Targeted help for the needy in Kebun Baru
Volunteers, welfare groups and govt agencies work together to draw up aid programmes
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Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong taking on Asian Cup under-12 champion Tan Yi De, 11, in a game of table soccer at the new Kebun Baru Community Club yesterday, while Mr Henry Kwek, adviser to Nee Soon GRC grassroots organisations, cheers them on.
PHOTO: LIN ZHAOWEI FOR THE STRAITS TIMES
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Needy and vulnerable residents in the Kebun Baru area of Ang Mo Kio will get more targeted aid from a new initiative that brings together volunteers, welfare organisations and government agencies to collaborate and draw up programmes.
The Hope Collective (THC) was launched yesterday by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Mr Henry Kwek, adviser to Nee Soon GRC grassroots organisations (GROs).
Mr Kwek said the initiative, led by the Kebun Baru Citizens Consultative Committee, will see professionals and volunteers "come together at the same table" to identify the needs of these residents, and help them.
Programmes include befriending socially isolated seniors, long-term mentoring for needy young families and talent development for children from lower-income families.
THC has 21 partner organisations, including the Health Promotion Board, Singapore Anti-Narcotics Association and the Agency for Integrated Care.
Mr Kwek said THC is now helping about 1,000 residents and has recruited roughly 200 volunteers.
During his visits to Kebun Baru, which is part of Nee Soon GRC, Mr Kwek observed that many people who were working to help residents were doing so "in isolation".
"The real power is when we all come together and we do integration, so that we can help families in different aspects," he said.
"So to make a difference in Singapore, I believe we cannot just come in with one single programme. It has to be a whole community-led effort, touching different parts of the family. Then it becomes sustainable good work."
One THC beneficiary is 53-year-old Umi Kalsom Mohamed, who lives in a rental flat with her 23-year-old son and 14-year-old daughter.
Madam Umi works for a THC programme called Bakery Hearts, set up by the Ang Mo Kio Family Service Centre. Its beneficiaries bake and sell pastries, giving them a flexible source of income.
Madam Umi said: "With the collective, I get to mix with people I do not normally mix with. Learning these skills and meeting these people give me motivation to work hard."
Yesterday, Mr Lee and Mr Kwek also officially opened the renovated Kebun Baru Community Club (KBCC), which serves 35,000 residents.
According to the People's Association, the new KBCC focuses on creating "a caring and inclusive Kebun Baru community", and features amenities such as lounge areas, rooftop barbecue pits, sports facilities and a senior care centre.
Also at the event were advisers to Nee Soon GRC GROs Minister for Home Affairs and Law K. Shanmugam, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Education and Social and Family Development Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim and Ms Lee Bee Wah - all MPs for Nee Soon GRC.
