Carwash @ Sixth Ave

In our efforts to raise funds for our trip, Team NINE went door to door along Sixth Avenue to offer car washing services to the residents in the area. They were given flyers informing them about our efforts a few days in advance. While some residents were less than friendly towards us, most were generous enough to donate some money even if they did not wish for their cars to be washed by us.





















Team NINE persevered despite the sweltering heat and with the much appreciated contributions of the residents, at the end of the day, we managed to raise more funds than we had expected. All in all, it's a good start to our canvassing efforts. Good job, everybody. Keep up the good work! (:

Recce Trip

From the 8-13 December 2008, a few of the members of Team NINE went over to Nias Island on a reccee trip with Prof Heng. The entourage included Matthew, Fang Xiang, Hui Qun and Aileen.















During their short trip, the members managed to get a taste of what is to come for the rest of us. While the conditions in the villages are much worse, the orphanage itself has clean water and has generators to provide electricity for those living within the compound.

The ages of the kids at the orphanage range from 8-19 year olds. As part of their culture, the boys and girls tend to stick to their own gender and age groups. They also like to play arm wrestling to occupy their time. However, all the children definitely have warm smiles and free spirits. They welcome strangers with open arms. Just ask Fang Xiang. (:

NEW team name

Just a quick, important update:

Team Shine is now known as Team NINE (Niners is Nias Empowerment)!

Upcoming events for Team Nine
1) 27 Dec: Carwash @ 6th Avenue
2) ASAP - 24 Jan: Donation Drive in Hall9
3) Jan: Team NINE dines with Pastor Michael Christian

A more thorough update coming your way. Watch this space! (:

Term break is here! Which means.. Team SHINE is going to be back at work!

We had a meeting in hall last night. Although it was initially supposed to be a meeting and dinner with Prof, it was a fruitful meeting nonetheless. P&P was sneakily taking some photos. (:

More updates were given about everything that's going on, and there is a lot to do, especially through December. Meanwhile, a few members of Team SHINE will be heading over to Nias from 8-13 December for a recce trip to get more information about the orphanage so that we can plan our actual programme better.

The meeting ended off with dinner at good old Can2.

We have a lot of work ahead of us, Team SHINE. But jiayou! All our efforts will be worth it when we see the smiles on the children's faces.