Giving Back Together: Milton Volunteers at Gingko House's Grandma's Kitchen

Sustainability, for Milton, has never been a concept confined to materials or supply chains. It extends to the communities we are part of — and the responsibility we feel toward those who need support most.

On June 16, our Hong Kong office volunteer team headed to Grandma's Kitchen (婆婆廚房) in Yau Tong — a beloved social enterprise run by Gingko House (銀杏館) that employs elderly workers and serves affordable, home-style meals to the neighbourhood. The occasion: serving “blessed meals” (福飯) to residents in need, a tradition that blends practical food support with genuine human connection.

Volunteers rolled up their sleeves and got straight to work — ladling soup, scooping rice, and plating dishes side by side with Gingko House's senior staff. It was unhurried, purposeful work. Each tray handed over came with a smile and a moment of genuine conversation; for some recipients, that interaction is as nourishing as the meal itself.

Before setting off, the team shared a meal together — a small ritual that set the tone for the day. The photographs from that pre-departure gathering capture something you can't manufacture: colleagues who actually enjoy each other's company, energised for a morning that matters.

Gingko House is more than a charity kitchen — it is a social enterprise built on the belief that elderly people are a resource, not a burden. By employing seniors as chefs and front-of-house staff, it gives them income, purpose, and dignity. When Milton volunteers step in to help distribute meals, we become part of that ecosystem: connecting a younger generation of professionals with elders whose lived experience quietly commands respect.

That cross-generational energy was visible throughout the day. Volunteers who arrived that morning as colleagues left as something more — a team that had shared a common purpose outside the office walls.

This visit was not a one-off. Milton has committed to partnering with Gingko House across Q3 and Q4 2026 and into Q1 2027, with each session drawing a different volunteer team so that the opportunity to give back reaches as many colleagues as possible. Future visits will take us to other Gingko House venues — including Gingko Time (銀杏時光) in Quarry Bay — expanding our footprint across different communities in the city.

We believe that the spirit of “giving together” (同心公益) is inseparable from who we are as a company. The materials we source, the products we make, the offices we run — all of it is embedded in society. Days like June 16 remind us that sustainable business is ultimately about people: the colleagues we work alongside, the communities we operate in, and the strangers who become a little less so over a shared bowl of rice.