Love @ Po Leung Kuk

Every Saturday morning, Lawyer Wong takes the time to visit the children, playing and interacting with them, and even preparing snacks for them. “I’ve always felt very fortunate in my studies, work, and family, so I want to give back to society and bring happiness and warmth to the children!”   Lawyer Wong's connection with the children at Po Leung Kuk began in 2019. Initially, she learned about volunteer activities involving visits and interactions with children through a member newsletter from the Hong Kong Law Society. During that event, staff from Po Leung Kuk informed her about the facilities, programs, and sponsorship details. Lawyer Wong found the program meaningful and decided to become a sponsor, hoping to improve the children’s living environment and provide them with opportunities to participate in various extracurricular activities.   After completing training for sponsors, she officially began visiting the sponsored children. Although the COVID-19 pandemic caused multiple delays in visitations, it did not deter her compassionate spirit. She expressed that she enjoys every visit, fully engaging with the children, saying, “Whatever the children want to play, I play along with them, even if it’s in the garden.” She also keeps track of each child’s interests, personalities, and memories to make future visits more familiar and enjoyable.   “I remember on my first visit to one child, he asked if he could hug me.” Unfortunately, due to visitation rules prohibiting close contact, Lawyer Wong couldn’t give him a hug. However, that experience deeply moved her, highlighting the children's need for love and care. With a heart full of compassion, Lawyer Wong hopes to reach out to and visit even more children, bringing them joy. Thus, she decided to “expand her family” by increasing her sponsorship from 5 to a total of 12 children. “I hope that in the brief hour of our visit, the children can have fun and find a different experience in their daily lives at the facility; I also want them to feel that there are many people in society who care about and love them.”

(Chinese Only) 保良局田家炳關愛家庭中心的張詠琳姑娘（Winifred）在阿浩媽媽求助下認識了12歲的阿浩。因患有自閉症譜系障礙及讀寫障礙的緣故，阿浩不懂得用合適的語言去表達自己的想法和感受，亦不太理解別人說話背後的意思，似乎與世界「斷了線」。Winifred與團隊耐心地與阿浩建立關係，阿浩更參加了中心「童夢同行」兒童及青少年生命導向計劃的模特兒培訓小組。起初阿浩難以表達自己對夢想的想法，亦未能明白導師的指示，Winifred與團隊循序漸進，慢慢鼓勵他由動作模仿開始，並將導師的句子分拆，給予清晰的指令逐步教他，從多次模擬綵排中讓他累積經驗。Winifred更透過電話通訊平台，邀請阿浩每天發一張自己擺姿勢的模特兒相給她，從而建立自信及掌握技巧，漸漸地阿浩開始增加了對事物的理解，自信心增加了，更能夠有勇氣踏上舞台扮演模兒。更令Winifred感動的是，阿浩能清晰地表達自己的想法和意向，向她說了一句：「我想做模特兒！」   「阿浩與一般低動機青年一樣，他們需要的不是字典，為他們輸入各種意義；他們需要的是我們的耐心，時刻從他們角度出發，成為『生活字典』，為他們排解疑難，詮釋未來，重新為他們建立意義。低動機青年總讓人覺得反叛/難接觸/懶，但其實每個青少年背後總有一段讓人慨嘆的經歷，聽上來對成年人來說可能是一些雞毛蒜皮小事，但他們就是正等待別人去花時間及耐性聆聽及陪伴走出這局面。」Winifred分享青少年工作的信念。然而，時下青少年已不多活躍於社區中心，大多花時間在手機及網上，Winifred身處的北區亦不例外。因此，要向青少年翻開這本「生活字典」，花時間聆聽他們，Winifred在工作上就要靠使用手機各個通訊平台，線上線下與青少年同行，她更曾試過透過通訊平台勸導離家出走與家人失聯的青年回港與家人修復關係。「青少年服務的核心理念離不開人與人之間的關係，我們著重與青少年關係建立、維持信任、陪伴同行。透過線上線下的互相配合，我們就可以緊貼青少年需要，更快捷有效地回應所需，介入提供適切服務，陪伴青少年成長。」   工作有下班時間，線上關心青少年卻似是無休止，但相信當Winifred與團隊在通訊平台見到阿浩愈見進步的自拍相片，以及見證一個又一個因著他們同行而成長的故事，再累也是值得。為保良局青少年團隊送上支持。