SPH fulfil wishes of 300 children under Boys' Brigade project

Singapore

NINE-YEAR-OLD Sharifah Shakirah Aljunied had one simple wish: to own a watch. She used to share one with her younger sister, but decided to let her have it all to herself.

So Shakirah was over the moon on Tuesday when she got a shiny black Baby-G watch at a year-end party, along with hair pins, hairbands and a fuzzy red pencil case.

She was among 100 children who had wished for presents as part of the Boys' Brigade Share-A-Gift Project and saw them fulfilled at the party in the Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) News Centre Auditorium in Toa Payoh.

Now in its 30th year, the year-end Share-a-Gift project by the Christian organisation focuses on fulfilling the "wishes" of the less fortunate.

Over 9,000 wishes - for items ranging from toys to shoes to home appliances - were submitted this year by both the young and old in Singapore.

About 300 of those wishes from 12 children's charities were fulfilled by SPH management and staff, totalling about S$20,000.

About 100 children turned up for the party on Tuesday. This is the 12th straight year that SPH has contributed to the project.

The children, from charities such as Care Community Services Society (Care Kids), Beyond Social Services (Jalan Bukit Ho Swee), and Life Community Services Society - Mighty Kids, Families and Community, had a ball of a time.

They played games like hide and seek, tossed paper aeroplanes across the room and enjoyed a delicious buffet lunch.

"I think it is important to share the things you have with your family," said Shakirah, from the MacPherson branch of Care Kids, referring to why she gave the watch to her sister.

"When you borrow things from them next time, then they'll lend you things too. If you don't share, they won't share next time also."

She said she would be sharing her hairbands with her eight-year-old sister as well as her mother.

This year's Boys' Brigade Share-A-Gift project, launched on Nov 21, will run until Dec 31. Nearly 76 per cent of the wishes have so far been fulfilled.