Tuesday April 17, 2007 Hong Kong Sammi donates her pay to charity! After a long break, Sammi's 6 show concert run will begin next month, but because of the overwhelming response, it was announced yesterday that they would add an extra show on the 24th of May. At a press conference yetserday, Sammi announced this, and pledged to donate her pay from thata show to 3 different charitable organizations, namely, Art in Hospital, The Ebenezer School for the Visually Impaired, and the End Child Sexual Abuse Foundation. Sammi, who is very fond of painting, also donated a piece of artwork named <Blooming Flowers> for an auction, and it was bought by her boss Peter Lam for HKD88,000. To thank Sammi, all 3 charitable organizations sent a gift of recognition to her. Dressed in jeans, Sammi explained the idea behind her painting, saying. "It is a plant, and the middle part with some red strokes are the flowers. It's a little impressionist, and it's called <Blooming Flowers>, and symbolizes good things. It's a painting that will bring luck." Sammi laughed and said that she did not force her boss into buying the painting, but since someone actually wanted her painting, she was very satisfied with the amount raised. Reporters questioned her as to how much she had donated from her pay, and she dodged the question, saying, "Don't talk about how much! I'm very cheap!" The reporters persisted and asked if it was a 6 or 7 figure sum, to which she replied, "I'm donating all, a 7 figure sum would be more than what Paula Tsui earned! That would spoil the market!" As for whether they would add extra shows for a 3rd time, Sammi said, "Actually we can go up to 10 shows, but I'd like to focus on quality rather than quantity. The main reason is to let the fans who haven't been able to get tickets to watch the show, so we'll see how the situation develops. I don't want to be too stressed out, in the past I've held 16 show runs, and it was very tiring. Now that I'm older, my body can't take that much stress." Reporters told her that many fans have been waiting for her to hold a show, and she laughed and said, "After starving them for 10 years, so they must be very happy. Actually there were only 2 outcomes this time around, it was either going to be not well received at all, or a complete full house." As to why she was so pessimistic, she clarified and said, "No, I'm just stating the 2 possible outcomes. That I decided to hold the show means I am confident. It's just that I didn't expect to be able to add shows so soon!" Sammi was also asked about the results of the Hong Kong Film Awards, and she said she was happy that both Lau Ching Wan and Gong Li took home the acting awards. Especially in the case of Ching Wan, she said that it was like a spring that has come too late for him, and that he thoroughly deserved it. credits: sammicheng.popz, asianfanatics.
