More than 400 participants, including 19 SPD clients and local and foreign celebrities, aged five to 93, worked hard for the SPD Charity Show 2019 or 《SPD 真情无障爱》held on 17 March.

Showcasing their abilities alongside celebrities and performers, our clients stepped out of their comfort zone and into the limelight to motivate others to pursue their dreams and reach out for the stars.

The clients invested long hours of practice and attended numerous rehearsals to put up their best performance for the Show.

For Sheltered Workshop trainee Tan Bee Lian, it was her first time performing on television. She recounted that she was really nervous, but was thrilled to have the opportunity to do catwalk on the fashion runway. Yee Wai Heng, another Sheltered Workshop trainee who walked on the runway with Bee Lian, said she enjoyed the team work among them.

Tan Kim Kee, another trainee from Sheltered Workshop who sang two Hokkien songs at the Show, likes karaoke and has taken part in a singing competition previously. Nevertheless, she was worried about forgetting the lyrics and not being able to catch up with the accompanying hand movements during the song. On the other hand, Ernest Wong from the Day Activity Centre (DAC), who performed on his harmonica, proclaimed that he was not nervous at all.

Another DAC client Fong Chee Kit, was still exhilarated days after the Show. He showed everyone the newspaper cut-out that carried the news of the Show which had his photo on it. “I am like a superstar!” he exclaimed.

Seemingly easy tasks, such as whisking flour for the baking segment or walking down a short runway, took considerable effort for many of the clients who have wide ranging disabilities including physical, vision and hearing loss, as well as autism and learning disabilities. Nevertheless, all of them were elated about being part of the Show. “I practised every day, but it was very exciting,” said Kelvin Gan, a Sheltered Workshop trainee who participated in the drumming segment.

Let’s take a look what went on behind the scenes:

Rehearsals:

Getting ready for the Show:

Showcasing their best during the Show:

We would like to thank all our 19 clients who gave their best for this event.

Fong Chee Kit
Mackenzia Gabriella
Kelvin Gan
Goh Kok Huat
Brenda Khoo
Justin Kueh
Lionel Lee
Sarah Lim
Mohammad Akbar bin Nasir Alan
Ng Xiu Zhen
Joshua Ong
Tan Bee Lian
Tan Kim Kee
Caleb Tay
Reon Teo
Teo Zi Lin
Ernest Wong
Yee Wai Heng
Fathima Zohra