Monday 30 December 2013

Celebrating Christmas @ Christmas 'round the corner'


                                   
Greetings Everyone!

How's your holidays coming along? We apologize for the lack of updates as we have been busy with our individual activities and at the same time brainstorming for our next project.

Moving on, on the Eve of Christmas, three of our team members proceeded down to Marine Parade to help raise funds for four beneficiaries.

The event was organized by Faith Community Baptist Church (FCBC). Every year, FCBC, will organized an event for Christmas.

This year, one of their highlights was the community charity mural. Sponsored by Nippon Paint, the mural "Nippon Paint Charity Mural" aims to raise a total of $50,000 for four beneficiaries and they are:

  • Marine Parade Family Service Centre
  • Yellow Ribbon Project
  • Pertapis
  • Touch Family Services    
Every $5 donated, you get to paint, two tiles. The mural consisted of 13, 872 tiles with a dimension of 17ft x 6ft (yes, it's really small!). All the tiles were numbered . For example, if the cup indicated the number 7, you would paint two tiles with the number 7 on it.


Apart from the mural painting, the event gave out free coffee, (sadly, we didn't drink coffee!) balloon sculpting,hand painting, ping pong challenge and photo booth.

Latest Check: (from their website)
FCBC managed to raise $25,000! Congratulations! :)

Although they did not reach their target, $25,000 is a huge sum raised by the community.

Do check out the video that we placed on this post to see our experience doing #paintforjoy and the event itself, Christmas 'round the corner'.


ENJOY THE LAST BITS OF HOLIDAYS!!! 



Tuesday 17 December 2013

Do They Know Its Christmas?

By Momoko Loh 

Growing up with less: A documentary done by students from the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information hopes to give viewers a glimpse of the children's lives in some of Singapore's poorest estates  (Photo: Xu Yuan Duan)

“There's a world outside your window and it's a world of dreaded fear. Where the only water flowing, Is a bitter sting of tears”

Taken from the song “Do they know it’s Christmas”, it was a song that was written to showcase and a call to the world to aid poverty stricken countries in the 1980s to the early 2000s. Having had lived in a comfortable environment growing up, it is hard to ever imagine that poverty would ever occur or rise in Singapore. Hence this explains my disbelief when I came across this article “Singapore poverty in the spotlight” written by Tom Benner for Aljazeera.

It is hard to imagine that Singapore could have poverty. However based on the data from Singstatsa national statistical system some 105,000 households in Singapore and some 114,000 individual residents earn less than $805 a month –despite the fact that the country’s average per capital income is $52,305.
Though Singapore has no official measure of poverty, an average household spends $1,250 a month for a four person household on basic needs – food, clothing and shelter (this is based on a 2 year old survey held by the Department of Statistics). How is this affordable for a family who earns less than $805 a month?

However it is not only monetary matters that deem poverty in Singapore.

A documentary done by a student lead organization called Growing up with less, explores the hidden side of the country where the government-built apartment complexes are littered with trash and used sanitary napkins. The documentary also focuses on the plight of children from low-income families where parents struggle to make ends meet, leaving their children unsupervised often hungry for food and affection and also vulnerable to bad influence.  This was done as a final year project by students of Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University.

 Hence, as the season of giving is approaching, just stop for a minute and think. There are families here who are not as fortunate as us to celebrate a joyous occasion like Christmas. A parent may not be able to afford to buy a present for their kid or bring the kids out for a simple Christmas dinner.

So take some action, give back to society. You could donate clothes that you cannot wear or toys that you have outgrown of to The Salvation Army . You could also donate some money as you shop for your presents this Christmas as The Salvation Army would be ringing their bells at different shopping districts.

Also, do visit One Singapore as they are an organization based in Singapore that helps and envisions a world where no one lives in poverty –be it overseas or here at home and if you are interested to volunteer you can visit www.nvpc.org.sg for more information.

So bring a smile to another’s face –donate and share things with the less fortunate and spread the joy of giving. Let them know that its Christmas time.

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Monday 16 December 2013

Less is More

BY JULIANA JOHARI

An amount donate, is never too small. (http://ccis.sg/my-christmas-wish/)

Who does not love presents? All of us do, especially on Christmas. But how about those who are not as fortunate? Have we ever spared a thought for other children who are not as fortunate?

Take a minute to ponder, on how you could give back to the society and reaching out to them?

Giving back to the society can come in many forms. Some people show it by physically involved in voluntary acts while for some, they just dial the numbers of the organizations.

True, not everyone is born on a silver spoon. Then again, an amount donated is never too small because any amount donated makes a difference.  I have always believed that when you donate an amount, you donate what you can afford. At the end of the day, it is the thought that counts.

This year Christmas, Celebrate Christmas in Singapore (CCIS) aims to fulfill Christmas wishes of 1000 primary school needy children in Singapore. These children will receive a budget of $50 to choose a present of their choice this Christmas. The children are free to choose and buy their school necessities such as school textbooks, uniforms, stationeries, bag and shoes.

Celebrate Christmas in Singapore is a yearly event held at Orchard Road that is planned by the Christians community in Singapore. Its aim is to show people the genuine meaning of Christmas. It is built on three pillars – Touching Lives, Sharing the Moment and Blessing the Community.  Through these pillars, Celebrate Christmas in Singapore hopes to spread the unconditional love, inspired people to everyone in Singapore regardless their race or religion.

For every donation you make, you actually fulfill one’s child wish.  The amount might seem huge for some us because it is almost equivalent to our school pocket money every week.

No, I am not going to ask you not to eat over one week just so you can fulfill one’s child wish.  But if you do, I applaud you for that. But, just imagine that amount of $50, you spread it over four weeks? Let us do some calculations here.  $50, you spread it over four weeks, per week you can get $12.50.  Easy right?  If you can save up for the shoe you have been eyeing for, I bet you can do the same to put a smile on the children’s face. Plus, it is for a good cause.

Feeling sympathetic for someone is a natural feeling. But how many of us can actually turn that feeling into an action? Are you one of them? If yes, click on the donation amount you intend to donate at http://ccis.sg/my-christmas-wish/. Remember, it’s the thought that counts.




Sunday 15 December 2013

Christmas is the time to start volunteering

By: Joanne Liao


(Photo source: Asiaone)


As suggested by a recent report on Yahoo!, it is a good sign to know that Singaporeans are giving back what they have earned to the society by donating a large amount of their income through various charitable organisations like The Salvation Army.

As much as we should applause and celebrate for Singaporeans who are donating and giving to those who are in need of monetary aids, we seem to missed out the fact that donating is not the whole package for playing a part for the society. Singaporeans may be are generous, donating more than $2.5 million to the Typhoon Haiyan victims, but we aren’t kind and caring people. 

Despite there are a rising number of people volunteering but the time spend in volunteering decreases. That poses a question to everyone; what is the purpose of giving money when we are unwilling to spend some time to help someone?

Whenever a person approaches me on the street to ask for a donation, money to buy themselves a nice meal or travel home, I would absolutely reject them. Its sound as if I am uncompassionate and selfish but I don’t believe in donating is the answer to help someone in need. I just prefer to be asked or volunteer to do someone else a favour instead of giving something that I don’t mean it.

So far, I had spent my time going to the old folk’s home to chat with the elderly, playing with less fortunate children from childcare center and went to Cambodia with my Secondary School teachers and friends to help the local orphanage to build a new classroom. I would love to spend more free time in the near future to do more volunteering projects and go out of Singapore to help others.

Volunteering can be very simple. Start by going around helping someone who is having mobility difficulties to clean their flats or join voluntary organisations such as SgVolunteer and SGCares, organisations that provides many projects and opportunities for anyone in the community who is keen to volunteer.

Since Christmas is two weeks away from now, there are more volunteering projects coming out during this festive season.  Some of these Christmas volunteering projects are Christmas Merry Marathon and Christmas Celebration with Elderly Residents

Start registering now as a member and volunteer for a good cause. Let us give and help people for a good cause.

Saturday 14 December 2013

Sharing your love this Christmas

BY: ELAINE NEO

Filipino children, who escaped after their village was allegedly attacked by armed rebels, wait for social workers in a safe area of the super tyhpoon-devastated town of Tacloban

Photo: DENNIS M. SABANGAN/EPA

“The last time I looked, my mother was just beside me, but when I looked again she was gone.” 15-year-old Shylyny Therese Negru.

Typhoon Haiti has killed an estimate of 6000 lives, causing loss in homes, food and even their family members…
The typhoon happened in the early November, leaving people feeling lost and devastated over the loss of their family member. Many children suffered in this disaster, the luckier ones manage to stay by the side of their family, and the less fortunate ones become an orphan.

In this Christmas season, many people may be happily celebrating with their family and friends, having plenty of gifts from your relatives and classmates.

We are fortunate, but what about the misfortunate children in Haiti? They have suffered enough, is it time for us to give a little helping hand and make those sad faces turn upside down?

But you may think how? It may not be easy due to the high number of orphans in Philippines, with about 1.5 million orphans in Philippines, where do we start from? Why don’t we start from here?

With the constant increment in orphans, we may not be able to help all of them. However, we will definitely be able to help a few with that few dollars that we save up each week. It is all about helping people and making their world a better place. Even if we can’t help all, at least we are helping one.

It may be baby steps towards making the children have a better childhood, but it will work and they will remember that when they were young, someone was actually nice to them. It is a cycle, those kids will grow up and they will be adults that will eventually contribute back to the society.

Imagine the children that will receive your grace, imagine seeing those smiles again, those smiles that were flush away by the horrifying typhoon.

Join us this week, as we help kids that suffered from this misfortune, give them a little something and please help to brighten their day.

Visit www.Helpinghow to help them! 

Friday 13 December 2013

Christmas Spirit or Cries of Children

By: SITI QURAISHA
(Source: China Labour Bulletin)

While children all over the world are busy setting up their Christmas trees, others are slaving away their time by mining or working long hours in factories. Did you know that in 2012, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) reported that Asia and the Pacific still has the largest numbers of children in child labour? Almost 78 million of the child population. Not only does child labour steals the childhood of an innocent child, it affects their physical health and prevents them from being further educated.

How many of us actually stop to think of the unfortunate children who do not get to celebrate Christmas in a comfortable home with their loved ones when we open our presents under that tree? Though child labour is not one of the most talked about topic in Singapore, I believe that child labour is one of the topics that should be acknowledged because of the morals and agendas behind it. It reflects a lot on us as human beings if we are ignorant of child labour or if we allow child labour to continue around the world. Sadly, in our culture, we are brought up in a way that our minds are sheltered from these topics.


Culture is also another reason why child labour is so hard to get rid of in third world countries. Countries such as Nepal and Nigeria lack proper medical attention and food. Sometimes, these children are sent to work in exchange for money to aid their parents with medical attention. We are lucky that the government subsidies our healthcare fees in Singapore as compared to Third World Countries.

Much has been done by the different organisations to fight against child labour. International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC) whose overall goal is to eliminate of child labour through strengthening the capacity of countries to deal with the problem. Eventually, eliminating child labour starts within you. “A world without child labour is possible with the right priorities and policies: quality education, opportunities for young people, decent work for parents, a basic social protection floor for all.”- Juan Somavia, ILO Director-General.

Stop child labour now by reporting child exploitation activities at (65) 6317 1111 or email mom_oshd@mom.gov.sg.

Friday 6 December 2013

Making a Difference This Christmas

BY: LEE JIA MIN



I did my first volunteering job overseas, and I believe that it not only made a difference to my life, but also to the people that I helped. I used to think that helping others, or volunteering would be a chore and a waste of time, but the volunteering job that I did changed my mind. Not only would volunteering or helping others make one smile, but also, put a smile on others’ faces.

There are lots of organisations in Singapore, reaching out to those in need. These organisations run with a common vision to give their beneficiaries a hope for the future. However, these organisations would not be able to accomplish this mission without volunteers, or donations.

This Christmas, share and spread the spirit of giving by do something good. The underprivileged in Singapore might not even have a chance to celebrate the season. You might be at home with your family and friends, enjoying your favourite food. But these people, the underprivileged, might just be sitting at home, not knowing and understanding the joy of Christmas.

You can, however, warm the hearts of these people by participating in voluntary activities, or simply by donating items to charity organisations. If you do not know which organisation to start from, try The Salvation Army. The Salvation Army was established in Singapore in 1935, and has been continuously serving the underprivileged in the country, regardless of age, race or religion.

Every Christmas, you see people with red aprons, ringing the bells on their hands with The Salvation’s Army pot beside them. Ever wanted to join them in this good act? In this season of giving, you can volunteer for The Salvation Army as a bell-ringer. Along with the pot, hit the streets and ring the bells to appeal for donations.

You can also choose to donate your pre-loved items to The Salvation Army. Simply drop off the items at City Square Mall, or visit The Salvation Army’s website at http://sg.salvationarmy.org/ for more details on how you could donate.

One might think that these voluntary services or donations might not help much, but they are in fact, little steps to bringing joy and helping others.

There are, however, many other organisations you can donate to, or volunteer your services at. It might not necessary need be The Salvation Army, but no matter which charity organisation you decide to volunteer at, or donate to, know that you would make a difference, not only to others, but your own too.

After all, Greg Louganis once said, “Never underestimate your ability to make someone else’s life better – even if you never know it”.

Tuesday 3 December 2013

Reflection Post on Mission #2 Raising Awareness for World Aids Day

Hello everyone!!

This will be our reflection post for mission #2, to create awareness for World Aids Day in Republic Polytechnic!! 

For this mission, we gave out 200 yellow cards that have different notes on them about World Aids Day, and we also pasted red ribbon on the cards! (For people who have received our cards, be thankful because we spent a lot of time and effort making those ribbons! )

We had a great time giving out these cards at South canteen and South Agora. Curious as to what we were doing, many people asked question like, “So do you all support Aids?” and our answer was… "No, we do not support Aids but we feel that we should not shun away people with Aids, everyone deserves to be treated equally!"

Back to our mission, in no time, all the cards were given out and we called it a day! Look out for us in our next mission and feel free to leave a comment if you want to be a part of us!! 

Remember to keep coming back for our updates!! 

                                   

Sunday 1 December 2013

Are you Aware?

                                    


Hey to all you readers! 
Today, Project Zero to Hero would like you to celebrate World Aids Day with us. Do wear that red ribbon if you are going out and tell you friends about it!
We also made a short video starring our friends so do check it out. 
We hope that on our latest mission on Friday, we were able to spread more awareness around the school. 
If you have received that note and you are reading this post right now do tweet us! 

We have more in store for you readers as we will be writing up our mission report soon for last Friday's event! So stay tuned!

Till our next post; 
Cheers 

Facts about The Red Ribbon 
The red ribbon, as an awareness ribbon colored red, has several different meanings in different contexts. It is used as the symbol of the prevention of drunk driving and solidarity of people living with HIV/AIDS.[1]
[Source:Wikipedia]
[Source: The Straits Times]