SINGAPORE - After the father of two boys he was mentoring died, a volunteer with the Chinese Development Assistance Council (CDAC) went the extra mile to make sure they were coping well emotionally.
"I kept a lookout... (to) see if there was anything that they would like to talk about and tried to observe... how (the death) was affecting them," said Mr Goh Chek Meng, 43.
Mr Goh received an award for his efforts at CDAC's Volunteers' Day, a biennial event commending the non-profit group's volunteers, which started with a ceremony at the Lifelong Learning Institute on Sunday (March 14).
Six other individuals also received commendation awards. Three groups of volunteers were recognised, while 238 volunteers were given long-service awards.
Due to safe management measures, the awards were given out to only 28 of the recipients - 25 individuals and the three volunteer groups - at the ceremony.
The others will receive their awards by mail.
Mr Goh said he was glad that the boys managed to move forward with their education.
"When you see the children putting in effort (in their studies)... and subsequently they manage to achieve what they could and probably should - that... is one of the greatest successes," he said.
Mr Goh initially volunteered with the CDAC as a befriender to support low-income families, but switched to participating in the Supervised Homework Group (SHG) in 2012.
Started in 1994, SHG is a weekly volunteer-driven programme which supports upper-primary children in their studies and character development.
It is part of the CDAC Family Assistance Programme, which aims to help low-income families in coping with their basic living needs and assist them to become more self-reliant.
Mr Goh said there had been challenges in managing the various obligations from his job, family life and volunteer duties. He works in the education sector and is married with two children.
"Thankfully... I have my family's support," he said.
doaward14-ol - Ms Jasmine Hu, 34, received an award on Sunday for volunteering in the Supervised Homework Group programme. The programme seeks to support upper-primary children in their studies and character development.
Credit for all photos: Chinese Development Assistance Council
PHOTO: CHINESE DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE COUNCIL
Ms Jasmine Hu is another volunteer with the SHG programme who received an award on Sunday.
The 34-year-old was uncertain if she could remain committed to volunteering when she started seven years ago, as she was switching jobs then.
"But I thought (then) that if I said I had no time...in my mid-20s, I will probably have less time as I get older," said Ms Hu, vice-president of a department in financial services firm JP Morgan.
One of the three volunteer groups which received an award on Sunday was a team under CDAC's Granny Quilt Project.
Started at a CDAC centre at Redhill in 2017, the project involves volunteers collaborating to create quilts, each from 100 cloth patches.
The quilts, which are intended for babies, are given away at CDAC events.
The project has since grown, and added one more team, at the CDAC centre at Punggol.
doaward14-ol - A member of the Granny Quilt Project sewing quilts out of multiple cloth patches. The project is a CDAC initiative which involves volunteers collaborating to create quilts for babies. One of the two teams under the project received an award on Sunday for their volunteering efforts.
Credit for all photos: Chinese Development Assistance Council
PHOTO: CHINESE DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE COUNCIL
The Redhill team, which has 18 members ranging in age from the 40s to the 70s, received the award on Sunday.
Members Florence Aw, 68, Irene Tan, 70, and Wan Seow Har, 74, said they were proud of their team.
They also encouraged senior citizens to participate in volunteer work, with Ms Aw saying that such activities would allow them to bond with other volunteers and keep their minds occupied.
<p>ST20210314-202199588313-Lim Yaohui-doaward15/</p>
<p>(From left) Madam Tan Bee Tin, 70; Madam Wan Seow Har, 74; and Madam Aw Chwee Hay Florence, 68; all retirees and members of Granny Quilt (CDAC @ Redhill) who is Volunteer Team Awardee, after the awards presentation ceremony at Lifelong Learning Institute (LLI) on Mar 14, 2021.</p>
<p>As part of efforts to appreciate and recognise its volunteers who have gone an extra mile to make a positive difference in the lives of the disadvantaged, CDAC will be holding an awards presentation ceremony at Lifelong Learning Institute (LLI) on Mar 14, 2021.</p>
<p>Guest-of-Honour is Mr Edwin Tong, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth & Second Minister for Law, and Mr Baey Yam Keng, Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Transport, and CDAC Board member</p>
<p>(ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI)</p>
PHOTO: ST
On Sunday, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Transport Baey Yam Keng noted that CDAC's volunteers were quick to incorporate online elements into the non-profit group's programmes.
"Despite the steep learning curve, we saw our volunteers, in particular the mature volunteers, actively learning the use of Zoom and tech-savvy volunteers stepping up to help co-volunteers embrace technology," said Mr Baey, who is on CDAC's board of directors.
"All these were done to ensure we can continue extending help to our beneficiaries even during difficult times."
