How Operation Santa Claus grew from Christmas donations to ‘engine’ of change

South China Morning Post - Oct 24, 2026

Over nearly four decades, Operation Santa Claus (OSC) has grown from a quirky holiday fundraiser into an “engine” for community change in Hong Kong. For some beneficiaries, the journey was a full circle. Rachel Chow Chiu-yan learned about the fundraising drive in Young Post when she was a student, later pitched for funds on behalf of a group helping teenage girls and later joined the charity. “Ten to 20 years ago, Operation Santa Claus disbursed some funding to charities that saw it as seed...

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