It started with an email from the community service committee just two days before our Global Volunteer Month activity. The email tells volunteers to check their names on a list and their assigned roles, and to look under the reserved list if we can’t find our names.
We had a problem, but it was a good problem. Too many UPSers have volunteered to support the TOUCH Young Arrows in their Road Safety Education programme.
In all, 75 UPSers showed up at the Road Safety Park in Singapore to support 25 TOUCH Young Arrows. These 25 children came from low income or single parent families. Many of them have little or no parental care and are at risk of falling into bad company.
For me, volunteering means making a difference to the lives of these children, even if it’s for just one day. Although my role was not to be a buddy to the children but as a safety co-ordinator, I made it a point to interact with them and make them feel special.
At the Road Safety Park, there’s a miniature circuit set up with roads, pedestrian walkways, traffic lights, car parks and even mini bus stops. The children and their buddies were divided up into three groups – pedestrians, cyclists and drivers. The drivers “drive” pedal-powered karts.
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