MS Community Service Day 2012

It was a warm and bright 7th Sep morning and we can see cheerful staff from School of Maths & Science (MS) gathering outside LT5, all ready to do their part to reach out to the less fortunate.  This event was joined in by amiable staff from School of Chemical & Life Sciences (CLS) and retired MS colleagues.  A total of 68 volunteers arrived early for an energising breakfast before the Mass Briefing at 9am.

 

Looking from afar, we can see 4 little kids among the adults.  It was a pleasant surprise sight.  Two colleagues actually brought their kids along to let the kids feel the warmth of giving.

The Mass Briefing was kickstarted by Director of MS, Ms Chao Yunn Chyi, who gave her utmost appreciation and thanked the volunteers and donors for raising $8,432.37 and the laborious task of bringing the food packages personally to the recipients after the Briefing.  The lead organizer then explained to the volunteers the expenditure of the raised sum (which was converted to staple food items and grocery vouchers), the selection of the recipients (who are on the public assistance list provided by the Southwest CDC), and the do's-and-don'ts of the distribution procedures. With a ready-to-go signal, the eager volunteers left their seats and took positions at the taxi stand near the Administration Block, all ready for a photo-taking session.

After the photo-taking session, the volunteers worked in teams to load the gift packages into their respective cars.  And in no time, 18 cars set off to distribute gift packages to 155 needy recipients residing in Clementi and Dover areas.  With much teamwork and division of tasks, the gift package distribution process was carried out smoothly and was completed by noon.  

At noon, the volunteers gathered at The Sanctuary where they were treated with a buffet lunch and a mini game session: Bingo!  This was the Teachers' Day celebration specially arranged.  Apart from the normal Buffet food items, the staff were wow'ed by a series of cupcakes specially made and delivered by a staff's cousin, in conjunction with the birth the staff's son.

In the Bingo! game, each staff was given a sheet of paper which contained 5 by 5 squares.  Each square contained a description. The objective of the game was to look for staff that fit the description in a square, and complete a row, a column or a diagonal of squares.  The staff had a great fun time scrambling around asking different staff if they met the descriptions or not.

The day's event ended by mid-afternoon, amidst good feelings of having contributed to less fortunate in our community, as well as friendships established or strengthened. 

Let's look forward to MS Community Service 2013!