Our community work is fairly simple, yet enriching. Once a month, our group goes to Marsiling to help Food From The Heart distribute non-perishable food to the needy living in that area. Our work consists of transporting food bags weighing around 4-5kg to the distribution centre, packing food into these bags, splitting into groups to distribute food to people living in the entire neighbourhood (about 10 blocks of flats).

Mirror:

Before we started on helping out the organization through community service (house-to-house distribution of food at Marsiling), we had not known much about the situation of poverty in Singapore. We hoped that our participation in the food distribution would make us more aware of the living conditions and needs of the poor, and thus be motivated to carry on this project. We also hoped that our actions would benefit the poor.

During the distribution, each of us carried around 2-4 bags of food and moved around the neighbourhood, finding the apartments in which the needy lived in and gave the food to them. We observed that most of the corridors in these blocks of flats were dimly lit and were sometimes quite dirty. The narrow corridors made it hard for us to pass through because we all carried bulky bags. Carrying the heavy bags in these places was extremely tiring. After only a few minutes of moving around the blocks, we were all sweating profusely. This was the condition volunteers have to endure all the time! Thinking about it made us all the more motivated. If the volunteers can do it, surely we (six healthy young men) can do it as well! I think we worked pretty well as a group. When someone needs help in carrying his bags, the stronger ones (or the ones with lesser bags to carry) will help him lighten his load.

We tried to be very sensitive towards the needy. On our first visit, our group was like strangers to the residents. It was important that we do not offend any of the needy. It was also important for us to be able to speak the dialect or language of certain families, so that there could be communication among all of us and we can get to understand the needy families more. While we need photographs for our project, we have to ask for permission from the people we are distributing food to. We were also careful not to take photographs of their living conditions unless we had the permission to do so.

After every distribution, we look forward to the next time we can interact with the beneficiaries and volunteers. We have managed to overcome the language barrier (because each of us knows English and Mandarin, along with different dialects) and chat with the beneficiaries. Although the beneficiaries are poor, they appear to be very happy and friendly. It was a real joy talking to the elderly and the other beneficiaries.

Microscope:

During food distribution, we noticed that all the apartments in this area were one-room. On the list which contains confidential information about the needy, we noticed that most of the needy were very poor. They earn very little income per month (sometimes even none), ad some of them suffer from chronic diseases like diabetes, hypertension, osteoporosis and heart problems. These conditions rendered them unable to work and earn money. Seeing this, we really felt sorry for the poor. When we got to their houses and they opened their doors to receive the food, we took a quick look at their living conditions. For some of the beneficiaries, their houses were rather empty. For some others, their houses consist of lots of things that appear to be old. Our group was pretty shocked by this but we have to be tactful and not probe too much. Because all of us come from relatively well-off families, we have not considered the plight of the poor much before. Through this activity, we have realized how fortunate we are. We have learnt to treasure what we have now – our cars, computers, air-conditioners etc.

The beneficiaries were very happy when they received the food from us, and thanked us repeatedly. Seeing their happiness at receiving these food items (which consist of only canned food, some rice, biscuits and noodles, but can last them for a month), we felt that all our efforts were worth it. Helping out in the house-to-house food distribution definitely has broadened our horizons and inspired us to help the poor in Singapore. A can of sardines is merely a can of sardines to you and me, but to the needy, it holds so much more meaning and value.

We believe that by taking part in the distribution of food, we have aided the volunteers and staff of Food From The Heart, reducing the need for them to find volunteers who may not be free all the time or may not be committed enough. At the same time, we help to get the food to the needy at a much faster pace. One way we can continue helping is to help out in food distributions more regularly. We can also help by going to more places where there are Food From The Heart Outreach Programmes to aid the volunteers there in distributing food.

We are very proud that we are volunteers of Food From The Heart.

Binoculars:

Our group believes that we have just helped out in a small way with regard to the poor families’ lives. Food distribution only helps relieve the poor of their burdens temporarily and does not solve the issue of poverty. It may also be possible that certain poor families depend too much on the food that has been donated by kind people from around Singapore and lose their determination to work and earn some money. Furthermore, with the rapid increase in prices of food, it may not be possible for many to only rely on the food that they receive with the help of Food From The Heart. It is imperative that we begin educating the poor (encouraging them to also seek a source of revenue) and the general public about the situation of poverty in Singapore (so that more donations can come in).

We believe that education should start from young, because that is the period where positive thoughts are ingrained into our minds. Therefore, much of our target audience would be the children. Of course, we cannot forget the adults too, because they are the ones who can contribute the most – whether financially or physically (as volunteer). We want to instill a certain “kampong” spirit back into Singaporeans. Instead of staying behind closed doors and leaving one another out during activities, we should open our doors, interact and help out one another, just like how villagers staying in “kampongs” in the past used to.

Community spirit all the way!