Unlike in the United States, homeless people in the capital city of Malaysia are rarely seen in broad daylight. In my ignorance, the city only has beggars and they are mostly foreigners, usually women in tattered clothing with a small child next to them. They usually have a spot on the overhead pedestrian crossing or along the corridors of shop houses. The only time I’ve seen beggars soliciting for money around the local eateries was during the night. We’ve been told not to engage because they usually involve syndicates. It never crossed my mind at all that some may be homeless.
Getting involved in Shane’s mission opened my eyes to this side of our societies. Homelessness isn’t just in the United States but it’s global and growing in cities all over the world. I stopped admiring the glitz and the bustling cities of beautiful lighted skyscrapers. Instead my eyes look for the little corner tucked away for human existence.
This was how we became volunteers at Kechara Soup Kitchen. Kechara Soup Kitchen (KSK) is a non-religious community action group that distributes food, basic medical aid and counselling to the homeless and urban poor of Malaysia
They aim to provide a permanent soup kitchen building as a place of safety, “off street”, for the distribution of hot food and medical treatment facilities for the homeless, whilst continuing to provide street food delivery to those who are unable to come to the centre. In the long term, Kechara Soup Kitchen’s mission is to reduce the flow of homeless living on the streets by providing a nurture centre building as a place of training and assistance to help make the homeless employable and for them to re-enter society.
Kechara Mission Statement
Volunteers from all walks of life, students and professionals contribute to this NGO’s mission. We took to the streets in the city, each belongs to a group of 5 – 8 volunteers with a team leader. I’ve never seen so many people queuing up for food parcels at 11 in the evening! These folks weren’t just foreigners but a majority was locals.
My appreciation for the young volunteers…
This elderly man from China is an illegal, overstaying his tourist visa to Malaysia. There was no way for him to go back nor seek medical aid in the local hospital. Fearing arrest, he has been hiding during the day and only comes out in the late night scouring for food.
Kechara team knows his whereabout and provide food and first aid as much as possible. His wound is bad, turning gangrene. This first aid team would go around the city providing help throughout the night until the wee hours of the morning.
Other groups are spread across the city distributing food to the homeless who can’t come to the Kechara Soup Kitchen building. It’s very heartening to see this NGO isn’t short of young volunteers. We are blessed to be able to be part of this group tonight.
