CHILDREN FOR CHILDREN @ THE SINGAPORE ZOO
Wednesday, 30 September 2009
1.00pm – 5.30pm

First stop, ZOOAFRICA! We saw 1000 little explorers at the Zoo for an awesome Into The Wild adventure!

There were safari explorers all over the zoo, overcoming roadblocks with nifty pouches and instant cameras, lovingly prepared by the children of CHIJ Kellock for the BT BAF beneficiaries.

Upon further investigation, we found that The Business Times, CHIJ (Kellock) and The Arts House came together on 30 September, for the second year running to create a fun-filled community event called Children for Children, in aid of ChildAid, an annual fundraising concert where proceeds go towards The Business Times Budding Artists Fund and The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund. The inaugural Children for Children event last year saw 1,000 children from lower income families take the exhilarating ride on the Singapore Flyer on Children’s Day. This year, it was held at the Singapore Zoo and attracted close to 1,000 children from lower income families. What fun!

We decided to interview one of the people there...
Mr Colin Goh, General Manager of The Arts House, said, “The arts have a certain social responsibility towards the community in which it is born and it is no different for an arts organisation and venue like The Arts House. We are honoured to be able to continue playing a role in helping children who are economically distanced this year through our efforts in raising funds for ChildAid.”

More soundbytes and pictures to capture...
Children For Children @ the Singapore Zoo was graced by Mr Sam Tan, Parliamentary Secretary of Ministry of Trade and Industry & Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts.

This year’s event, titled “Into the Wild”, embarked on an adventurous concept. Each participant took on the role of the “Little Explorer” and with a treasure-hunt map, off they went in search of their favourite art-and-craft activities like finger puppet and face painting! Just as excitedly, the children hunted for the yummy food and drinks, such as hotdogs, ice-cream, candy floss, popcorn and Milo that were “hidden” in the forests and dirt treks. The event ended with a concert based on an original production by the pupils of CHIJ (Kellock).

All participants received goodie bags containing a set of stationery items contributed and packed by the pupils and staff of the school, as well as a personalised note wishing each participant a "Happy Children’s Day".

What widened the smile on the children’s faces was that each of them received a disposable camera, specially for them to capture their best memories with their friends at the zoo.

Explaining the significance of the camera, Mrs Clara Lim-Tan, Principal of CHIJ (Kellock) says, “The children will have the opportunity to not only document their experience at the zoo, but also have the creative space to capture the various sights and sounds and turn them into compelling visual stories. Through this shared experience, we hope to provide each child with an opportunity to see the world from a different perspective, and in the process, empower each of them to express and tell their unique stories."

Employees from Business Times, Pico Art International Pte Ltd, Rabobank International and WBL Corporation Ltd came to volunteer as facilitators, helping and guiding the children as they explored the zoo.

Mr Alvin Tay, Editor of The Business Times (BT) says: “BT turns 33 on 1 October and this Children for Children event is part of its Anniversary celebrations. We started the fundraising for this initiative in the middle of August and I am pleased to report that we have raised more than $230,000. Donations, ranging from $200 to $20,000, came from individuals and companies. We are indeed touched by the generosity of many of our supporters. Our job now is to make sure that the children have a memorable Children’s Day at the Zoo.’’

Judging from the happy faces and biiiig grins we captured, we hope that the children will always remember this wonderful adventure Into The Wild...