Caption: TSAC senior Mdm Lee Guan Cheng and TCIL Trainee Mr Gary Chong enjoying a Bingo game together
Mdm Lee Guan Cheng, 78, was delighted when Mr Gary Chong, 21, who has mild intellectual disability waved at her, shook her hands and wished her “新年快乐！”
Gary, a trainee from TOUCH Centre for Independent Living (TCIL) Ubi, together with 30 trainees, was celebrating Chinese New Year with some 40 seniors from TOUCH Senior Activity Centre (TSAC) at Yishun Blk 162 on 23 February. The trainees were smiling and waving excitedly at the seniors when they arrived. This was their first time bringing festive cheer to the seniors from TSAC.
The trainees were earlier taught communication skills. They were also given tips on how to greet seniors in Mandarin and engage in conversations with them.
“I like to celebrate Lunar New Year with the seniors. Everyone is so nice here. I also like to play bingo and help the elderly,” said Gary beaming.
Caption: TCIL trainees serving tea break snacks to seniors
Caption: TCIL trainee Mr Jermyn Koh (left) with TSAC senior Mr Teddy Tan (right) having an enjoyable time
“This activity has given us good teachable moments as we guide our trainees on how to interact with different groups of people. We have partnered schools, corporations and TOUCH Elderly Services to enable volunteers to reach out to our trainees, as well as for our trainees to give back to the community. We also took the opportunity to create awareness about ageing and the importance of being caring individuals,” said Ms Chloe Liew, Supervisor, TCIL Ubi.
Caption: A day of joyous Lunar New Year celebration at TSAC Yishun Blk 162
“People with special needs are just like us. They want to be loved and cared for. I was very touched when they shared about their dreams and simple wishes in life. It was also nice for us seniors to be able to share with them our dreams too. They are also very talented. They can sing very well,” said Mdm Lee.
If you would like to support the needs of people with special needs or seniors, please call 6257 0540.