BUILDING BONDS, STRENGTHENING COMMUNITY – collaboration with Pre-School- By-the-Park
Our residents eagerly look forward to the annual carnival organised by Pre-School-by-the-Park (BTP) and hosted by St John’s Home (SJH). According to Mr. Arvind, an 83-year-old resident of SJH, the event provides an interesting and engaging deviation from his usual daily routine.
In the beginning …
The carnival started 12 years ago with the heartwarming story of Natasha, a little BTP preschooler, and her great grandmother. One day, Natasha Taguchi showed up at school with news that her great grandmother had been admitted to SJH. This triggered a discussion among the children and teachers about why Natasha’s great grandmother had to be admitted to SJH - was she happy there, what was living at SJH like, what was SJH like?
BTP teachers quickly decided to organise a visit to SJH to let the children discover the answers to their questions. Ubuntu, a South African expression meaning “I am because we are” is BTP’s motto. Ubuntu expresses the philosophy that a person is always part of a community and should connect with, get to understand and develop empathy for others in their community.
Natasha and her classmates discovered from their visit to SJH that the elderly were not scary but jovial, and homes for the elderly were not depressing. BTP decided to continue with its visits to SJH and to hold an annual carnival there as well. Ms Wee Mee, Founder and Director of BTP, believes that these visits and the carnival are important avenues for her pre-schoolers to connect with and develop empathy for the elderly living in their community. The annual carnival is also a way for BTP to support SJH’s work as all funds from ticket sales are given to SJH.
Behind the scenes …
Two of BTP’s five centres take turns each year to organise the carnival. Wani and Yilin who were the organisers this year, shared what goes into creating a fun and memorable day for our residents and BTP families.
Planning for the carnival begins in February, and tickets are available for purchase in March. Each carnival features a specific theme, which influences the attire of teachers as well as the games and activities offered. This year, the chosen theme was Disco, introducing BTP children to popular music from the era when their grandparents were young.
Teachers contributed the food, craft items and handmade all the games. Families sponsored some food stalls too. Even the children contributed. K2 children sold ice cream to raise funds for an ice cream cart. The ice cream cart was a big hit with SJH residents.
A pair of parents ran a photo booth so that residents could take photos with fun props and a disco-theme background. Wani and Yilin added a new thrift shop this year after feedback from our residents that they wanted this.
Food, glorious food! Mr Arvind was delighted by the great variety of foods that he could enjoy - from local favourites like nasi lemak, fried bee hoon, and nonya kueh to bibimbap, hot dogs, buttered corn and watermelon juice. These foods are a big treat for our residents whose daily meals are kept plainer for health and dietary reasons. There were also plenty of games to enjoy - from memory games to ping-pong and toss a ring challenges.
To top off their day, our residents enjoyed a rousing performance of the Village People’s YMCA by the K2 children.
Creating connections …
Creating connections through the carnival and visits to SJH motivates Wani and Yilin, who have been involved in these projects for many years. Wani is delighted that our residents remember them and the carnivals from previous years. And want them to return. They are happy that the children connected well with SJH residents. One child asked for Jean because he remembered her from their previous meeting. Students who have graduated also ask to return because they have formed bonds with the residents.
Similar to Wani and Yilin, the parents responsible for organizing the photo booth have participated in the BTP carnival for over a decade. Their initial involvement was motivated by their daughters’ attendance at BTP, and they have continued their participation out of a desire to contribute positively to the community.
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Have ideas for collaboration?
Get in touch? Contact us at progvm@stjohneldershome.org.sg or 6285 4446
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