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IMPACT 0067: CAKES FOR THE CHILDREN

We speak with Falice Ann, a 26-year-old, on her experience with Schizoaffective Disorder, and her passion about education for children with special needs or disabilities. She shares with us the initiatives she has started that aim to give back to underprivileged children in Singapore – through both education & celebration – and what inspires and spurs her on to do so.

Tell us more about what you do.

I am an early childhood educator and have been a songwriting enthusiast for as long as I can remember. I love children, and have a heart for children with special needs. I have special needs myself – schizoaffective disorder, which is similar to bipolar disorder. In recent years, I have been giving free tuition to children from low-income families.

I am passionate about education because being in this scene allows me to contribute to an equal headstart for children with special needs or disabilities, especially so when I too have special needs. Doing what I can with what I have to help one child at a time is the best I can give to the children who need it.

On top of education, I also started an initiative called “One Wish Singapore”, where I collaborate with bakers and delivery services in Singapore to deliver birthday cakes to children who can’t afford a cake for their birthdays. The incident that inspired this initiative was when I was tutoring a child who came from a low-income family. I knew that he wanted to celebrate his birthday with his friends but could not afford it. So I threw a party for him, with balloons, presents and a birthday cake. His response was priceless. That was how One Wish was birthed – to bless more children with birthday cakes to celebrate their life.

closeup-of-baby-shark-cake — Birthday cake for beneficiaries. IMAGE CREDIT: FALICE ANN

I also run a business called “Knitted Dreams.co”, where I sell hand-drawn T-shirts. I hope to use the money I earn from this business to donate shirts to children who are not able to afford clothes, and maybe even bring in more designers for this so that there will be a diversity of designs for the children to choose from.

Was there a particular experience that inspired you to do what you do? What spurs you on to keep doing this?

I encountered many children from low-income families from my years of teaching. I realized that they are far behind in education because they lack opportunities to learn and they don’t live luxurious lives because of their families’ financial disabilities. This caused a shift in my heart to make a difference in their lives because it mattered to me that every child deserves the same opportunities.

The sole fact that I can make a difference in these children’s lives and having the feeling of blessing someone spurs me on to keep doing what I do.

What has it been like living with schizoaffective disorder?

I was diagnosed in 2017. The medication I was given caused me to gain weight, which led to a loss of self-esteem and falling into depression. My condition has since stabilised and although I still face some side effects from the medication, such as racing thoughts, they only happen occasionally.

When I’m busy, it makes me forget about the side effects of my medication. Ever since I started these initiatives, I’ve hardly had racing thoughts. So why not use the time I have to do something meaningful and also keep myself free from side effects?

Were there any hesitations to starting the initiatives?

I think the main thing I was afraid of was the monetary aspect. I was afraid that I won’t be able to raise enough funds, and because I am not currently working, I had concerns that I would not be able to fund the cause myself. Currently, we receive our funding through donations to fund the initiatives that we run.

I am looking to work with the Children’s Cancer Foundation eventually to continue “One Wish Singapore”, which will be more sustainable. And as for “Knitted Dreams.co”, I hope to collaborate with more T-shirt designers to raise funds to help cloth less-privileged children.

baby-napping-in-hand-drawn-t-shirt — Clothes drawn by Falice. IMAGE CREDIT: FALICE ANN

Do you think celebrating birthdays have a very small impact on less-privileged children compared to initiatives like giving food or donations?

I still believe a birthday matters a lot to a child. I once had a child who asked me, “Ms Ann, when can I celebrate my birthday?” It hit me really hard. Because of that, I was convinced that it really affects a child if he or she can’t celebrate their birthday. In May, I posted on a facebook group called “Blessings for low-income families” saying that I wanted to bless children with cakes for their birthdays. The overwhelming responses I received, and the 17 families’ requests for a birthday cake I managed to fulfill, made me more certain that the work I set out to do through “One Wish Singapore” must continue.