- See more at: http://blogtimenow.com/blogging/automatically-redirect-blogger-blog-another-blog-website/#sthash.vFPYnxsz.dpuf T.H.E.seniors(shifted - dont post here): April 2009

Monday, April 06, 2009

Changi Airport Outing =)))

Saturdays are perhaps the best days to laze in bed, but a group of volunteers decided to forgo that temptation to participate in a meaningful event - T.H.E. Seniors Changi Airport Outing!


What could be so special about bringing some elderly on a trip to Changi Airport, you might wonder. Well, for some of the elders, it could very possibly be their first time going for an outing due to reasons such as fear or personal circumstances. Hence for them, it would be akin to discovering a whole new world far beyond the one they are currently in.


Our volunteers; prepped and ready to go!



And so, the day began with the volunteers gathering at Tanah Merah MRT station for a briefing with OPC. We then proceeded to the road to await the arrival of the elders.





It was by no exaggeration that their cheerfulness matched the bright sunshine that day – they were waving and smiling at us through the bus’ window and it was a really pleasant sight to witness their eagerness, which certainly rubbed off onto all the volunteers.




The itinerary consisted of a train ride to the airport, followed by a visit to a sketching station. Next up was lunch and a one hour free and easy tour of the airport. Our last station was the T3’s viewing gallery, where everyone took in the sights of the majestic planes taking flight.

I could seriously go on and on describing each part of the outing, but that would seriously bore you, so I’ll let the pictures speak instead =)

On the train to T3...

and arrival!

First stop - sketching station

Showing off their proud creations!

Makan time!

Chilling out at the viewing gallery

Smiles all around!

Cheese! (((=

I was attached to a jovial lady, and truth be told (and embarrassingly), I cannot remember her name as I have really terrible memory. However, there was one aspect of her that really struck me – her zest for life.

We spoke in depth about life and I took home an important lesson – to never be defeated by circumstances. Not that it’s something that many of us are unfamiliar with, but throughout the course of life, we often lose sight of such stuff and timely reminders are definitely welcome.


I also got the opportunity to speak to several other elderly folks and found out that they really enjoyed the outing, with many of them looking forward to the future outings. Oh, I think the elderly folks are really cool; I felt quite drained at the end, but most of them were still pretty energetic.

Some of the elderly were more energetic than us after the event...


Overall, it was an enjoyable and fulfilling experience; seeing how a simple act of bringing them on an outing can generate so much joy in their hearts. I am totally looking forward to future outings too and I hope that you would join us too!

yanzhu =))