Come spend Chap Goh Meh with the kiddos!

T-Ratana Welfare Society would like to invite you to their Chinese New Year Open House at T-Ratana Homes, Desa Petaling, Kuala Lumpur on 4th March 2007 from 11.00am to 2.00pm:



Just in case if you need some direction ...

A FEW GOOD QUOTES

The giving is the hardest part; what does it cost to add a smile?
Jean de la Bruyere

A bone to the dog is not CHARITY. CHARITY is the bone shared with the dog, when you are just as hungry as the dog.
Jack London

CHARITY should begin at home, but should not stay there.
Phillips Brooks

To do something, however small, to make others happier and better, is the highest ambition, the most elevating hope, which can inspire a human being.
John Lubbock

What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us, what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal,
Albert Pike

To your enemy, forgiveness.
To an opponent, tolerance.
To a friend, your heart.
To a customer, service.
To all, charity.
To every child, a good example.
To yourself, respect.
Oren Arnold

CAN YOU LEND A HELPING HAND?

A family trip to Rumah Charis at Batu 6 Jalan Puchong, Kuala Lumpur last Sunday, 25th February 2007 was indeed very fulfilling.

Those big smiles from the faces of the old and young did actually send me a signal that we should be there even on the first day of Chinese New Year. With more visitors coming on the first day, the old folks especially, will not feel so lonely. As my husband was saying, it is a matter of prioritising our Chinese New Year itinerary. We can do it if we plan our time well… (You see, that is very important to have a supportive husband to champion your aspiration, in addition to spending his money on charity!)

Back to Rumah Charis, a home that houses 36 children and 25 old folks. There are 2 single storey terrace houses for the male and female old folks respectively, whilst the girls and boys are put up in two separate double storey terrace houses located just behind the old folk homes. Come June this year, Rumah Charis will move into their new home at Taman Yarl, a bungalow building which they have acquired through an auction. However, they are very much short of funds to repair and renovate this depleted bungalow which was left vacant for more that 10 years. An estimated sum of RM500,000 is needed to accomplish the basic renovation works. Coupled with this is the RM7,000 monthly bank installment.

Rumah Charis needs your help so that the aged and the young can have a place to call home.

If you wish to make a contribution, please contact: Sis. Suzanne Lee at 03-77815977 or 03-77844645
Rumah Charis, Home for the aged & children
Centre for Autism & Learning Difficulties (Autism & Dyslexia Centre)
77, Taman Lucky, Batu 6, Jalan Puchong, 58200 Kuala Lumpur

THE FIRST STEP IN GIVING BACK

Most people are having the thought of doing charity. Some say they will do it one day, some say I want to help, but how? Some say, when the people approach me, I will help. Some say I don't have spare time right now, I will do it when I am older.

These are the typical scenarios where one's determination to help others has taken a backseat from the day to day priorities. Why not let this serve as a wake up call to tell you how you could take the first step?

You do not need to have a lot of money when it comes to giving financially. There are many ways to help monetarily, through fund raising events, donations to the needy, through your place of employment or paying online to the charitable organizations. On the other hand, participating in charity by giving your time can be an even more rewarding and fulfilling way to help as there is no other way you could describe the effect on the first hand experience. However, you need to take into consideration the constraints of time, the proximity and logistic, and most importantly, the impact the experience may bring onto you.

The next question you will ask is WHERE do I start? or WHICH is the place or organisation to choose from? There are people who need help everywhere. The best way to begin is to ask yourself this question: "What means the most to me?" Think about the things most important to you, for example you may opt to begin your noble journey by choosing a charitable organistion whose cause/mission has a direct relation to your personal life experience or someone dear to you. Reflect on this and it should help you find the first charity.

It is very easy to get started on giving back through a charity. All you need is the sincere willingness to help, then plan your time and resources in order to achieve this objective. You will then discover the enormous feeling of happiness in you.

VISITING OLD FOLKS HOMES AND ORPHANAGES

Gong Xi Fa Cai to everybody who is reading this blog...I am truly excited that many people out there are a caring lot. As I can see from my sitemeter, people logged in to find out the locations of the Old Folks Homes and Orphanages, I am sure most of them were checking out the places to visit during these auspicious days to share the joy of new year with the less fortunate.

Keep it up friends, please spread your LOVE, tell the people around you that the Less Fortunate Ones are waiting for your visit. They don't mind if there are no Ang Pows, but rather your mere presence with some New Year cookies and mandarine oranges are the best gifts. All they want is your care and love.

Listed below are some Orphanages located around the Klang Valley:

1. Persatuan Pure Life - 03-77829391 contact Ms Tam Sin Sing
2. Rumah Charis - 03-77844645 contact Ms Suzanne Lee
3. Rumah Hope - 03-7954 5523 contact Ms. Ruku
4. Rumah Ozanam - 03-77819090 contact Datuk Joseph Ragaratman
5. Rumah Sayangan - 03-91303687 contact Ms Charissa Giam
6. Compassion Home - 03-56379366 contact Mr Paul
7. Rumah Faith - 03-87364500 contact Ms Catherine
8. Sunbeams Home - 03-42960867 contact Pastor Alvin Tan
9. Rumah Impian - 03-78043451 contact Mdm Valerie Tan
10. Rumah Triniti - 03-7785 7808 contact Ms Mathilda

and the oldfolksHomes as well:

1. Rumah Orang-orang Tua Ampang - 03-42918978
2. Little Sisters Of The Poor (Cheras)- 03-91311464
3. YMCA Senior Citizens Club - 03-22741439
4. Rumah Charis -03-78915977
5. Home For The Aged -03-91311464

There are many more homes awaiting your visit, do feel free to check out this site for more informations.

By the way, please don't forget to buy your New Year cookies from Organisations like this one who baked cookies for fund raising:




Wishing you an enjoyable experience!

GONG XI FA CAI

GONG XI FA CAI!

YEAR OF THE GOLDEN PIG

Lovely golden piggies to share with you...






XIN NIAN KUAI LE!

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR!

Tomorrow is the eve of the Lunar New Year, Swiss Palma would like to wish all Chinese a Very Happy and Prosperous Chinese New Year and everyone else Happy Holidays!

Swiss Palma 恭祝全世界华人新年快乐，万事如意！

RECYCLE TO MAKE A BETTER PLACE FOR YOU AND ME

Come this Saturday will be the eve of Chinese New Year. Traditionally, by now all households should be busy doing that once a year "Spring Cleaning" before ushering in the Year of the Pig. This kind of annual family affair will usually result in heaps of unwanted stuff being thrown out of the house and piled along the roadsides for the garbage men to pick up. Items that are commonly found include furnitures, clothings, plants, kitchen cutleries, utensils etc...

Last week when I returned home, there was a broken antic wooden kitchen cabinet and 2 pieces of worn out sofa set placed at the "mini dumping site" opposite my house. As a matter of fact, this place is not a designated dumping site but rather a road shoulder where the neighbourhood have conveniently turned it into their very own dumping ground.

Ironically, DBKL also kind of recognises this so called "dumping ground" and I have noticed them coming around from time to time to check on the quantity of the rubbish being accumulated there and the next thing is the Alam Flora rubbish truck will come around to collect those rubbish.

I dread to wonder what will be the next thing that greets me this evening. Will it be a bedroom set？For your information, my house is located a mere 10km away from KL city centre...looks like we still have a long way to go in achieving success in educating my fellow neighbours the importance of Recycling.

On the other hand, there are also some caring organisations which are actively involved in this field, they are namely Persatuan Pencinta Alam Malaysia, Xim Phou Moon Welfare Society, Buddhist Tzu-Chi Merit Society, World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)...and the list goes on. These organisations have massive volunteers coming daily/weekly to help collect and sort all the recycle items placed in the respective centres. Their commitment and devotion should be highly lauded for involving themselves in this sacrificial work.

Amongst the volunteers, there was this old man in his sixties seen busy opening up bags of recycle items which at times can be as filty as rubbish itself at one of the Buddhist Tzu-Chi Merit Society Centres, someone came up to him and asked if he felt dirty doing this job. "No, not at all, there are times the human's heart can be dirtier than this!" he grinned.


Thank you very much Pak Osman for helping us in saving the earth for a better tommorrow.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

It's a long road when you face the world alone, when no one reaches out a hand for you to hold.

You can find love if you search within your soul, and the emptiness you felt will disappear.

Happy Valentine's Day!

THE MOTHER THERESA OF MALAYSIA

She is a saviour to the helpless, the homeless, the aged and the abandoned. Her relentless persue in helping the needy has resulted in her being nominated Social Worker of the Year 2002, Wendy Yap is certainly a woman with a big heart.

Started 15 years back doing charity work through the church, Wendy was aware that she would not be able to contribute effectively and meaningfully to the needy should she be continuing cooking and cleaning in the old folks homes and the orphanages. It was then that she began to set up food fairs in Kajang in order to raise funds for the needies. Besides getting support from the well wishers, todate Wendy has managed to garner help from businessmen and kind hearted philanthropists into donating a total of 13 houses and shoplots to the Old Folks, the Orphans, the Disabled and the Drug Addicts which house not less than 300 people.

Other than managing the homes she helped to set up, Wendy also provides counseling services, going from house to house seeking out families in crisis, visiting the sick patients in hospitals, and receiving the abandoned ones sent by the relevant Government Agencies.

If you need help or wish to help, Wendy can be contacted at 012-2380043.

"When you give Love, there is hope" - Wendy Yap.

A MOTHER'S PRAYER

It was since last November 2006 that we saw this 14 years old young lady, Tee Hui Yi appeared in our local daily newspapers looking for Heart Donor to replace her mechanical heart that fixed outside her body by Institute Jantung Negara.(IJN) She was the second succesful mechanical heart recipient in the country since September 2006 and the device was supposed to last for two years while waiting for a heart donor.

This external mechanical heart device has a whopping weight of 9.8kg which was placed outside Hui Yi's abdomen and connected to the left side of her heart. It was stored inside a trolly so that she could push it along wherever she goes. However, taking a walk outdoor is a challenge.

"Although her condition does not allow her wish to celebrate Chinese New Year back home at Batu Pahat, our family members are coming down to Kuala Lumpur to be with her", said Hui Yi's mother, Dina Botasambua. She is hopeful that her daughter will get a new heart soon.

With Chinese New Year just around the corner, sanctuaryofhope sincerely wish to help amplify Hui Yi's plea to reach out to potential donors outside Malaysia, in the hope to fulfil her wish of going back to school again soon and lead a normal life. To my fellow bloggers, could you give this gutsy lady a helping hand by spreading the words around?

LET'S SPREAD THE WORD AROUND!

WORLD VISION had just launched the awareness campaign to help the hungry children on earth. There are more than 850 million people goes to bed each night with an empty stomach.
By skipping a meal and donating the money that would have been spent on the skipped meal towards feeding hungry children, you are helping World Vision to fight hunger and poverty. Funds raised will be channeled to the World Vision Malaysia Children Fund.



What you can do as an Individual:

1. Choose a meal to skip (or have a lighter meal)
2. Skip-A-Meal from 1 – 8 April 2007 (or any other pre-selected dates).
3. Complete and return the Participation Forms and the donation to World Vision Malaysia before 31 March 2007.

If you are not able to participate in the Skip-A-Meal campaign, you may contribute via Donation.

If you are working in a Corporation or are a member of the Church, it would be most appreciated if you could help circulate the Poster and Participation Form and encourage people to participate.

Or, lastly, please help to forward this blog to the contacts in your address book!

EVERY LITTLE BIT HELPS!

THE INTERVIEW WITH GOD

To all friends who are reading this blog, I would like to introduce to you this soothing and powerful presentation, please spare a minute of your time to view the site:





THE INTERVIEW WITH GOD


I dreamed I had an interview with God.

“So you would like to interview me?” God asked.

“If you have the time” I said.

God smiled. “My time is eternity.”
“What questions do you have in mind for me?”

“What surprises you most about humankind?”

God answered...
“That they get bored with childhood,
they rush to grow up, and then
long to be children again.”

“That they lose their health to make money...
and then lose their money to restore their health.”

“That by thinking anxiously about the future,
they forget the present,
such that they live in neither
the present nor the future.”

"That they live as if they will never die,
and die as though they had never lived.”

God’s hand took mine
and we were silent for a while.

And then I asked...
“As a parent, what are some of life’s lessons
you want your children to learn?”

“To learn they cannot make anyone
love them. All they can do
is let themselves be loved.”

“To learn that it is not good
to compare themselves to others.”

“To learn to forgive
by practicing forgiveness.”

“To learn that it only takes a few seconds
to open profound wounds in those they love,
and it can take many years to heal them.”

“To learn that a rich person
is not one who has the most,
but is one who needs the least.”

“To learn that there are people
who love them dearly,
but simply have not yet learned
how to express or show their feelings.”

“To learn that two people can
look at the same thing
and see it differently.”

“To learn that it is not enough that they
forgive one another, but they must also forgive themselves.”

"Thank you for your time," I said humbly.

"Is there anything else
you would like your children to know?"

God smiled and said,
“Just know that I am here... always.”

-author unknown

SUPPORT THE DISABLED

I came across this man sitting on a wheel chair selling some daily household products and Chinese New Year decorative items in a fresh market near my home one morning.






I was drawn by the wheelchair and went to his stall to take a closer look at what he has to offer. Honestly, it is obvious that his goods are not as attractive as similar products sold by the guy next stall to his. But this is a real world out there, of which he has to compete side by side with every ordinary man to make a living.

In spite of his physical disability, this man is certainly not handicapped at heart. From the manner he conducted his business, he possessed the right attitude and see things very positive in life. “No problem if people don't buy from me, there will always be another customer forthcoming“ so he said with a smile.

While Chinese New Year is around the corner, most households are busy catching up with the preparation work. From buying new clothes to food, ang-pow money, prayer stuff and gifts for relatives and friends, one has to ensure that they are well "equipped" or rather, have enough money to spend in a New Year. What more to those less fortunate ones as the sole bread winner?

Behind the smile, I can see the sheer pressure in a handicap man to provide a happy "Chinese New Year" for his family!