IPG Howden x SHINE Children and Youth Services Food Distribution

We are honoured to be able to partner and support IPG Howden's Corporate Social Responsibility initiative - a grocery packing and distribution drive carried out on 11 November for families living at Spooner Road.

IPG Howden is a leading insurance broker and wealth planning partner to global private banks, who believe in giving back to the community and providing relief for children and families in need. Alongside the IPG Howden volunteers, our Preschool Market team distributed bags of groceries to 32 families with children and youths - under SHINE Children and Youth Services' care. The bags of groceries consist of rice, cereal, oil, tissues, packets and more. These families face financial difficulties and are especially vulnerable amidst the pandemic and the rising cost of living in Singapore.

Before distributing the groceries, SHINE Children and Youth Services - a charity that empowers children, youths and families - shared more about the beneficiaries living on Spooner Road.

It was heartening to see the joyful smiles of the families when they received the packages. We were also encouraged by the IPG Howden’s enthusiasm. For some volunteers, it was their first time participating in a grocery packing and distribution drive. Therefore, it was a memorable experience for them.

When the children’s parents were busy at work, the children could visit the Spooner Clubhouse. This drop-in space is manned by SHINE Children and Youth Services’ staff, where structured and unstructured activities are held for the Spooner children and youth.

Today, the children are engaged in free play - in sports, board games, video games - with each other, and supervised by staff. This place aims to be a space where children can socialise healthily with one another, and forge supportive friendships with their peers.

Hence, seeing how the children recognised one another, a volunteer shared that "Kampung Spirit" in the neighborhood was an interesting observation she had noticed throughout the volunteering session.

That day, we met some of the children at the Spooner Clubhouse, and they kindly welcomed us to their homes. A child of one of the families even went the extra mile to help us distribute the packages to her fellow neighbours!

During our visits, some parents had left for work. Therefore, the children could not open the door. However, we were amazed by how the volunteers still chatted with the children from the windows and brought the grocery packages to the Spooner Clubhouse.

Touched by the warm gestures of the community, we are thankful to have this opportunity to coordinate the Donation Drive! We look forward to coordinating more Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives to support our local community.