Charity & Volunteering 01 (Jun 08 - Mar 11)

[kennynah]

i would not dare belittle the work of shelving books....afterall, i had been frustrated not to be able to locate materials at their rightful places.

so, it is the organization that i am expressing my fear about; the fear that they have unwittingly misused the term "public service volunteer" without giving sufficient thought process. i most certainly am not targeting at those volunteers who are willing to serve.

so, dont be angry with me....dont ban me....for having little queries here and there...about the wonderfully, well and good, fine and perfect, beautiful singapore honest system... hahaha...

[kennynah]

mm : this one....about parents volunteering, is turning this "volunteering" scheme on its own head...

if it is volunteer work, in the first place, no material rewards should ever be in the equation...

so, it is again a wholistic thought process that is very lacking in our singapore mentality...govt thinks, govt does, without govt, our cocks cant even erect by themselves... this is how pathetic singaporeans can be... no ability to think on own 2 feet...me included at times...hahaha...

and so...deserved to be pushed into menial work, disguised as "public service volunteerism".... i don give up, do i...hahaha...

[blid2def]

Actually I don't think they used the term "public service volunteering" - I did, for this topic. Ultimately, regardless of the motives of the organization, the volunteers are indeed providing a free service to the public - so technically, the wording is neither inaccurate nor misleading.

edit: Anyway, changed the topic title to "Volunteering", so as to save my time.

[iam802]

on the NLB front...

one of the things I nit pick is the shelving part.

these are pretty much manual jobs...and in my opinion, it is something that can be reduced further by hiring senior citizens and training them to help out. (provide jobs , good right?)

Peak periods like school holidays, they can easily just tap into schools to look for volunteers. (ask schools kids to help out ...good also, kids wander around less)

For me, I really question the need to ask for more volunteers to help out in this area.

Like K said, the nit picking is targetted at the organisation and not the individuals.

[kennynah]

802 : i am with you man.... create jobs or make students perform public library duties, like we did for our school libraries in the past....instil good values about public service in young minds.

better than bluff bluff use "volunteer spirit" to get free labour.

[winston]

Oxfam looks to public for aid

International charity group Oxfam is appealing to the public to make up a HK$13 million shortfall in its reconstruction budget for quake-torn Sichuan and Gansu provinces.

Having already delivered more than HK$20 million worth of supplies to quake victims, the organization is still short of its HK$130 million budget by just over HK$13 million to begin rehabilitating the two provinces hit by the May 12 quake, which killed 69,197 people with 18,340 still missing and 4.8 million homeless.

"The relief phase is nearing completion, but rehabilitation has only just started. People there, especially the poor, still need support," Oxfam Hong Kong director general John Sayer said.

Oxfam's medium- to long-term recovery plan will dedicate more than HK$20 million in emergency relief supplies and over HK$3.6 million for setting up temporary schools with another HK$42 million for rebuilding roads and water networks in Sichuan.

The plan will also see HK$36.75 million used for assisting poor communities and restarting agriculture with HK$5.2 million for long-term development projects.

TIMOTHY CHUI

[winston]

Red Cross launches $150m quake relief project

The Hong Kong Red Cross has launched a HK$150 million reconstruction project in earthquake-hit Gansu and Shaanxi provinces.

The work involves rebuilding homes and clinics for people affected by the May earthquake, said Hong Kong Red Cross relief officer Chau Bing-hay, adding that the areas are among the poorest in China.

However, three months after the Sichuan earthquake, there are still many difficulties in the reconstruction effort, Chau said, due especially to the rugged terrain.

The Salvation Army, meanwhile, warned that reconstruction will also create a land use problem as the central government has taken much farmland to accommodate quake victims.

[winston]

Clothes for quake victims go unwanted

Mountains of clothes donated to victims of China's devastating earthquake are being auctioned off, recycled into mops or left in warehouses because no-one wants them, state press reported.

Relief workers had gone into the worst-hit areas of southwest China's Sichuan province to pass on the millions of items of clothing but the homeless said they did not need the help, the China Daily said, citing relief workers.

"Once our warehouses were full, we had to rent a badminton court just to store them,'' the China Daily quoted Li Huarong, a civil affairs official in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan, as saying.

Li said 60 tonnes of secondhand clothes would be auctioned off on Saturday because authorities had run out of room to house it all.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

[winston]

Hi San,

Please do share with us your work with the "Project Yellow Ribbon".

BTW, I recall a program in the US called "Scared Stiff". Basically, they would take high school kids into the prison and let an inmate lecture them.

It is good for the inmate, as he is doing something useful and advising the kids on what not to do. He may also get his sentence reduced by participating in the program.

It is good for the kids as they are "scared stiff" and would think twice about joining gangs etc. It is no longer that glamorous when you hear it first hand from a real gangster..

Another program, is to organize comedians to perform to the inmates once in a while. It is tough in the prison and a few good jokes by say, PCK, Jack Neo etc. would certainly help to brighten their day. The better comedians would also ask the inmates to use their time in the prison productively eg. to learn a new skill eg. computing, study for an online degree or to read up on spiritual matters..

Teaching the inmates some business skills would also be helpful. Thereafter, they can perhaps open their small business after they come out, so that they do not have to depend on other people for jobs.

Take care,
Winston

[kennynah]

2nd chances can n should be extended to those who have repented. Afterall, we humans err from time to time. However, the responsibility to reassimilate must also fall squarely on the ex-convicts' shoulders. Chance is people give one. For most times, the world doesn't owe us those chances
this yellow ribbon project must not become giving 2nd chances to cold blood murderers, rapists n recalcitrants
balance is crucial