Project Dignity

3/1

Walk into the school today and spend some time cleaning up the classroom.

Just dawn on me that everything in the classroom is second hand. The chairs which are mismatch is complimentary from a scrap dealer. Preferred somethingwith a writing board. In the classroom there is an electronic whiteboard and a white screen from my old office. The projector is from my manager's previous office. There is also a rack from a factory clearance. Cost of setting up is minimal.

Start of the new year and my first mistake for the year is that I have no cook...... Of the 11 in batch 1, two will be back to the Deaf Association to work, two will be going to Resort World, one is going to Wendy's and one will be starting on his own.

We started with another blind man V and his wife R. In this case love is great. R sacrifice her career to help her blind husband to work together. They must spend the next two weeks getting used to the place.

The OCD did not turn up. What a blessing

6/1

An ugly incident today at the dessert stall.

The stout looking man stood at the dessert stall and shouted at my ex-cancer boy. "I gave you $10 and this is the wrong change." the ex-cancer boy looks lost for word and could only stare at the man. "Give me the change NOW" The man continued. The ex-cancer boy replied timidly "It was a $5, you gave me."

The commotion caught my attention and I approached the stout looking man. Something tell me that my ex cancer boy is right and it was a $5 note that he was given. I got a feeling that the man is trying to cheat my ex-cancer boy whose memory following a brain operation is very low. I trust my ex-cancer boy.

I turn towards the man and said "If it is a $10 I will apologizes and the food is free, If not I will request that you move on and we shall forget this incident" I pointed towards a camera that is at the top of the stall.

The face of the stout looking man suddenly changed and he turn and walk away without uttering a word. I open the cashier machine and noticed that there was no $10 note.

Why do people cheats on people with disabilities?

Project Dignity

23/12

Todays mark the end of lessons for Batch 1 and individually they have a small test. Every one of the student has to cook a dish as a final assignment. The kitchen was frantic and the examiner is a very tough one who has spend the last four weeks working with the individual students. frankly I was quite surprise what they have come up with for their examination piece. It was good fun.

Siting in one corner is someone who has been visiting Dignity Kitchen for the past two weeks. he will come to sit in one corner and just stare. After a few time I got to notice him. "I want to join the school." said the man in his late forties."I can cook and I want to be a hawker" iWe got talking and I discover that he suffer from OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). He has been out of work for ten years. I did not know what OCD was and what was his disability.

Today is Christmas Eve and it is a tough decision whether to enrol him or not. The thought of Dicken's Christmas Carol came to mind. The man took out his medicine box and by the look of it has not been clean since he bought it. There was something like 7 - 8 tablets and pills in each compartment marked with the day of the weeks. "When I took my medicine I an alright for 6 to 7 hours. Please." He requested."I need the work."

Time for consultation. I called two doctor friends and a head nurse. The action was for him to produce a doctor certificate that he is able to work in a hawker stall.....

In the evening we will close the account and also clear the remaining food for the day. The leftover food is either given it to the cleaning staff or transport to a nearly elderly home. Tonight we went to a new elderly and was told that there is a policy in the home that does not received food for fear of food poisoning. Went to another home and they accepted wholeheartedly. Another home was even more interesting, they were selective on what we give them. Only the kueh but not the sandwiches.

27/12

First of several interviews for student placement. The hearing impaired preferred to leave as hawker not for him. It is fair as he has worked hard and know what he does not like to do. He find the heat tough to bear and we are happy for him. The job opportunity include manning a stall in Burlington Square. The other hearing impaired does not work shift and turn down an offer from Kopitiam not keen. The elderly got a job and very happy. He will be going to work for Wendy's

28/12

Just realize I make a mistake of letting go early and there s no students to ensure the food quality is in place . What a mistake. It will be a while to train someone....

30/12

We got our first delivery order today for 100 packet for old folks home. This is another revenue model. It was not easy to persuade anyone to give us a home delivery. We explain that in our lunch treat only a certain number can enjoyed our food. There are those who cannot come for various reasons and it will be great if we can deliver to them. Our first delivery.

Project Dignity

21/12

Children has always been my passion and I come to realise that most of our children do not get to interact with disabled people. One incident which happens when I first started Dignity Kitchen was to find a group of young girls standing in front of my blind cashier giggling away and another incident of a boy staring at the my polio man as he was walking and when the polio man slip and fall, the boy ran away. I guess this has to do with the lack of exposure and interaction and that is where the idea come to start a program called "Children working with the Disabled"

Today we had out first launch of "Children working with the Disabled" We worked with an organisation called Janus Education, who groom young children to be writers. The company managed to get about 16 children of various age and what we do is to allow them to interact with the disabled in four work stations.

Station 1 - singing with sign language with the hearing impaired

Station 2 - making spring roll with the physical handicap

Station 3 - dessert decoration with the intellectually challenged

Station 4 - braille math challenge with the visually impaired

The children will go from one station to another, performing various tasks with the disabled at the same time interacting with the disabled. The program ends with lunch for the children with the disabled.

Today also see several newspaper coming over to visit and interview our students. This is great. We need the publicity.

"If the children of today learn to interact with the disabled, the adult of tomorrow will be comfortable working with the disabled"