Ying Ying LeePhoto Essay
Singaporeans these days dedicate their time to work and education. Youths are deterred by the fact that volunteer work is a tough job, and even if they do volunteer, they only do it because of school (read: Community Involvement Programme). Youths have often been accused of being ignorant of giving back to the society and only concerned with material comfort.
During the 2013 National Day Rally, it was mentioned that youths in Singapore not actively participating in voluntary work has become a case of concern for the country. In the same year, a youth dialogue session was held where participants could ask Prime Minister Mr Lee Hsien Loong questions and discuss some of the problems that Singaporean youths face.
Out of the 70 participants, 60 of them thought that youths in Singapore should volunteer more. Thus, the National Youth Council (NYC) has decided to embark on a programme called the Volunteer Youth Corps (VYC), where they will train about 6,000 youths to be equipped with skills to carry out voluntary work more effectively. Participants in this programme will have the opportunity to work on voluntary programmes not just locally but globally as the programme has partnered both ASEAN and United Nations bodies.
With such programmes trying to entice more youths to volunteer, perhaps it’s not a lost cause after all. This photo essay aims to explore the mentality and opinions of some of the older generation of volunteers as well as the younger ones.
Bethany Methodist Nursing Home in Choa Chu Kang houses more than 300 sick and frail elderly aged 60 and above. Most of the elderly are there because their families are unable to take care of them fully, or they have no next-of-kin. Every week, a small group of social workers or volunteers will vist twice or thrice to accompany the elderly and assist the nurses in various activities organized for the elderly.
Above are social workers present Ms Cheong Foong, Mr TS Tan and Mr Pang Tin Siong. Mr TS Tan was feeling unwell so he could not go on his rounds that day. We followed them around the home while talking to them and engaging some of the residents.
Ms Cheong Foong: “To me, this is like a ministry. It’s like how we share love and care with one another and it’s the kind of spiritual satisfaction that I get from it. I wanted to give up many times but I always turn up even when I’m alone, and when I see these people (the elderly), I’m so happy. They always ask me ‘are you alone?’ but I’m not, because these elderly are here to accompany me.”
“Like how before leaving (the home), I may be feeling negative but when I’m there, things turn positive. I think negativity can easily turn into something positive,” shares Cheong Foong.
Mr Pang: “Youths should learn how to love the older people. Like when we grow older, when your parents grow older, they might also go into an old folks home or nursing home. Maybe some youths don’t understand now, because their parents are well and healthy. But what if they grow old?”
Mr Pang also brought up a crucial point on youths not understanding the importance of communicating with the elderly. Correcting such behavior when young will instill the right values of filial piety in the youths to take care of their parents when their parents grow old.
Ms Cheong Foong: “I think about giving up (on volunteering) every time. I always have thoughts about giving up. Not only for coming here, but for all my volunteering activities. It has become normal to be filled with these thoughts but I know that I will always persevere in the end because it’s really, really worth it.” Cheong Foong shares that she has a family to take care of at home and a job, which take up most of her time.
Mr Tan: “I think it is how I started shifting the focus away from myself to other people. I started to care about others more than myself and I think it is quite a huge change for me. I’m really grateful for that because it translates into my everyday life too.” Mr Tan mentions how he learnt how to communicate better with his older colleagues or even superiors at work, and he becomes more caring and appreciative of his surroundings.
We asked the 3 interviewees to describe volunteerism in 1 word.
Ms Cheong Foong: “Relaxing. Here, I get to interact with other people and it is very relaxing for me.” Mr Tan: “Blessing. I think it’s a blessing to be able to help others and it’s very rewarding.” Mr Pang: “Passion. I think this is what drives people to help others.”
Ms Cheong said she still has to do housework after she gets home from a tiring day of work, so going to nursing homes is considered relaxing for her as she just has to chat with the elderly and take care of them without much worries.
Touch Youth Academy (TYA), previously known as Touch Children’s Club, is an organization that reaches out to kids aged 7 to 12 who come from low-income or families with issues. What they usually offer at TYA is weekend tuition service. The volunteers are mainly the TYA program graduates who come back to help out and teach the younger kids.
On the day we went down to take photos, there was a special event as Father’s Day was around the corner. Kids were spending time to create Father’s Day Cards instead of their usual tuition program. TYA does not make it compulsory for the kids to come back as volunteers when they graduate from the program, which means all their volunteers go there on their own free will.
We asked the youth volunteers how long have they been volunteering.
Jonathan: “5 to 6 years, ever since I came out of army. The more you interact with the children, you realize that whatever you do and say, it really helps and affects the children and impacts their lives. I think it’s very meaningful knowing that we can play a part in their growing process and it helps me as a person to grow as well.”
Li Juan: “10 years. I was 17 and in JC. I joined with my friends as they needed new volunteers. And after a while, it became part of our lives. Every Saturday we would come down to TYA and it would feel a bit strange if we didn’t show up. We would actually ask ourselves the question, ‘Eh, why don’t I have anything to do on a Saturday morning?’”
“Do you think that youths these days should sacrifice their time to help others?”
Li Juan: “Of course they should. I think everyone should sacrifice a bit of their time to give back to the community. Time, money or other different forms. I don’t have that much money to give so I give my time. Often, we say we want to help children grow but sometimes we ourselves are the ones who learn and grow during this process. Sure it (volunteering) may be very tiring at times. But if you were to take the time and think about what you have done for others, you realize that you’re also actually doing for yourself.”
“Some of these kids don’t have the proper guidance at home and you see that they have the potential to do more, and because of us they manage to achieve what they want. It is very heartwarming to see that you made an impact on their live,” shares Jonathan.
We asked them if they think youths should spend more time volunteering and helping others. The answer was a resounding yes.
Li Juan: “I feel that the generation now is very self-centered. They keep thinking of themselves. I think we all started out like this too, but after being exposed to these other people and their needs, that is where we get to be less for ourselves and more for other people. And I think this is what I have taken and learnt.”
Khoo Young: “It’s good to volunteer as a teen because you learn values and lessons that you would not have learnt otherwise. Youths are also at that stage of discovery and although we say that you get to help other people to discover, I think the volunteers themselves will agree that actually we are the ones who learn so much also.”
On the downside, there are youths who volunteer not for altruistic reasons as Jonathan discovered. He said: “A lot of the teens (helpers) come in and think ‘oh what is in it for me?’. I guess the mindset is not right. They are always looking for some incentive to them helping out.”
Khoo Young: “When you volunteer, you know that you have made a difference in their lives. I’m very happy to know that I’ve made a difference. Sometimes you don’t get this happiness and accomplishment from work.”