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Young NTUC partners Yio Chu Kang Grassroots volunteers
Young NTUC (YNTUC) and Yio Chu Kang grassroots volunteers have rallied 20 NTUC-affiliated unions and NTUC Income to raise near $80,000 worth of funds and food supplies to help 1,700 under-privileged families and seniors at the Yio Chu Kang estate.
Introducing “Pasar Fiesta”
On 1 December 2018, for the first time, Young NTUC U Heart (U Heart), in collaboration with OrangeAid, NTUC Income’s community development and involvement arm, organised “Pasar Fiesta”, a pop-up supermarket, that is aimed at reaching out to and helping under-privileged Yio Chu Kang residents offset their monthly expenditure. This initiative also serves to bring cheer to residents amidst the festive season.
Approximately 250 volunteers from the unions, grassroots and Institute of Technical Education (ITE) would participate in this initiative serving a variety of functions, these include helping to man stalls and serving as befrienders to the residents. Beneficiaries from each household would be provided a trolley bag to “shop” at Pasar Fiesta that would be held across five distribution sites within Yio Chu Kang (Block 644 hard court; Block 624 near RC centre; Block 212 near RC centre; Block 225 near RC centre; and Block 121 near RC Centre). They would receive some standard items such as a tin of Milo, a can of Tulip Chicken Luncheon Meat, a packet of Myojo Chicken Abalone Bowl Noodles and a tin of Julie's Assorted Biscuits. On top of these items, they would also get to “shop” for other canned foods, beverages and snacks.
Enhancing support for under-privileged YCK residents
In Yio Chu Kang, this is the second of such food rations provision outreach initiatives. Last year, the Yio Chu Kang Community Club Youth Executive Committee (YEC) rallied the support of over 100 youth volunteers from Deyi Secondary and Ang Mo Kio Secondary Schools and Anderson Junior College to collect and distribute food rations donated by residents themselves and picked out by beneficiaries in a similar shopping-style exercise. The initiative benefitted close to 1,500 families. This year, the Yio Chu Kang volunteers are looking to bring this initiative to greater heights by working hand-in-hand with YNTUC to reach out to residents in a bigger and better fashion. The team is working with a community merchant on a partial consignment basis and this would mean that residents will receive sufficient amounts of food items they require and wastage may be avoided.
Mr Zhuo Ling Feng, a grassroots volunteer, said, “We have conducted multiple exercises throughout the years at Yio Chu Kang. Often, there are leftover purchased items, especially when different families have different needs. We are happy that we have a supportive supplier this year who agreed to work on a consignment basis to help minimise wastage.”
Dr Koh Poh Koon, Advisor to Yio Chu Kang Grassroots Organisations (GRO) and Deputy Secretary-General of NTUC, said, “It is heartening to see the Labour Movement network coming together and joining forces with community partners to make a difference in the lives of under-privileged residents. We are grateful to our volunteers from the unions and grassroots, who have volunteered their time and actively contributed towards raising funds for the purchase of daily necessities. Young NTUC’s learning partners – NTUC health, FindJobs, NTUC LearningHub, NTUC Membership and Growthbeans – were also present to engage residents and help them understand how they can improve their employability as well as source for new employment should they wish to do so.”
On Yio Chu Kang grassroots volunteers organising such an event for the second year, Dr Koh said that “it is commendable that volunteers have come together to give back to the community and make Yio Chu Kang a better home for every resident.”
Mr Desmond Choo, Assistant Secretary-General of NTUC, added, “Initiatives like Pasar Fiesta enable our youth union leaders to rally other like-minded individuals to do good for the community. Since Young NTUC U Heart’s inception in 2016, we have provided them with the platform to inspire and attract others who believe in a common cause, and support them towards putting their plans into action. In our third year running for Pasar Fiesta, we have seen over 6,000 volunteers involved in 150 ground-up projects, making a positive difference to 24,000 beneficiaries. As we grow the community of young active citizens, Young NTUC stays committed to instill a caring and inclusive culture amongst our youths, and nurturing them to be change leaders through volunteerism.”
Mr Leon Chua, a volunteer from Housing and Development Board Staff Union (HDBSU) said, "This event falls in a festive month that is usually associated with the spirit of giving and I would like to do my part to help fellow Singaporeans. Hope that such initiatives will raise more public awareness on communities that may need various forms of assistance and encourage more Singaporeans with resources to step forward to lend support to those in need.”
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