A volunteer appreciation tea party for the Shunfu Road recycling point saw the joyful participation of 140 residents and Tzu Chi volunteers, who shared close ties with one another. (Photo by Mulias Lian)
11th February 2017 marked a very special tea party -- a joyful gathering of over 100 people to mark the fruitful completion of an 18-year-long journey for the Tzu Chi recycling point along Shunfu Road.
“Even though we won’t be having a monthly recycling point, we can still remind the residents not to throw their trash indiscriminately, as some of these items can be recycled,” said Mdm Zhu Yu Xiang.
Although she had not been well in her left torso in recent years, Zhu still made the effort to volunteer at the Shunfu Road recycling point every month for the past 18 years. On every Tzu Chi Recycling Day, she would faithfully brew a big flask of piping hot coffee to be shared with everyone at the recycling point.
When Zhu arrived at the tea gathering, she caught the sight of an old acquaintance and long-time Tzu Chi recycling volunteer, Gan Woon Hoon. The two ladies quickly embraced each other in a moment of joyful tears, over a long-awaited reunion.
The recycling point, which was located at the void deck of Block 307 along Shunfu Road, had journeyed with the residents for nearly two decades, and its vibrant life was brought to a fruitful close after serving the residents faithfully over these years.
Timing the tea party to coincide with its Recycling Day in February, Tzu Chi took this opportunity to thank the residents and grassroots organisations for their faithful support through the years. The ties between the long-serving volunteers and residents were close like family, and there was a deep sense of unbearable letting go, when news was heard about the closure of the recycling point.
A week before the event, Tzu Chi volunteers went about the neighbourhood, knocking from door-to-door, to share the news about the upcoming party and impending closure of the recycling point.
Even though it was the last Recycling Day for the recycling point, many volunteers arrived early in the morning to clean up the venue as usual. Then they sang the song, “Prayer”, to offer their sincere prayers for the victims of the earthquake in Hualien, before commencing the essential work of sorting out the recyclables.
Tzu Chi volunteers visiting individual households, to personally invite residents to the tea party. (Photo by Hong Yong Xiang)
Gan Woon Hoon said while choking back her tears, “I haven’t been back here for a long time, and really miss those days of working together with the residents here. It really moves me to see so many of them remember me even after so many years.”
She was invited by another volunteer, Chen Ya Ting, to help out at the recycling point, and reminisced about those early years when the two of them, along with a third volunteer, pushed a trolley from door-to-door to collect recyclable items from each household.
Gan Woon Hoon (left) taking part in the final recycling drive at the Shunfu Road recycling point (Photo by Nelly Utomo)
Presently, there are 39 Tzu Chi recycling points around Singapore. Through many years of advocacy, most residents have cultivated the habit of bringing their recyclables to the recycling point on Tzu Chi Recycling Day, which falls on the second Sunday of each month. A number of them even stayed back to help with the sorting of recyclables.
Chen Ya Ting, whose heart went out to the elderly residents who had saved heavy loads of recyclables for Tzu chi, even personally made trips to their homes to help carry the items down to the recycling point.
“Woon Hoon, we haven’t collected the recyclables from the granny living on the 10th floor,” said Chen.
Even though this was the final Recycling Day for the Shunfu Road recycling point, she still carried her “secret manual” with her as she shuttled between the floors in the housing block. The “secret manual” contained a list of physically-challenged residents whom volunteers must personally visit to collect their recyclables.
Thankful for the Predecessors who Paved the Way
At around 11.30am, the volunteers started decorating the venue for the tea party, thoughtfully arranging the small, round, white tables and chairs that they had brought from Jing Si Hall. Each table was adorned with origami flowers and snippets of Jing Si Aphorisms, and exquisite snacks made from Tzu Chi’s all-natural Jing Si products. The decor conveyed an air of quiet elegance, a hallmark of the organisation’s humanistic culture.
Volunteers whipping up homemade snacks for the appreciation tea party, as a gesture of thanksgiving to the residents for their long-standing support (Photo by Nelly Utomo)
“It’s been 18 years… It’s not easy to let go, because we have once travelled this road. Even though this is the final day of the recycling point, as long as you are determined to continue doing recycling, it won’t be that difficult after all. I believe that your efforts will continue for the long haul,” volunteer leader Jennifer Tan Seok Kee spoke with much conviction.
In the thanksgiving segment, she invited all the early batches of volunteers, who had served selflessly at the Shunfu Road recycling point, to step forward, in order to thank them individually for paving the way. Their tireless efforts had helped to materialise the recycling point and her thanksgiving speech drew loud applause from the audience.
Volunteer leader Jennifer Tan expressing her appreciation and gratitude to the early batches of volunteers for their selfless service at the recycling point along Shunfu Road (Photo by Mulias Lian)
Perpetuating the Spirit of Environmental Protection
“I enjoy the atmosphere here, where everyone works together like a family, with much laughter and joy, and without stress,” remarked 26-year-old Chen Zong Chuan.
This young man started volunteering at the Shunfu Rd recycling point 14 years ago, as a young boy. An introvert by nature, he was placed in charge of carrying recyclables from the homes of elderly residents.
Through the company of volunteer Wong Chen Siang, this shy young man gradually overcame his awkwardness, and gradually picked up conversational skills with the elderly. The impending cessation of the Shunfu Road recycling point affected him emotionally, but he quickly channeled his energy into encouraging residents to continue to recycle by placing their recyclables in the recycling bins located below their housing blocks.
“Zong Chuan was only a primary school kid when he first joined us. He has grown in stature from a petite, young boy into the well-built man who is so much taller than me today. He is a young man with a heart of gold,” said Wong, with a bright smile.
He recalled a time before the upgrading of the housing block, the lifts could only access the first, fifth and ninth floors. Back then, it was a laborious task for volunteers to push their heavy-laden trolleys from household to household to collect their recyclables. They would form teams of three to four, to move from floor to floor and collect the items from each household.
Chen Zong Chuan (left) encourages everyone not to give up recycling, and says that every small, thoughtful act by each person can help to beautify the environment.
Wong Chen Siang got connected with Tzu Chi through joining the team at the Shunfu Road recycling point. He shared, “This recycling point was the starting point where I learned how to be a volunteer and interact with the residents. This place is like a mighty tree that slowly extends its branches out.”
The family-like interactions between volunteers and residents were unforgettable to him. It was such inseparable ties that inspired him to contribute with sincerity and love, when he was tasked to set up another Tzu Chi recycling point in Ang Mo Kio two years ago.
In her closing speech at the tea party, the deputy CEO of Tzu Chi Singapore, Susi Zhao, reminded everyone that the work started by Shunfu Road recycling point was yet to finish. She highlighted that there was a need for the team to move forward to walk further and on broader paths, and that the aim of Tzu Chi was more than just recycling. More importantly, the Foundation hoped to educate the masses on environmental conservation. Susi further encouraged everyone to serve as “eco ambassadors” and go to the schools to promote recycling.
For the past 18 years, the Shunfu Road recycling point had continually been sowing seeds of environmental protection. Many residents would automatically bring their recyclables down to the venue on each Recycling Day, and even had first-hand experience with sorting the recyclables. Through the process, they gleaned precious lessons on treasuring our planet’s finite resources.
In the brief span of two hours, the appreciation tea party was brought to a close on this final Recycling Day in the midst of the beautiful melody of the heartwarming Tzu Chi song, “One Family”.
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