+)

–70 smoking cessation kits collected

–Six corporates involved; Gardenia, Lotte, Pokka, TSK Food; venue sponsorship (Bugis+); smoking cessation kits (Johnson & Johnson);

AND most important of all,

–Total Beneficiaries: 100 cancer patients and their families

Coverage

With a shoestring budget, no Establishment-backed PR and the start of Christmas festivities, GUFG got decent post-event coverage, especially catching the eye of the much-respected Business Times

Validation

The Health Promotion Board has recognized the sustainable nature of GUFG and has approached us to be part of GUFG 2018.