[ Kenneth Kwan in Lahore, Pakistan ]
I saw a friend, Kenneth, posting on Facebook regarding the street kids outreach program in Lahore, Pakistan, that he participates in, and I asked him to share more details with me so we can all chip in too! :) *If you don’t already know, Lahore is the capital city of the province of Punjab in Pakistan.
Sometimes we forget how entirely fortunate we are here in Singapore, and it takes a trip overseas to realize how much we should be thankful for. When I went to Batam for a missions trip many years ago, I realized how poverty and crime can have such a crippling effect on the soul (quite hard to explain really; I could only cry along with the woman I met and prayed for because her grief was so overwhelmingly “contagious”). And when I recently went to volunteer at the orphanage in Cambodia, I was amazed at how kids who don’t have very much actually find joy in the little things. What I read about but did not see (thankfully) was how street kids turn to vice, such as prostitution, in order to make some money. If you can help to keep young kids off the streets, and to keep them in schools, please do!
Kenneth’s sharing:
” For 2 years I have been supporting a streets kids program in Lahore Pakistan to save street kids from the vices of society by providing writing materials, school uniforms and even paying for a part time teacher to teach them. In Pakistan, sometimes both parents have to work to earn money for the household, so kids face a lot of risk and most of them fall prey to street gangs, drugs, smoking and child trafficking.
One of the best ways to rescue them out of poverty is to teach them how to read and write in Urdu and English. This provides hope to their families who are unable to even send their kids to school.
I have witnessed personally the transformational work of how a kid can come into this outreach with nothing but just clothes, and a year later, emerge with stationary and the ability to identify letters, count and form simple phrases. All this within ONE year!”
The funds that Kenneth is raising towards supporting the kids with stationary, bags, books, and a good teacher. This year, just like in previous years, Kenneth aims to support 60 children with the help of a church pastor.
You can play a part too! :) 有钱出钱, 有力出力!
What the Chinese phrase above means is that ‘those with money can contribute money, while those with strength can contribute labor’. :) To chip in with a donation of cash or products for the children, please write to Kenneth at kwanbox (at) yahoo (dot) com (dot) sg. :) If you are willing to travel overseas to teach the children (I can assure you it is an unforgettable experience), do get in touch with Kenneth too. :)
