Dare to dream, dare to act

I first entered Kg Sg Temon Orang Asli village during the recent Johor state election campaign. The stark contrast between the village and its neighbouring middle-and-upper-class residential area left a deep impression on me. They were quite close to each other yet so segregated.

I believe the Orang Laut Seletar community there deserve something better, at least for the children. My team suggested that we conduct a weekly English class for the kids.

The response was tremendous. In just three weeks, the class was up and running. I would like to thank Sdr Ng Jan Tzen for leading the effort and Teacher Yaso as well as the volunteers for sharing their skills and committing their time.

People began to donate books when they found out about our English class. A caring person donated a bookshelf. Together, we formed a reading corner in the village.

With the hot and humid environment in the classroom, a kind person donated a fan, enabling the children to learn comfortably.

With 30 noisy, enthusiastic and energetic children, Teacher Yaso could even lose her voice in handling them. The best option for us is to buy her a mobile speaker. But someone beat us to that. The portable gadget suddenly appeared at our office. Thank you, dear kind donor.

I am deeply touched by these kind gestures.

The aim of this weekly English class is more than just to help the kids do well in school. We hope to see them learning enjoying the process. Education should be fun, too.

Yesterday marked one month of our weekly Saturday English classes run by our team of volunteers. Sometimes, we just have to start moving and things will fall into place.

Do reach out if you’d like to join or support our work. Together, we can be better.

#Perling