What a heart-warming sight to behold ... children pouring over books in the community hall of the Orang Asli in Pulau Indah.
On the morning of 18th May 2013, Meals on Wheels Ti-Ratana fulfilled the wishes of the Orang Asli in Pulau Indah to have a library for their children. With volunteers from Poiema Church and university students from Canada, we brought the sleepy and quiet community hall to life ... piles of books placed on floor mats for the children to choose and browse, with guidance from our helpful and enthusiastic volunteers.
The various expressions on the children's faces depict their joy, curiosity, interest and delight in spending their Saturday morning reading, learning and interacting with our volunteers.
Apart from the books, the children were given simple art pieces to paint. They were so engrossed in the activity and some were earnestly creating their "masterpiece".
Some of the curious mothers came along to see for themselves the commotion in the community hall. And a few of them encouraged and helped their younger children with the painting.
No Meals on Wheels event will be complete without FOOD ... the children were treated to KFC, muffins and chocolate milk drinks. But first, they had to wash their hands.
Our experience with these children tells us that they are hungry for knowledge; they want to read, learn, draw, paint, make things with their hands and much more. All they need is access to the materials and a little helping hand to guide them.
18th May was a good start ... the children in this community finally has a library to call their own ... small, it may be, but we hope this will sow the seed for a healthy reading and learning culture.
We would like to thank the generous people below for their contribution in making the library a reality for the children in Pulau Indah and the set-up session a most fun and memorable one:
1. JN for the library cupboard, mats and books
2. Scholastics for books
3. Lilian Kuan for books
4. Sharon Yong Abdullah for color pencils, art materials, pre-loved toys & clothings and drinks
5. Andrea and university students from Canada for books on the mountains and indigenous people in Canada
6. Poiema Church for books, posters and art materials
7. Catherine for the KFC
And most importantly, to all the volunteers who spent their Saturday morning with the children, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU ... it meant a lot to them to know that YOU CARE.
Last but not least, to some of the volunteers from Poiema Church who will be making regular visits to conduct similar sessions with the children in Pulau Indah ... your passion and dedication in helping the under-privileged is PRICELESS.
Posted by Kim
Pictures by Kim
