In the last quarter of 2018 leading up to the holiday season, SPD’s staff gave back by volunteering at various organisations.

Bukit Panjang Public Library

Our staff from SPD@Bedok spent an afternoon at Bukit Panjang Public Library on 12 November 2018 assisting the librarians in sorting books that have been returned, looking through the shelves to identify books that were incorrectly placed and pulling out books reserved by readers.

SPD@Bedok team at Bukit Panjang Public Library

Administrative assistant Siti Zuraina was excited as it was her first time volunteering at a library. “The atmosphere at the library was enjoyable. I loved that we learnt a lot of things such as arranging, sorting and labelling books with my colleagues. I’m really glad to be part of it and I plan to volunteer more in future.”

Qi Fa Primary School

The Day Activity Centre (DAC) staff were Clean Plate Ambassadors for a day at Qi Fa Primary School. Their task was to ensure that the students did not waste the food they bought or brought. The DAC staff went around educating the students on the importance of not wasting food and students who finished their food were rewarded with a highlighter or a pen.

SPD’s Clean Plate Ambassadors at Qi Fa Primary School

The team found the activity meaningful given the many people in other parts of the world do not have enough to eat and are dying of hunger.

Bright Hill Evergreen Home

It was the third year the Corporate Services Division helped at Bright Hill Evergreen Home and the team of 22 was happy to see familiar faces among the elderly folks. They brought the seniors to enjoy hawker food for breakfast at a nearby food court and shopping at the supermarket to buy their favourite snacks and drinks. It was a rewarding experience for our colleagues when they saw the joy of the elderly folks while they were outdoors.

Corporate Services Division staff with elderly folks from Bright Hill Evergreen Home

Society for the Aged Sick

A day spent at the Society for the Aged Sick

The Organisation Development team demonstrated their culinary skills while engaging residents of the Society for the Aged Sick over a cooking session. The activity encouraged the residents to use their hands and stay nimble as part of the home’s therapy and rehabilitation programme.

Preparing ingredients for cooking

“I think it was an interesting activity that added some fun elements into their daily routine. The residents also shared with us fond memories of their cooking in the past. From their huge smiles and laughter, I could see that they have enjoyed themselves,” said HR executive, Adeline Chua.

Food Bank

Packing 300 food bundles is no mean feat, unless willing hands chip in to complete the task swiftly. The Community Partnerships Division helped with packing and distributing food bundles to low-income families living at Jalan Kukoh on 23 October 2018. Team work was the order of the day as the team unloaded food items, which included milk cartons, cereal, dried bee hoon, fresh vegetables and fruits, and packed them in bundles for distribution.

Community Partnerships colleagues packing food bundles

Long-time volunteers in the area also shared stories of some of the low-income families they helped, which served to further motivate and encourage the team.

These volunteering experiences allowed us to take on the mantle of volunteers and see things from their perspective, as well as gain insights of other causes and the roles volunteers play to help them, forming good learning points for the SPD team at large to do even better for people with disabilities we serve.