PETALING JAYA: While grocery shopping one day, Cheong Hing Wah got a call from The Star saying he won a Samsung 65in Q65A QLED 4K Smart TV.

       “I was elated to know that I got a TV,” he said, adding that it was all the more delightful as this was his first time winning something from taking part in contests.

       Cheong won the grand prize in the Star50 Subscribe and Get Rewarded contest held in conjunction with Star Media Group’s 50th anniversary celebration.

       When the call came, Cheong, 74, said that he was initially wary about it being a scam.

       “So, I asked the company to send me an email verifying the authenticity of the call,” said the Petaling Jaya resident.

       “To my pleasant surprise, the call was genuine.

       “Currently, all the rooms in my house have a TV except for one so this new addition fits in nicely there,” added Cheong, who owns a small trading company.

       He said he had been a subscriber of The Star for more than 30 years and enjoyed reading the physical paper while his wife preferred reading the news on her tablet.

       He said he enjoyed reading all sections of the paper and looked forward to the health pages and comic strips, especially Hagar the Horrible.

       Another winner was Teoh Bee Chu, who was startled to learn that she won a Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G.

       “I was shocked to find out that I won a phone and got my husband to call the company to verify it.

       “I am extremely happy with the phone and am learning how to use it with help from my son and daughter-in-law,” said Teoh, 72.

       She said she had been reading The Star for about 40 years now.

       She is particularly interested in articles on cooking and the StarHealth section every Sunday.

       “I enjoy reading the newspaper daily and keep the recipes shared by The Star in a folder.

       “To date, I have about 100 recipes in my collection and intend to try them all once I retire,” said the remisier.

       As for business consultant Wan Md Suhaimi Wan Sulaiman from Kuala Lumpur, he had planned to buy a tablet given the mobile nature of his work.

       As such, he was thrilled when he found out he had won the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 which was the third grand prize of the contest.

       “I never thought I would win the tablet. I already made plans to purchase one, so winning this through the contest was delightful,” he said.

       The 55-year-old reader added that he had the habit of writing notes during meetings and having the tablet made it more convenient to do so.

       A regular reader of The Star since the 1990s, Wan Md Suhaimi said he liked reading the business section.

       “I read the business section from cover to cover every day, and have somewhat memorised it both in and out.

       “As I do stock trading and investments on the side, this keeps me informed on big dealings both within and out of the country,” he added.

       There were also 30 consolation prizes given out, comprising RM200 Shopee vouchers.

       The third series of the contest, which began yesterday, will end on Nov 11.

       Three luxury timepieces – Ulysse Nardin, Maurice Lacroix and Oris – worth a total of RM87,500 await the lucky winners.

       Go to https://bit.ly/startimepiece for details.