Community at its best

Claire has overcome many obstacles to reach her dreams

An ingenious balance of individual, community and government, is resulting in changed lives. 

One example of that change is evident in the life of Claire, a beautiful, bubbly self-confident young woman with a flair for languages and a love of singing.

When Claire heard about our Child Development Fund, she volunteered to market it at her secondary school. After I had introduced her to the audience at a Rotary Club of Hong Kong luncheon we attended together, she told them "When I heard about a savings game, with a mentor who could help me with my development over the next two years, it seemed really helpful for students like me who come from families that are not very wealthy or, kind of  ...poor..." And they all thought she had learnt to speak such excellent English at one of Hong Kong’s prestigious schools!

Claire heard about our
programme while helping
as a volunteer!

She said that what clinched it for her was the savings idea: The student and his or her family commits to saving $200 a month for two years, and Christian Action commits to finding a matching donor, such as Rotary Club who have supported this programme since 2010.  At the end of two years the Social Welfare Department tops the savings up with a generous gift of $3000.  

When Claire joined the programme her career path was as yet undetermined. She had indicated on her application form that she enjoyed accounting, so we found her a mentor who was an accountant (CPA).   When Claire spoke about her mentor, she laughed and said, “I learnt that there is much more to accounting than simply making the books balance!”   

In her case, Claire’s parents had no input over her career choices.  Her father died when she was very young, and contact with her mother wasn’t possible.   None of the adults in Claire’s life were able to provide career advice, which is why meeting her mentor was the best thing that ever happened to her. Through her mentor, Claire also met and was influenced by many other people from a different socio-economic group to her own.   She is now in her second year of university studying to be a CPA!

In our Child Development Fund programme, everyone carries a bit of responsibility: individual, community and government display `community’ in one of its finest forms.  Students are informed of this programme through secondary schools, either because their parents are dependent on Comprehensive Social Security Assistance, or because the student receives School Financial Assistance. You can help support a child like Claire by donating HK$200 a month for two years. Christian Action is now the biggest CDF service provider in Hong Kong and we hope and pray it will end up changing our nation!  Do you want to be part of that? Yes I do!