vcares issue 4 - kicking off to positive youth development

www.carecorner.org.sg vCares Newsletter Issue 4

1

Kicking Off to Positive Youth Development A look at sports volunteering

Mention the word “volunteering” and you might think of an afternoon spent in an old folks’ home, helping to feed

the elderly spoonfuls of porridge. Or perhaps you are scrubbing out kennels at the local pet shelter, against the

symphony of barks and yips in the background. To some, such conventional ways of volunteering may sound like

hard work mixed with sweat and grime or may lack appeal, especially to the busy professionals who just want to

wind down after a long work week. But do you know that volunteering can involve a day of fun, allowing you to wind

down with sports and yet making a difference in the community?

On Saturday, 25 July, 20 Goldman Sachs employees had the opportunity to take part in one such activity: engaging in

futsal with youths from CAPA (Commitment ● Performance ● Attitude ● Academy), a sports-based social work

intervention programme under CROSSROAD Youth Centre; a youth centre managed by Care Corner Family Service

Centre (Admiralty). The activity was jointly organised by CROSSROAD Youth Centre and Community TeamWorks

(CTW), a global volunteer initiative by Goldman Sachs. One of the CTW captains for this year is Praveen, who shared

with me how the company encourages its employees to contribute to society by taking part in a variety of

volunteering projects throughout the year. This initiative has been running for

more than a decade across its offices all over the world, from Singapore to São

Paulo in Brazil, reflecting Goldman Sachs’ commitment to making a difference in

the community.

By 9am, the CTW volunteers gathered at the centre, all geared up for a session

of sharing and fun with the youths. Featuring a diverse group of volunteers of

various nationalities and job roles, the team of CTW volunteers were briefed by

Joe Tan, one of the centre’s Social Workers, who shared about the programme

and the impact on the youths. Though it was to be a brief one-day assignment, it

had the ultimate aim of helping to widen the horizons of the youths and


2

inspiring them, through the CTW volunteers connecting with the youths and sharing their life stories and journeys.

There would be two parts to the event: empowerment workshops in the morning and futsal in the afternoon.

The empowerment workshops featured a series of short sharing sessions. CTW volunteers took turns to share on

various topics such as goal setting, career options and the importance of building a habit of saving. There was also an

interactive segment where the youths were challenged to use their thinking skills to solve problems through coding.

Sharing by CTW Volunteers

With the formal part of the sharing done, it was soon lunch; yet another opportunity for the volunteers and youths

to connect. Some connected through a simple indoor activity of passing the ball to each other, while some gradually

warmed up to each other along the way. One of the youths even approached CTW volunteer Takumi to ask about

saving money — it seemed that his speech had made an impact!

Soon, lunch was over and we arrived at Punggol Sports Hub for the much anticipated futsal; the youths were all

raring to go. For those not familiar with the sport, futsal is a variant of soccer that

is played on a smaller indoor field, with two teams of eight players each. A game

typically lasts between 8 and 20 minutes. It was perfect as a volunteering activity,

for the smaller field and shorter time meant that anyone could volunteer, as long

as they were reasonably fit and could kick a ball. This also turned out to be a

great opportunity for the youths to become ‘teachers’ as they helped to explain

the rules and demonstrate some basic playing techniques. CTW volunteer Vivien

Ting shared, “It was heartening to see the boys step up as leaders and teachers

and give some of us volunteers a crash course in Futsal, and also encourage one

another!” One of the youths also gladly loaned his extra pair of soccer shoes to

one of the volunteers so he could be part of the action.


3

There were two tournaments: in the first tournament, mixed teams of CTW volunteers and youths played against

each other while in the second tournament, the CTW volunteers faced the youths. This prompted excited chatter

from the teens, who were looking forward to having new opponents to test their skills against. After a quick briefing

and some stretching, it was time to play! I shall let the pictures do the talking:

Volunteers connecting with the youths

All too soon, the game was over with the CTW team winning the secondary tournament, right after CTW volunteer

Viven scored a three-point goal (and this was her first time playing futsal). However, winning was never the goal of

the whole activity. CTW Volunteer David Lim remarked, “It was very meaningful to see how Care Corner helped

inculcate the right values of teamwork, respect, and inclusiveness among the teenagers. Seems that many of the

lessons they teach could be brought over to mainstream education”. It was indeed a “goal!” when everyone had fun,

built connections and inspired each other through a good game of futsal.


4

Here are what some of the volunteers have to say about the day:

Dawn Loke: “I was really inspired by the passion of the youths for soccer! Also, it was

really heartwarming to see them accommodate us into the game, especially when we

could not really play!”

Ankur Vohra: “It was good… that we could interact with the kids directly, doing activities-

sports that they have the passion for. Learnt a lot from the experience, and hope the kids

took away good learning points as well.”

Seika Matsuoka: “All the youths had such a strong life force, from which GS employees were encouraged and

rejuvenated. By playing soccer, sharing experiences and making jokes, we learned about each other within a short

period of time. Thank you Care Corner for the amazing time. We shall keep in touch! :)”

Praveen Charles Jeyaraj: “We had a very meaningful time and there was a lot we also took back from everyone we

met. We are very encouraged to see the work everyone at CROSSROAD Youth Centre and we are sure many youths

have been and will be impacted positively.”

So, who says volunteering is all hard work and no play? Volunteering can be fun and yet meaningful too! More

importantly, there are no requirements needed, except for a willingness to share your time and be open to new

experiences. Not only do you get to do something meaningful, but you will also learn something new — such as

futsal skills, perhaps! For more information on volunteering in Care Corner’s Youth Services, please visit

http://tiny.cc/ccsvolunteer.

This article has been made possible and brought to you by our friendly Editorial Volunteer, Rachel and translated our

helpful Translation Volunteer, Tan Kheng Meng:

“ It is safe to say that Rachel loves stories. Fortunately for her, everyone

has a story to tell. She enjoys uncovering the lessons that people have to

offer and sharing them with the world.

”

http://tiny.cc/ccsvolunteer


5

“ I have always been encouraged reading Care Corner’s Volunteer

Cares Newsletter; it contains many wonderful and meaningful stories

of how volunteers make a difference. These stories, written by

editorial volunteers themselves, have always encouraged me and it is

also with this that I have taken my first steps to being a volunteer.

I have recently retired from an editorial role. Due to health reasons, I

am unable to render services in the direct service, such as

befriending the seniors or volunteering with youths in making a difference for the community.

However, just as some volunteers had aptly remarked, serving the community can indeed take

many forms and this encouraged me to take to step to be a translation volunteer with Care

Corner. I hope to be able to use my editorial experience and skills to help extend the reach of the

exciting stories of the work of Care Corner’s volunteers. By translating them into Chinese, I hope

more will come to know the work and mission of Care Corner; I hope to extend the reach of

these powerful stories to small and medium enterprises, Chinese businesses, clans, shops and

communities. It is hoped that my little effort will be a spark in helping others consider making a

difference too, by serving as a volunteer; serving the needy alongside the charities.

I hope that these articles will help our readers be better acquainted with the volunteers’ labour of

love for the community.

”

Event Photography Coverage by Volunteer Photographers: C.W. Ho & Jason Ho

Edited by: James Lim


1

积极的青年发展计划开赛了 ——了解体育义工的工作

提到“当义工”，您脑海或许会浮现花一整个下午在老人院一汤匙一汤匙喂着老人家吃

粥的画面，或者在宠物收容所里此起彼伏的狗吠声中洗刷狗舍。有人觉得，这些正统的志愿

服务听起来就像是在脏兮兮的环境中付出汗水，很难吸引人来当义工，尤其是对那些平日工

作忙碌，只想要好好利用周末松懈身心的专业人士。但您是否知道，当体育义工也能让你享

受充满乐趣的一天，不只松懈身心，也为社区贡献不同的义务服务?

今年 7 月 25 日（星期六），20 位 Goldman Sachs 的员工就有这么一个当体育义工

的机会，同 CAPA (Commitment ● Performance ● Attitude ● Academy)的青少年玩室内足球。

CAPA 是 CROSSROAD 青少年中心（军港）以体育为主的社工项目。CROSSROAD 青少

年中心由关怀家庭服务中心（军港）管理。这次的体育义工活动是由 CROSSROAD 青少年

中心和 Goldman Sachs 发起的环球义工项目 Community

Teamworks（简称 CTW）联合组办。今年 CTW 的其中一名队

长 Praveen 就跟我分享他的公司如何鼓励员工通过参与全年不

同的志愿服务项目为社会尽点力。他说，这个项目已有十多年

历史，Goldman Sachs 在全球各地的办事处，从新加坡到巴西

的圣保罗的员工都参与，显示公司要为社区带来不同义工服务

的承诺。

当天早上 9 点，CTW 的义工已在青年中心集合，个个兴


2

致勃勃地等待和中心里的青少年一起度过一个充满乐趣的周末。这群义工来自不同国籍和不

同的工作岗位。中心的其中一位社工 Joe Tan 为他们做了开场白，讲解 CAPA 项目的目的

以及它如何帮助青少年的个人发展。虽然这只是短短一天的活动，但活动的最终目的是要义

工通过分享他们的人生阅历和生活经历，来协助这群青少年开拓视野和激励他们向上向善。

这个活动分两个部分进行：早上是增进能力工作坊；下午则玩室内足球。增进能力工作坊包

括一系列简短的交流和分享会。CTW 义工们轮流分享不同的话题，例如确定目标，职业选

择和培养储蓄的习惯。其中一节是互动活动，让青少年接受挑战，动用思考能力以编码解决

问题。

青少年们聚精会神聆听 CTW 义工的生活分享

正式分享会结束，也就是午餐时间了。但那也是义工和青少年要把握的另一个接触机

会。一些人玩点传递皮球的简单室内活动，也有人利用这个大好机会继续交谈以让彼此更熟

络。其中一名青少年就向 CTW 义工 Takumi 讨教储钱之道，看来 Takumi 在分享会上的演讲

已打动了他！

吃过了午餐，我们就前往榜鹅体育中心进行期待已久的室

内足球活动，青少年们都已整装待发。对足球运动不熟悉的人，

也许不知道室内足球是另一种足球玩法，在较小的室内足球场比

赛，每队只有 8 名球员下场，每场比赛历时 8 到 20 分钟。这非

常适合当成义工活动，因为球场较小，比赛时间较短，意味着只

要体力还可以，也会踢球，人人都能当足球义工。另一方面，这


3

也让青少年有机会当“老师”，向义工们讲解规则和示范基本球艺。CTW 义工 Vivien Ting 分

享说：“很高兴看到男孩们主动当领导和老师，让我们这些义工上了一堂室内足球课，并互

相鼓励。”

其中一位青少年还慷慨的借出一双多带来的球靴给一名义工，好让他也能参与其盛。

比赛分两个部分，先由 CTW 义工和青少年组成多支混合队伍互相交手，然后由 CTW

义工和青少年各组一队较量。由 CTW 义工队挑战青少年队，让青少年很兴奋，因为他们有

新的对手可以测试他们的球艺了。

简单的讲解和暖身运动后，比赛开始了！我想，照片胜过文字描述，就让我们拍下的

照片向您叙述精彩的球赛吧！

光阴似箭，第二部分的比赛转眼结束了，CTW 队因为义工 Vivien 踢进一个三分球而

取得胜利，这可是她第一次玩室内足球呢！但比赛成绩绝不是整个活动的目的，CTW 义工

David Lim 就这么说：“看见关怀机构如何淳淳劝导地灌输青少年正确的群体、尊重和包容心

的正确价值观是一件非常有意义的事。许多他们教导的内容，应该也能带到主流教育去。”


4

把握场边休息机会，义工和青少年轻松交谈

当人人都能在精彩的室内足球赛中享受到乐趣、建立联系和互相激励，这就是”进球

“了！

以下是一些义工对这一天活动的感言：

Dawn Loke：”青少年们对足球的热爱真让我感动！

此外，看到他们热心帮我们融入球赛中也让人窝心，尤

其是我们对室内足球一窍不通！”

Ankur Vohra: “能跟孩子们直接互动，参与他们热

爱的运动，感觉真好。我们取得很多经验，也希望孩子

们从中受益。”

Seika Matsuoka:”这群青少年充满活力，鼓舞了

我们 Goldman Sachs 的同事，也让我们感觉更年轻了。

通过踢足球、分享经历和轻松交谈，我们只需很短的时


5

间就建立起互相了解。感谢关怀机构为我们带来让人赞叹的时光！我们再联络。：）”

Praveen Charles Jeyaraj：”我们度过了非常有意义额一天，也向每个我们遇见的人学

到东西。CROSSROAD 青少年中心每个人的贡献都让我们感到鼓舞，我们相信他们的努力

和贡献会让许多青少年获得正确的引导。”

因此，谁说当义工只有苦没有乐？当义工也能享受乐趣，而且还非常有意义！更重要

的是，这不需要任何必备要求，您只需要愿意拨出时间和敞开心怀接受新事物就可以了。您

将不只能做出有意义的贡献，也能学到一些新东西——或许就比如室内足球!

欲知更多当关怀机构青少年服务义工的详情，请您浏览 http://tiny.cc/ccsvolunteer 网

页。

您阅读的这篇精彩文章，是由我们友善的编辑室义工 Rachel 带给您的。

”说 Rachel 爱听故事，一点也没错。幸运的是，每个人都有故事告诉她。她乐于发掘

人们提供的经历，并与大家分享。”

“

说 Rachel 爱听故事，一点也没错。幸运的是，每个人都有

故事告诉她。她乐于发掘人们提供的经历，并与大家分

享。 ”

摄影：义务摄影师 C.W. Ho 和 Jason Ho

翻译：陈天明

http://tiny.cc/ccsvolunteer


6

“

关怀机构的义工会讯《Volunteer Cares》经常有非

常精彩的文章，由一群义工义务撰写，把志愿服务的精

神和故事跟社会大众分享，这让我很感动，也踏出了我

当义工的第一步。

我刚从文化机构退休，由于健康关系，我无法实

际参与前线义工服务诸如和老人家聊天，或与青少年一

起服务社区的活动。

正如一些关怀机构的义工所说，服务社会不拘形

式，这鼓舞了我贡献英译中的信心，希望借助过去在文化企业的一点小专长，

把关怀机构的义工会讯《Volunteer Cares》中的精彩故事、要向社会大众传达的

信息，翻译成中文，让更多人可以认识及了解关怀机构服务社会大众的宗旨和

使命，也把关怀机构的触角伸展到中小型企业、华商组织、宗乡团体，及邻里

商店和居民社区，鼓励他们也从各自的能力范围和途径，去协助福利慈善团体

为有需要的社会群体服务。

我希望我的翻译，也能让中文读者读到精彩的关怀社会文章。 ”

编辑： James Lim

vcares issue 4 - kicking off to positive youth development

Documents