1 A tiny seed. A vulnerable sapling. A young plant. A strong tree. It takes much love, care, patience and tenderness to nurture a tiny seed into a tree of towering strength. But it only takes a careless matchstick to destroy a whole forest. Much goes the same for a human being – it takes love, care, concern and kindness to grow a person, but a misguided step to bring him down.
2 It is love, care and concern for fellow Singaporeans, especially the younger ones, which brought the Young NTUC and Awakening Productions together to offer a warm human touch and hope to the lives of a group of less privileged youths through a youth-oriented programme called Project GreenGrass. The Project GreenGrass consists of a series of public talks by Singapore Youth Award 2005 winner, Mr Glenn Lim, founder of Awakening Productions, and its main objective is to increase awareness on the dangers of drug abuse among the more vulnerable groups of our communities and society, especially our youths.
3 Project GreenGrass has received strong support from various organisations and persons, including Associate Professor Ho Peng Kee, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Law, who kicked off the first public talk of the series today at the DXO as the Guest-of-Honour. Organisations like NTUC Club’s DXO, Teen Challenge, National Youth Council and NTUC FairPrice, also lent their support to this cause. Doing its part for the community and society, main event sponsor, NTUC FairPrice, graciously presented Teen Challenge with FairPrice daily products at the end of the talk today.
4 The Young NTUC and Awakening Productions hope to leverage on Project GreenGrass to highlight the dangers of drugs and vice, and to encourage youths to exercise their creative gifts and talents in a positive manner through various constructive platforms, like music and the arts. Young NTUC, whose social mission is to nurture our next generation and which has a huge membership base of 150,000 youths from all walks of life, believes that we can serve as role models for our youths through programmes like Project GreenGrass. Similarly, Awakening Productions has always believed that youthful energies and talents can be harnessed and channelled toward positive outcomes, just like through the organising of this positive event.
5 About 60 youths from the Teen Challenge’s Bukit Batok Hostel attended the talk by Mr Glenn Lim, who also screened a film, “Green Grass”, which is based on his life story of struggles and triumph over drug abuse; experiences revolving around his relationships; and the creating of awareness and taking responsibility for one's life. The youths also put up a dance performance to serve as a form of encouragement and inspiration to the other youths, who also took part in games and team building activities with members and volunteers from Young NTUC, Awakening Productions and Teen Challenge to build up the camaraderie. (Please refer to ANNEX A for more information on Young NTUC, Awakening Productions, Teen Challenge and Mr Glenn Lim.)
6 Following the first public talk at DXO, Young NTUC and Awakening Productions will organise similar talks at other locations (Please refer to www.greengrassproject.com for details on the other locations).
Steve Tan Peng Hoe
Executive Secretary
Young NTUC
Glenn Lim
Founder
Awakening Productions
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Annex A
Information on Organisers and Partner
A) Organisers
YOUNG NTUC
Young NTUC was launched on 30 April 2005. Formerly known as the NTUC Youth Committee, Young NTUC is the official youth wing of the National Trades Union Congress. With 150,000 members below 35 years old, Young NTUC is the largest youth movement in Singapore. Working with the youth chapters of the 63 NTUC affiliated unions, Young NTUC aims to reach out to the young workforce in Singapore, representing them as a voice and thus helping to advance the cause of the labour movement here. (Website: www.youngntuc.org.sg)
AWAKENING PRODUCTIONS
Awakening Productions is a not-for-profit enterprise, founded in 1998, that creates music and art platforms for artistes, bands, and DJ’s. These platforms have social and youth outreach objectives. Awakening Productions is affiliated with charity organisations All Good Gifts Limited (AGGL) and Teen Challenge Singapore, and has close working relationships with the National Arts Council (NAC), National Youth Council (NYC), and Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS).
It is Awakening’s heart to harness the vibrancy, energy and creativity of today’s youth and channel them toward positive and wholesome activities instead of being caught up in vice, delinquency or substance-abuse. The post-modern youth is one of the most overlooked and neglected people group in our society today.
Awakening believes in this generation, its aspirations, and its potential. Awakening believes that today’s youth are tomorrow’s leaders and they have got a lot to offer to society in terms of creative and positive spirit, and will continue to support community and social causes through music and arts. (Website: www.awake.com.sg)
MR GLENN LIM
Mr Glenn Lim is an itinerant public speaker, youth counselor and ambassador. Based in Singapore, Glenn's background stems from the music industry since 1988. He was an avid music enthusiast and professional musician. Having come out of a notorious music and drug background, and experiencing a life-transforming encounter in 1994, Glenn went through a recovery and training period in Teen Challenge, which led him to dedicate his life to youth work.
Glenn is the founder of Awakening Productions in 1998, a youth-outreach events organisation. Through Awakening's platform, Glenn has worked with youth and arts agencies like The National Arts Council, The National Youth Council, SANA, Teen Challenge and also worked with many entertainment establishments like The Esplanade, The Substation, Sentosa Development Corporation etc. Today, Glenn plays an advisory role to this organisation, which has grown to include a music recording and distribution arm, a fashion retail outlet and music studio called Wake Me Up Music.
A conferred Toastmaster (advance bronze, international) and dynamic communicator, Glenn is a conference keynote speaker and speaks widely on topics ranging from music, drug and substance abuse awareness to youth issues like relationships and self-esteem. Glenn has shared his story and spoken at many schools, youth camps, conferences, churches and youth interest groups. Glenn has also spoken and shared his experiences in overseas youth conventions, events and music festivals in Germany, New Zealand, Australia, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia and India.
Apart from speaking engagements, Glenn's story and his work has been highlighted in various media, press and publications. He has been interviewed 'live' on various radio broadcast programs, and on ChannelNewsAsia, Channel 'U' and 'I' news. He has hosted a weekly interactive youth TV12 programme "I CAN" that ran for 3 months in 1999. Glenn's dramatic life-changing testimony has also been documented in various video productions that are screened in schools, prisons and other institutions. He also stars in a government commissioned short film called 'GreenGrass', a movie released in 2004 based on Glenn's life story.
Glenn is married to his lovely wife Suelynn since 2000. Presently he serves full time as a youth pastor at Church Of Our Saviour (Anglican). (Website: http://www.glennlim.net/)
GLENN's APPOINTMENTS AND ACHIEVEMENTS
Sep 2002: Awarded the 'Merit Achievement' (Mission Possible) for his contributions to the anti-drug cause by the Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprise (SCORE)
Jun 2005: Awarded the 'Singapore Youth Award', Individual (Community / Youth Outreach), Singapore's highest youth accolade, by PM Lee Hsien Loong
July 2005: Appointed as 'Youth Ambassador', Teen Challenge Singapore
Sep 2005: Appointed as 'Youth Rehabilitation Ambassador', Yellow Ribbon Project (YRP), SCORE
Sep 2005: Appointed as 'Commonwealth Youth Ambassador for Positive Living', Commonwealth Youth Program Asia (CYPA)
B) Partner
TEEN CHALLENGE
Teen Challenge (Singapore), set up in 1976, offers a number of services to the community, many times free of charge. Teen Challenge has been going into schools, churches, prisons, drug rehabilitation centres, and in the community to work with teens, youth, adults and their families to educate them about the dangers of drugs and a delinquent/criminal lifestyle.
We are always eager to respond to the needs of offenders who could benefit from alternative sentencing options, thus staying out of the incarceration system and detention homes. Fund Raising, public and church relations, programme development, networking with Government and community agencies, proper governance and transparency are a consistent focus for us in order to keep a dynamic and cutting-edge approach in all our programmes and services. (Website: www.teenchallenge.org.sg)
