Taiwanese-American beauty queens Tiffany Chang (張芳瑜) and MimiQ Soong (宋依珊) on Saturday said that they would like to use their status to inspire more young women to become engaged in philanthropic work, during a trip to Taiwan.
The two are studying for their bachelor’s degrees in the US and are visiting Taiwan during spring break.
At a news conference in Taipei, Chang, 2024 Miss Asia USA, discussed her nonprofit organization Madhatter Knits. Founded in 2014, it makes free hand-knitted hats to give to premature babies at medical institutions.
Photo: CNA
Chang said she came up with the idea for the project when she was in sixth grade because her family had often emphasized the importance of giving back to the community.
What started out as a tiny outfit run by Chang, her sisters and her cousins has become a multinational non-governmental organization with more than 50 chapters internationally, including one in Taiwan.
Soong, the 2023 Miss Taiwanese American, said she participated in the Dance for Parkinson’s program from 2022 to this year and worked at the nonprofit Urbanity Dance in Boston as a teaching assistant.
During her time there, Soong said she learned through her talks with her students, who had Parkinson’s disease and were mostly in their 70s, that they attended concerts or parades together, adding that it was heartwarming witnessing the positive impact of dance.
Soong said that being a Taiwanese American means being resilient and compassionate, adding that she hoped her status as Miss Taiwanese American would inspire more young women to also value these traits and engage in philanthropic work.
Soong emphasized that the purpose of their trip was not for pleasure, but to learn more about Taiwanese culture and history with visits to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co and other Taiwanese technology companies, so that they can better introduce Taiwan to people when they return to the US.
AGING: While Japan has 22 submarines, Taiwan only operates four, two of which were commissioned by the US in 1945 and 1946, and transferred to Taiwan in 1973 Taiwan would need at least 12 submarines to reach modern fleet capabilities, CSBC Corp, Taiwan chairman Chen Cheng-hung (陳政宏) said in an interview broadcast on Friday, citing a US assessment. CSBC is testing the nation’s first indigenous defense submarine, the Hai Kun (海鯤, Narwhal), which is scheduled to be delivered to the navy next month or in July. The Hai Kun has completed torpedo-firing tests and is scheduled to undergo overnight sea trials, Chen said on an SET TV military affairs program. Taiwan would require at least 12 submarines to establish a modern submarine force after assessing the nation’s operational environment and defense
A white king snake that frightened passengers and caused a stir on a Taipei MRT train on Friday evening has been claimed by its owner, who would be fined, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC) said yesterday. A person on Threads posted that he thought he was lucky to find an empty row of seats on Friday after boarding a train on the Bannan (Blue) Line, only to spot a white snake with black stripes after sitting down. Startled, he jumped up, he wrote, describing the encounter as “terrifying.” “Taipei’s rat control plan: Release snakes on the metro,” one person wrote in reply, referring
The coast guard today said that it had disrupted "illegal" operations by a Chinese research ship in waters close to the nation and driven it away, part of what Taipei sees a provocative pattern of China's stepped up maritime activities. The coast guard said that it on Thursday last week detected the Chinese ship Tongji (同濟號), which was commissioned only last year, 29 nautical miles (54km) southeast of the southern tip of Taiwan, although just outside restricted waters. The ship was observed lowering ropes into the water, suspected to be the deployment of scientific instruments for "illegal" survey operations, and the coast
Yangmingshan National Park authorities yesterday urged visitors to respect public spaces and obey the law after a couple was caught on a camera livestream having sex at the park’s Qingtiangang (擎天崗) earlier in the day. The Shilin Police Precinct in Taipei said it has identified a suspect and his vehicle registration number, and would summon him for questioning. The case would be handled in accordance with public indecency charges, it added. The couple entered the park at about 11pm on Thursday and began fooling around by 1am yesterday, the police said, adding that the two were unaware of the park’s all-day live
RSS