Dear Friends Since the first day of work this year, we have been discussing in our different teams what it means for our members to have ownership of the challenges we are working together on. We questioned the value of the tasks we had completed in the name of progress. These activities were listed in our plans as indicators of success …
Another Week Beyond – 2102
Dear Friends We bumped into Farhana, an 11-year-old as she was skateboarding in her neighbourhood. A week ago, a family we knew had introduced her to us incidentally and she nodded nonchalantly as we caught her eye. Farhana is the oldest of 5 siblings and cared for by her grandmother when dad is at work. When we got within speaking distance, …
Another Week Beyond – 2046
Dear Friends, 5 years ago, Rani and her friend Manimala organized a Deepavali Celebration in their neighbourhood. They cooked up a biryani feast and kept their guests entertained with various party activities. It was a significant achievement that they were very proud of because they pulled it off without having deep pockets. All they had was a desire to celebrate …
Another Week Beyond – 2044
Dear Friends, We got the meeting going by asking those present to say something about themselves, inviting them to share an achievement, or a strength. One shared that when she lost a kidney through illness, just staying alive felt like an achievement but it also gave her pause for what was important. She stopped working and started looking after her grandchildren because …
Another Week Beyond – 2033
Dear Friends, Rose called us on the phone to inform that she was at the hospital with her mom who had a fall at home. She wanted to let us know that she may not be attending a training session we were holding the following day. She sounded frantic but calmed down after we told her that we would organise another …
Another Week Beyond – 2032
Many years ago, my boss hosted dinner during a stay-in planning retreat. He started the dinner conversation asking my colleagues and I to share what we loved most about Singapore. I told him “the trees” and got on with my dinner but eventually all of us put aside our cutlery as he revealed the reason behind his question. He said that he …
Another Week Beyond – 2020
Dear Friends, There are now 8 women utilizing their sewing skills to earn a small income. This week, they proudly completed their first order of 100 masks and are now on their way to fulfilling the other orders that have come in since we mentioned this initiative on 1 May 2020. As we continued speaking with more people applying for financial assistance, it was clear …
Another Week Beyond – 2017
Dear Friends, When a single mother with 6 children aged from 5 months to 14 years old realised that she had a problem with bed bugs, she cleared out her furniture. Exhausted and distressed, she called us asking what more she could do to resolve the problem. She did not call just to ask a question, but to tell someone …