Another Week Beyond – 2240

Dear friends, 

On Monday, a 20-year-old ended a WhatsApp conversation with a thumbs up while waiting to be escorted to the reformative training centre. He initiated the conversation by thanking us for introducing him to Prison Fellowship Singapore (PFS) and requesting us to check on his mother which we assured him that we would.

2 Fridays ago, this young person’s mother reached out to a colleague who coordinated her neighbourhood WhatsApp group. She was distraught and informed that that her son was sentenced to 6 months in reformative training a few days prior. Both mother and son believed that a probation order was not given because they had no legal representation. They wanted to appeal and the following Monday, they filed for one.

When mother and son met us, we learnt that their family and friends had advised them to see out the sentence and to start afresh. While mother agreed with the logic, she felt that she had to support what her son wanted. We then conveyed what a couple of volunteer lawyers told us. They have a right to appeal but   an appeal was no guarantee of a reduced sentence and even if another probation report was called, it is unlikely that the findings will be different. Also, an appeal is a costly affair and they have seen how the process has put a strain on individual well-being and family relationships.

So, when the young person told us that he found a lawyer online, we said that we may not be able to work with someone unfamiliar with our restorative justice approach. We also asked him if he had considered the financial strain it would have on his family. After some thought, he agreed to be introduced to PFS who promptly reached out to him.  

PFS attended to his fears and that of his mother with much care and gentle understanding. They enabled the young person to articulate his interest in cars and to picture a future working in the automobile industry which also gave us some context as to why his offences were related to cars.  Importantly, they provided a picture of life in the reformative training centre and the means in which he could maintain contact with his mother and a good friend whose friendship he did not want to lose.

Assuming responsibility, making amends and seeking to repair hurt relationships are at the heart of restorative justice  and this episode over the past 2 weeks got us reflecting on the value of social capital and the importance of nurturing loose ties in our lives.  While PFS has been on our mailing list for years, we have not collaborated or worked together. However, we got to chat at a recent networking session organized by the Far East Organization for charities they partner, and this encounter prompted us to seek their help in supporting the young person and his family.  

I write this short note every week to celebrate peaceable actions and to keep the notion of community alive. Even though I may not have spoken to you recently, I would like you to know that by identifying as a member of our community, you keep hope alive for those among us who need a little help to get by.

For peace and community,

Gerard

The key to the happy life, it seems, is the good life: a life with sustained relationships, challenging work, and connections to community.  –  Paul Bloom

PAST AWB POSTS

2506 – Collective Wisdom, Community Building

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2505 – Saving Together, Growing Together

One of the most pervasive problems encountered by lower-income communities is building financial reserves. The daily demands for every cent, when you have little, usually takes priority. However, there is still a value of building such reserves, even if in small amounts. This is why we created the Community Tabung Programme. Loosely translated, “Tabung” means “money box” in Malay – an apt name for an initiative to help our members grow their savings in support of their children’s health and educational needs. It is a means to help our members achieve their aspirations and save for those rainy days. And

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2503 – How Roblox Helped James Minimize Screen Time

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2452 – A Fire, A Friend, A Community

When a fire broke out in a Jalan Bukit Merah flat last year, the damage wasn’t confined to just the one unit. Smoke engulfed neighbouring homes, leaving behind physical damage and disruption. One of the worst affected residents was Madam Tan*, an elderly woman whose flat directly above the burning apartment. While her story didn’t make the headlines, her struggles were very real. She clearly needed help. This is where H comes in. The 28-year-old coach and former educator was no stranger to helping others, but this experience would touch him on a personal level. “I didn’t initially think about

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2451 – The Grace to Give

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AWB 2449 – When LIFE Happens

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PAST AWB POSTS

2506 – Collective Wisdom, Community Building

Written by Wilson, Community Worker As is our practice at Beyond, we start every new year by sharing the goals we hope to achieve as a community. We gather young and old, have discussions and plot the journey ahead together. We call these sessions Community Conversations. Typically, everyone present introduces themselves and shares their experience volunteering in the community, and what “community” means to them. We then wrap up with a Beyond staff talking about the value of community development. That, however, was not how a session held in the Bukit Ho Swee neighbourhood went. The Beyond team just sat

Read more >

2505 – Saving Together, Growing Together

One of the most pervasive problems encountered by lower-income communities is building financial reserves. The daily demands for every cent, when you have little, usually takes priority. However, there is still a value of building such reserves, even if in small amounts. This is why we created the Community Tabung Programme. Loosely translated, “Tabung” means “money box” in Malay – an apt name for an initiative to help our members grow their savings in support of their children’s health and educational needs. It is a means to help our members achieve their aspirations and save for those rainy days. And

Read more >

2504 – Growth On The Sidelines

Amir* wasn’t always the calm, composed young man people look up to today. Not so long ago, he his fiery temper put him in the midst of a heated argument. So to witness him play the peacemaker recently was pleasantly astonishing. That moment could have shaped how others saw him — and how he saw himself — but instead, it became a lesson that helped him grow. Amir was playing at a futsal tournament. Two boys – Danial* and Josh* – got into an altercation. Danial accused Josh of “showboating” and not being a team player…costing them the game. Josh,

Read more >