We rush. We hustle. We hurry. Sometimes we get so caught up in the commotion, we lose sight of the reason we do what we do in the first place.
So last Friday, the Helpling team started a meaningful project to remind ourselves of the reason we bury ourselves in work – to give the less privileged the support they need to earn an honest living for themselves.
(Read here to find out more about Helpling’s beginnings as a social community project)
Project Facelift – Brightening the homes of Boon Lay residents
The Helpling team, together with some of our cleaner partners and friendly volunteers headed down to Boon Lay to give some residents a good scrub over of their homes. These are Singaporeans that often struggle to get by with life, or face mobility difficulties. While daily housekeeping seems routine and mundane to us, it is not an option for these residents. And they make do with dusty, dirty, even unhealthy living spaces.
In collaboration with Boon Lay CC, as part of Project Facelift, our Helpling team got to work scrubbing, mopping and washing, to return some shine and sparkle to these homes.
A volunteer, Min said, “When I first stepped into the house, I saw dust and cobwebs that have been there for years. Housekeeping might not be top priority for these residents who are struggling with different problems, but I am happy with the small but significant improvements we made to these homes.”
CEO or not, everyone has something to give
Our CEO, Yeen Teck took the lead in the cleaning operation, dishing out instructions to the rest of the crew to make sure the cleaning is done fast and thorough. (I guess some old habits die hard)
He definitely showed us that he did not lose touch with his cleaning skills as well! And by skills, I mean, this man here deserves a certification for his impressive depth of expertise!
He knows exactly how to remove thick chunks of dust along window panes, is an avid advocate of multipurpose cleaners, and does his own wet-washing of floors. Who knew that after a change in print technology, newspapers can longer be used to clean glass? He did.
Yet Yeen Teck says, “The most memorable parts of the day was not the scrubbing and cleaning. What touched me was the humbling conversations I had with the residents, the heart-warming sharing of our cleaning partner’s own stories of hardships, and the cookies and fruits offered by one of the homes.”
Giving back is not a privilege, its a mindset
One of our cleaners, Ms Lim, battles with her own life problems as well. She said, “I am able to relate very well to what these residents are facing. I enjoy helping others and I am glad for this chance to give back.”
“Even though Singapore is very economically advanced, there are still many Singaporeans who could do with a lot of help. We want to build a community where we can help one and another. Today is just one example of it,” says Yeen Teck.
We could not have said it better ourselves. Helpling’s participation in Project Facelift is a humbling experience for the entire team, and we look forward to the next time we get out of office to go on a cleaning spree again!
Interested in joining Helpling cleaners team? Visit our cleaning jobs page.
