The Cry of the Poor

Posted by Darwin on November 8, 2016

Our very first Blog Post is written by Charlene Chua, a pioneer EDIS staff. Charlene was working in the urban development sector in Singapore for 9 years when she felt the need to discern her calling in life. She subsequently spent 5 months in New Zealand attending a spiritual programme and 7 months in Cambodia as a volunteer teacher. Currently based in the Philippines, she continues her process of discernment in a Catholic religious formation house. Charlene’s interests are in social issues (especially the marginalised), geography and playing football.

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The Cry of the Poor

As an aspirant undergoing religious formation, my main duties are to study well, pray well and work well. ‘Work’ entails the responsibilities I am assigned, which can be in the form of cleaning, washing, cooking, preparing for celebrations (there are many in a Salesian house!), etc. While in formation, we are less involved in the active part of the Salesian mission – to reach out to the poor, especially the young, in society.

The sight of the poor is becoming all too familiar. No matter which country I am in, the voiceless poor are crying out.

In Phnom Penh, Cambodia, there is the story of the 3 boys who live with their parents in a make-shift tent, as well as stories of other poor children.

In Pyin Oo Lwin, Myanmar, a band of beggars live in a squatter next to the train station. Many of them come from other parts of the country in search for a means to survive. Unfortunately, they cannot find work and often resort to stealing.

In New Zealand, there are homeless people sleeping on the streets wrapped in black trash bags to keep themselves warm in winter.

In Singapore, I was told a story of a single mother with 5 children who is doing part-time work so that she has the flexibility in hours to take care of her children. Her single income can barely make ends meet.

Rich or poor, developed or developing, every country has their share of poor. Sometimes they are visible, other times they are hidden. How can this be? Why are there so many people who are suffering? These are questions we should be asking.

At a more personal level, I think we should also be asking ourselves:

Do I want to see the poor?

Do I have the courage to look at the poor in the eye and in good conscience not do anything about it?

What has the poor got to do with me?

It is sad, but this is a question that some people ask or are tempted to ask.

In countries like Singapore where meritocracy is highly lauded, we are taught that if you work hard, you will do well. But is this always true? The fact is that no two human beings are the same. From a genetic point of view, we are born with different abilities and disabilities. From a societal point of view, the options and opportunities available to each person differ, no matter how much we try to even out the playing field.

Arising from our growing individualistic attitudes, the sense of entitlement runs high in some. They believe that what they have earned is through their own effort and hard work, hence everything belongs to them and they have the right to keep it solely for themselves.

We know that historically, man never used to live in such an individualistic manner. Living conditions were often much more communal and things were shared within the community. Those who had more gave to those who had less. In the Singapore context, we do not even have to think too far back. The ‘kampong’ (‘village’ in Malay) environment that some of our parents or grandparents lived in in the 1960s was exactly that. The ‘kampong spirit’ that we sometimes refer to includes the spirit of sharing.

Humans are clearly social beings and are made for community. This necessarily means that we have a responsibility towards others who are part of our community, i.e. the society/world in which we live. How can we live in good conscience when there are so many poor people in our midst?

We Need To Act

I cannot emphasise enough the urgency of this call to action I am making. There are too many poor, too many people who are living without proper shelter, food, water and sanitation. In a recent BBC report, it says that nearly a fifth of children in developing countries – almost 385 million young lives – are living in extreme poverty, according to the World Bank and UN’s children’s agency.

So what can you do? Let me suggest some possible ways:

Look for organisations, agencies, interest groups that work with marginalised groups in society. See which you are interested in or moves your heart. Contact them to ask how you can play a part.

Set aside some money each month for a charitable course. Donate to the cause(s) which are most in need or you find meaningful.

Commit to volunteering, whether on your own or with an existing volunteer group.

Start thinking about the causes of these inequalities and injustices and ask yourself how you or anyone you know can do something about it. Social action is important but social justice (ways to alleviate the causes of these inequalities) is even more pertinent.

Unite yourself in spirit with the poor by making some material sacrifices. For example, you could choose to forgo buying an item which you desire, eat one less meal a day or eat less in a meal, make an intentional choice to simplify the way you live, etc.

Pray for the poor and less fortunate every day.

This list is not at all exhaustive but it can be a way to start.

iShine Programme

The Need

Students from disadvantaged families usually start behind their peers upon entry to Primary School due to their home situations. This could lead to lower self-esteem and loss of motivation to do well in school. Their school financial needs are usually covered by government subsidies, but they also need emotional support, regular motivation and nurturing.

The Programme

iShine started as a pilot programme in 2014 with Greendale Primary School. From 2015 to 2021, iShine ran at Punggol Family Service Centre, under AMKFSC Community Services. From 2020, iShine also became part of New Life Community Services’ Kids Champ Club.

iShine is a thematic, hands-on exploratory learning programme that takes primary school children beyond their school curriculum. Adult volunteers journey with the children throughout the year-long programme’s different themes, spotting hidden talents and newly sparked interests. In so doing, we raise the children’s confidence and encourage higher aspirations.

iShine has a collection of 10 themes covering diverse topics ranging from cooking (Junior Masterchef), urban design (Design a City), to understanding different occupations (When I Grow Up). The sessions take place fortnightly and run for 3 hours per session. Children and volunteers participate in the activities in teams and discuss what they learn together.

Our Partners

PROGRAMME PARTNERS

Current Programme Partner (2020 onwards)

New Life Community Services (New Life or NLCS) is a social service agency in Singapore. NLCS is passionate about serving the community and mentoring the next generation. It currently operates three childcare centres, three youth hubs, three student care centres as well as conduct character mentoring programmes for children and youths. NLCS also provides financial assistance to marginalised families with schooling children and provide casework management and counselling to handle issues of poverty and debts.

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NLCS incorporates iShine into its Kids Champ Club (KCC) programme. KCC aims to impart good character values in children and provide opportunities for them to put into practice what they have learnt through regular sessions with fun and intentionally planned experiential activities.

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Past Programme Partner (2015 – 2021)

Punggol Family Service Centre, under AMKFSC Community Services, became the programme host for iShine in 2015.

The FSC serves families living in Punggol through casework and counselling services as well as community support services for parents, children and couples.

Find out about Punggol Family Service Centre’s experiences here:

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Early Learning Programme

iShine
Early Learning Programme
Milk and Diapers

Early Learning Programme (ELP)

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The ELP is an intervention-based, volunteer-championed literacy and numeracy programme. It started as a pilot in 2014 at Care Corner FSC* (Queenstown) for 16 six-year olds living in the vicinity. They came from low-income, multi-challenged families that did not speak English at home.

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Despite attending preschool, the children had not yet mastered basic literacy and numeracy. Several had learning difficulties and all of them needed more individual attention and tailored learning. We realized that if no intervention had been provided, many of these children would have fallen behind their peers when they entered Primary School.

Through the years, the ELP was iteratively improved and extended to multiple charities, thanks to generous donor support. It has touched the lives of close to 600 children since inception.

THE ELP DIFFERENCE

The ELP’s in-house curriculum was developed with support from Literacy Therapist Sharon Yeoh and Educational Psychologist Adeline Chin. It comprises a balanced literacy programme that uses an Orton-Gillingham approach as well as manipulative-heavy Numeracy activities.

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Children are tested at baseline, mid-term and year-end to determine their needs and progress. Volunteers are matched to children on a maximum 1 volunteer: 2 children ratio, and lesson plan for their students based on their knowledge gaps and preferred learning styles.

Children that display signs of learning or other difficulties are referred to our volunteer Speech Therapist, Occupational Therapist or/and consulting Literacy Therapist and Educational Psychologist for screening and assessments.

A TYPICAL SESSION

Children are bused to a host charity every Saturday morning and provided with breakfast. The lesson starts with a group teaching session, followed by one-hour solo lessons involving multi-sensory exercises, tools and reading books selected to match the child’s level and progress.

The children then have 45 minutes of Group Play aimed at developing their social interaction and gross motor skills. Since 2018, we partnered with National Library Board to incorporate their KidsRead programme into the Group Play period. Prior to COVID, we included gym, music and other activities through our corporate partners. Where COVID-19 regulations allowed, the children also went for outings and have in-house mini carnivals.

GROWING OUR REACH

In 2017, in addition to our first partner, Care Corner FSC (Queenstown), we reached out to Prison Fellowship Singapore (2017 – present), Beyond Social Services (2017 – present), and Singapore Anglican Community Services’ Family Care Centre (2017) to provide the ELP to the children they serve.

In 2018, FaithActs (2018 – present) came on board. In 2020-2021, Kampong Kapor Family Service Centre (2020 – present), Filos Community Services (2021) and The Hut (2021) also took on the ELP.

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Since 2020, with restrictions resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak, we moved ELP online with the support of:

Learning Vessels, our programme management partner, who created an online training resource for the volunteers, electronic teaching materials and sent out hard copy materials to the volunteers and children,
Our charity partners who helped to identify families with children that could participate in this online arrangement, and who coordinated with the families and volunteers to enable lessons to start, and
Engineering Good and other VWOs/donors who provided devices to families without them so that the children could have weekly 1:1 lessons with their volunteers via Zoom.

Since 2021, the various ELP sites have begun operating in hybrid modes – with a blend of both online and onsite classes.

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Visit our Facebook page for our programme updates!

*FSC = Family Service Centre

Our Partners

Care Corner Family Service Centre (Queenstown) was our pioneer ELP site and were wonderful partners from 2014 – 2016. In 2017, ELP was launched in 4 centres – Prison Fellowship Singapore‘s Care Club sites, Beyond Social Services‘ Healthy Start Child Development Centre and Singapore Anglican Community Services‘ Family Care Centre, a Shelter for homeless women and children. We learnt about the different types of charities in Singapore we could partner with, and how we could try to expand the ELP’s reach sustainably. We refined our training sessions, streamlined Literacy and Numeracy teaching tools, and put in place structure and processes for each site. A pilot Mother’s English Literacy Programme was also trialed at the shelter.

In 2018 and 2019, 3 charities (Beyond Social Services, FaithActs and Prison Fellowship Singapore) ran ELP, across 4 sites. We also piloted a more advanced programme (ELP+) in partnership with FaithActs and New Town Primary School to support students in Primary 2.

ELP+

In 2020, although COVID-19 drastically changed the way things were run, we also welcomed Kampong Kapor Family Service Centre into the ELP family. In 2021, Beyond Social Services added on a new site and we also had 2 new partners, Filos Community Services and The Hut, bringing the total of ELP-partner charities to 6. We continue to partner these charities in 2022.

See Prison Fellowship Singapore‘s Experience here:

Sharon Yeoh, is a literacy therapist who has her own private practice, The Reading Ark. She was an ex-MOE teacher and hence understands the primary school English curriculum. She has an International Teaching Diploma in Dyslexia and Literacy from Dyslexia Action UK, and works individually with children with a range of learning difficulties including dyslexia and ADHD. Her experience includes teaching children in pre-school to the primary years.

Sharon is our main literacy consultant for the ELP and is our partner in the development of the programme’s literacy curriculum, teaching tools and materials and conduct of volunteer training.

Adeline Chin is an Educational Psychologist, supervisor and Triple P parenting facilitator in private practice. She is a Registered Psychologist of Singapore Registered Psychologists, International Affiliate Member of the Australian Psychological Society, and Full Member of the International Association of Applied Psychology (US). She assesses and intervenes with children and adolescents that have developmental and learning issues such as autism, ADHD, dyslexia and overall underachievement. She has 20 years of experience working with parents, teachers, children and adolescents in various settings, such as special, mainstream and international schools, Voluntary Welfare Organisations, Boys’, Girls’, and Children’s Homes, hospitals as well as private centres.

Adeline is our consultant Educational Psychologist for the ELP. She advised us our curriculum, assessments as well screening checklists. She also screens and assesses ELP participants who display persistent signs of learning difficulties throughout our 10-month programme.

Our Volunteers

We have been blessed to have many volunteers that started their first volunteering experience with ELP and continued with the programme beyond their first year. Through the years, our volunteers continued increasing to more than 100 volunteers since ELP 2020, demonstrating that the spirit of volunteerism did not dampen even in the face of COVID-19.

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These dynamic, enthusiastic and committed volunteers range in age from 16 up and include working adults as well as tertiary students. We also have siblings, cousins and couples volunteering together. Furthermore, more and more of them are on their 2nd year and beyond, providing much needed long-term support for these children and allowing the ELP’s impact to expand and grow. Although COVID-19 continued into ELP 2021, volunteers adjusted well to the new norm and we managed to conduct hybrid online and face to face lessons for children based on their needs.

Hear from our volunteers directly here:

Rachel, one of our youngest ELP volunteers

2. Elizabeth, who works as a School Counselor and is volunteering at ELP@Prison Fellowship Singapore.

Play And Talk

Play & Talk (PAT) is a language stimulation program targeted at 3 to 7 year olds who are learning English as a second language and are at-risk of learning disabilities. These children are from families of low socio-economic status. PAT focuses on social-emotional and cognitive/communication skills to facilitate the acquisition of language and literacy and to better integrate them into the preschool and primary school curriculum.

PAT was initiated at Fei Yue Family Service Centre (Champions Way) in 2018. The children under the pilot PAT runs improved in their communication abilities and were able to comfortably socialize with their peers and adult volunteers. The programme was well received by their parents. The programme has continued through the years into 2022, with children who needed the support continuing through several runs. PAT has impacted about 45 children since the start of the programme.

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Milk and Diapers

iShine
Early Learning Programme
Milk and Diapers

Milk and Diapers
Past Milk and Diapers Partners

Milk and Diapers

The Need

Parents of poor and needy families struggle to work, take care of their children and provide for their basic needs. Some of these families receive regular food rations for daily sustenance and can scarcely afford diapers and milk powder for their children. Many such mothers are malnourished themselves or are medically unwell, and so are unable to breastfeed their children.

Milk and Diapers

Since 2018, we have partnered with Prison Fellowship Singapore (PFS) to provide milk and diapers to the families supported by PFS.

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Besides relieving the tight financial situation of these families, the milk provided supports the physical growth of their children, many who are undernourished. With PFS, we extended the support to provide UHT milk to children older than 3 years old. PFS shared that there are families whose main meal consists of porridge, ikan bilis and vegetables, and these children often skipped breakfast and were hungry in school.

Furthermore, we found out that by providing milk to school-going children, their school attendance and performance improved – they were no longer constantly hungry and their bodies received the nutrients they needed for optimal physiological development.

Past Milk and Diapers Partners

Milk and Diapers 2017

In 2017, we started a project with Babes, a charity that supports teenage parents, and Society of St Vincent de Paul (SVDP), a Catholic society which had its own Milk and Diapers programme.

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Babes set up processes for nominating infants for support, as well as purchasing and distributing milk powder and diapers. The volunteers not only delivered the items to the teenage parents each month, they also monitored the growth of the babies and provide emotional support to the caregivers. By working together, we learnt about the challenges faced by this group of parents, their aspirations and their needs.

Babes evolved this project into a full fledged programme called “Happy Stork” which is open to donor support.

First “Milk and Diapers” Pilot

We started our first “Milk and Diapers” pilot with Care Corner Family Service Center (Queenstown) from March 2014- March 2015. During this period, a monthly donation of milk powder and diapers were provided to the neediest families in the community served by the Centre. These donations were provided for 3-6 months, with extensions approved on a case by case basis for up to a maximum of 12 months total support.

Care Corner FSC (Queenstown) set-up detailed processes for social workers to nominate needy families, keep track of duration of support and formally extend support for families that needed it.

Each month, our donations benefited about 60 children – they were aged 3 and below, or were older than 3 but suffer from chronic diseases like cerebral palsy. A volunteer-based, multi-module nutritional education programme was also developed in partnership with A*STAR’s Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences to educate the families on how they could feed themselves and their children healthily, even on a limited budget.

The Milk and Diapers pilot successfully ran for one year from March 2014 – March 2015, and was transitioned to another corporate sponsor, Zendesk.

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The Cry of the Poor

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The Cry of the Poor

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Popular Articles

Partners In Action – iShine

Faithfully Responding to the Call

EDIS Cares Supporters Letter 2019

Partners In Actions – ELP

My iShine Experience

Gaining Confidence to Volunteer

Thoughts From The Youngest

A Successful Partnership

A Volunteer’s Impressions

iShine Programme

Our Partners

Early Learning Programme (ELP)

Our Partners

Our Volunteers

Play And Talk

Milk and Diapers

Past Milk and Diapers Partners

Terms and Conditions

Privacy Policy