As we spend more time in our homes and neighbourhoods, have we been finding ways to bless our community? Toa Payoh Methodist Church (TPMC) did this in several ways—most recently, by providing 2,500 free meals for those in their neighbourhood.
For their 50th Anniversary on 16 Aug 2020, TPMC launched a meal-sponsoring initiative in partnership with 50 hawker stalls. Each stall provided 50 meals sponsored by TPMC, which could be redeemed by anyone, with no questions asked. All meals were fully redeemed in three weeks, and some hawkers decided to contribute to this project by providing additional free meals on their own accord. Many have expressed interest in collaborating with TPMC for initiatives like this in the future.
“I think this project is meaningful because there are many elderly people living around Toa Payoh, and they could try lots of different kinds of food without spending too much on their daily expenses,” said Royston, the owner of Stall 7, a Western food stall that celebrated its first anniversary in March this year.
This was echoed by Tay Lee Sun, a hawker at Lai Heng Mushroom Minced Meat Noodles. “The elderly residents in this area told us that they were very happy about this project. I’ll definitely participate again if there are similar projects in the future,” she told TPMC.
For TPMC Pastor-in-Charge the Rev Reuben Ng, “This project is our little way of showing care and support to the Toa Payoh community, especially during this challenging period. It is heartening to see how our hawker friends are willing to give above and beyond what was originally planned. We hope this inspires others to do what they can to uplift others.”
This project is a part of TPMC Gives, a collection of multi-pronged community outreach efforts. Another TPMC Gives event that took place this year was an Easter blood donation drive, which was carried out in tandem with bread deliveries to beneficiaries at Care Corner Singapore and Chen Su Lan Methodist Children’s Home, cleaners for the Toa Payoh Town Council, nurses and public transportation staff.
In turn, TPMC’s network of contacts helped to raise awareness for this project by directing those in their midst who might be in need of a meal towards the participating eateries. With support from their neighbours, TPMC sees each of these initiatives as a way to build a more closely-knit neighbourhood. It has been encouraging to see God’s love expressed through each of these projects, and TPMC will continue look out for ways to serve wherever they are needed.
By the MCS Communications Team / Photos courtesy of TPMC