IMPACT 0325: SERVING THE COMMUNITY: FOLLOWING THE FOOTSTEPS OF GENERATIONS BEFORE

Levina Keak, 19, is a final year student in Temasek Polytechnic completing her diploma in Business. Currently volunteering at the People’s Association at Sengkang Central Youth Network as an office-bearer, she has worked on many different projects such as Project Stepping Stone. Today she will be sharing more about her experience!

My passion to volunteer and serve the community started when I was very young. Having witnessed both my maternal and paternal grandfathers serving in the People’s Association and how they positively impacted the disadvantaged through their various projects, inspired me. I have always believed in giving back to society and as a young Singaporean who’s benefited from my community, it’s my turn to be the catalyst for positive change in people’s lives.

Many of my personal experiences inspired me to follow my maternal and paternal grandfathers’ footsteps and fueled my passion to serve the community in my own ways. Thankfully, I stumbled upon the chance to join the Youth Network, which kickstarted my active community service.

As my organisation saw the need to engage with youth living in Sengkang Central, my Chairman suggested the idea of an e-tutoring project. Within the short span of time spent in the Youth Network, I was given the autonomy to execute projects like “Project Stepping Stone”. In partnership with DBS, the e-tutoring initiative provides an online learning platform called “88 tuition” to low-income families in Sengkang for free. Project Stepping Stone garnered over 100 beneficiaries, and over time, we expanded the project to include looking for volunteers to tutor the students.

The journey from the start to the end was not easy, as the team had many obstacles while running this project. Our first challenge came when I was planning for the project. As I had limited knowledge of how the Youth Network functions, I had to redo the project proposal a few times. I was eventually able to plan out the project successfully, but it was only thanks to my team of volunteers who assisted me with the proposal.

Another challenge we faced occurred during the initial stage of launching the platform for use by our beneficiaries. Many parents and youth called to enquire more about the reward system we implemented for them as well as the technical issues they had. The lack of manpower slowed down our progress in responding to the feedback we received, but we remained resilient throughout the ordeal. Thankfully, we managed to find a way to be more efficient when operating.

“When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” This quote kept me afloat through the challenges I faced so far. Another reason that made me persevere was seeing the beneficiaries being uplifted through my initiatives. It pushed me to go further and continue to do more for the community, and to also inspire more youths to give back to society in their own ways!

To do what you are passionate about and never give up – you will be rewarded for the hard work you put in. Keep inspiring and serving the community!

Serving in the Youth Network set the foundation for my community service. In the future, I hope to develop my own social enterprise to uplift the disadvantaged!