In the world of shipping, the ­bottom line usually takes ­centre stage, but Singapore's maritime community put the spotlight on seafarers for an evening.

The 280 guests at this month’s Mission to Seafarers ­annual awards dinner at the InterContinental Hotel dug deep into their pockets to raise SGD 138,000 ($100,000) through tickets, raffles and a charity auction.

Gold sponsor BHP kicked in a further SGD 15,000 with a surprise cheque presented by Rashpal Bhatti, the company’s vice-president of marketing and freight.