Project Kampung Orang Asli Angkat - Sponsorship to UKM student Club

Project Kampung Orang Asli Angkat
Date: 13 May 2012
Time: 8:30am
Location: Kampung Orang Asli Gombak.

Organiser: UKM Student Group - Joseph Chan

The event started via a request via 1M1C Facebook page by Joseph as below:

Dear Sir or Madam,

We are a group of passionate students of i-Club UKM, a student organization that regularly carry out leadership enhancing activities as well as community services. Our current project is based on helping ... an Orang Asal Community. i-Club UKM will be working with En. Raman, the head of Orang Asal, who is keen to improve eco-tourism activities for the Orang Asal Village by building small huts using bamboos and woods. We also plan to carry out several awareness activities on the importance of hygiene and education especially to the young kids in the village. Furthermore, we plan to provide the villagers with basic necessities for each home respectively. Therefore, on behalf of this village, we are currently seeking funds to purchase daily necessities for each of the family living there. Projek Kampung Angkat is scheduled to be carried out on May 13th, 2012.

Orang Asal Gombak village consists of more than 20 families with an average of 3 kids per family. This village is led by En. Raman, who tries very hard to ensure that this community gets all the necessary items as well as provide them with opportunities to sustain themselves by producing handicrafts. There is a land belonging to a single mother in which En. Raman wanted to help, by converting her piece of land into an eco-tourism spot. This would allows the single mother to use the income generated from it to subsidize her children’s school as well as living cost. En. Raman had also requested us to provide him with manpower to aid him in building up the eco-tourism spot.

Our objectives are to build bamboo huts to increase eco-tourism activities to help the single mother to get extra income to subsidize her children’s school and living cost; to provide each families with
daily necessities especially food and drinks; to educate the children of this village on the importance of hygiene and education by teaching them the correct methods via applications.

Our target is to be able to fundraise up to RM2000 in order to purchase daily necessities such as Milo, biscuits, rice, toothbrushes and toothpastes for all the families in the village. Besides that, we would want to provide En. Raman with sufficient manpower to construct bamboo huts for generation of extra income for the single mother.

The proceeds will entirely be used to fund the villagers. Your kind contribution and support is deeply appreciated and it’s a noble step in our effort of changing the life and future of the children and the
adults of this village.
Thank you.

For more inquiries please contact,

Joseph Chan Mun Hoong
joscmh90@gmail.com

Yuvarani Nair Sukumaran
yuva12390@gmail.com 

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We decided to meet up and discuss some of the issues and our concerns over the place. Upon discussion, we were ready to go on the 13th May 2012. However, due to work commitments, I was unable to go and only Tony from our team represent 1M1C.

For this project, we donated RM1,000 for purchasing basic items for the selected 10 families in the village, with additional cooking oil costing RM133.50. Total expenses for this project is RM 1,133.50.

For photos and activities, visit:  http://www.facebook.com/#!/media/set/?set=a.3437159042817.2135089.1085701491&type=1

The following is the blog entry from Joseph for the activity.

In conjunction with Mother’s Day, students of i-Club UKM carried out a programme called “Projek Kampung Angkat 2012”. We visited the Orang Asli settlement located at Gombak on the 13^th of May 2012. The objectives of this programme are simple, reaching out to those who are in need ; giving out necessities to needy families , educating children of the village on the importance of dental hygiene and education as well as to provide man-power in the effort of converting a piece of land into an eco-tourism spot. The program is participated mainly by students from UKM as well as volunteers from Reach out Malaysia, 1Month1Charity and Born 2 Serve.

Donated Items

Team with some of the recipients

The village consists of more than 20 families led by En.Raman; the head of the village who works very hard in ensuring that this community is able to get all their necessities. Other than that, he also provides opportunities for them to sustain themselves by producing and selling handicrafts. One of the activities in this program involves helping a single mother to convert her piece of land into an eco-tourism spot in the hope that this eco-tourism spot would be able to generate sufficient income  to support her family especially her children’s education. This is one of the many efforts that En. Raman does for his community.

In the morning, the volunteers gathered in front of the Orang Asli settlement. En.Raman has been anticipating our arrival, giving us a warm welcome as we arrived. The goods to be distributed are then unloaded at the open area right in front of the settlement arranged in total of 10 sets. It’s great to see volunteers from different backgrounds working together in unloading and arranging the goods from the bus located quite a distance from the open area. En Raman then gathered 10 single mothers and we proceeded with the giving right after. Each of the single mother is given a set of donation items which includes rice, cooking oils, milk powder, bread, eggs and other necessities. The donation items are contributed by a group of charitable friends from 1Month1Charity.

Entering the tunnel..

Masuk hutan!

After handing over the donation items, the volunteers were then divided into groups of 2; one being with the kids and the other would be trekking into the forest to the eco-tourism spot. 

The activities with the kids took place in the community hall. Kids are kids; they were of course playful and active, the volunteers had a hard time at first calming them down to get things started. Nevertheless the kids behaved well and enjoyed the games and activities throughout the program. It was also encouraging to see how the kids were delighted in our presence; they even taught us the Malay version of “Twinkle-twinkle little star”! At the very end of the program, a special slot of creating Mother’s Day cards for their mothers were carried out. Besides entertaining the kids, volunteers also had the privilege of sharing Mother’s Day with all the mothers in the village through this approach. Although a little tiring, the volunteers had a great time with them as well; going back with smiles all over their faces, filled with satisfaction.

En Raman

On the other side, the second group was trekking through the jungle to the eco-tourism spot. The path leading to the spot wasn’t easy; the volunteers were required to walk through water streams, getting their shoes wet and even some bitten by leeches. After reaching the spot ; the group then went further into the forest looking for Nipah leaves which will be used as roofs for the Bamboo huts. Upon transporting all the required Nipah leaves back, volunteers were served with delicious fried rice for lunch as an energy booster. Hasnah binti Taka, the single mother  we were contributing to, made all of us “Nasi Bukit” made of “Padi Bukit”, specially planted by the villagers themselves. It sure tasted very jungle-like. In the late afternoon, the volunteers were then taught by En.Raman and also guided by Hasnah on the porper manner of weaving the Nipah leaves which is to be made into roofs for Bamboo huts. Hours were then spent by the volunteers weaving the leaves. The volunteers had a great time together ; weaving the leaves while interacting with one another, getting to know each and everyone of them. 

As the weaving came to an end, volunteers were very much proud and satisfied with the outcome of their efforts, and so was En. Raman. Even though the overall process was energy draining, the volunteers had all enjoyed the hands-on experience in building the roofs of a Bamboo hut. With the new knowledge gained; new experiences shared; and new friends made, we trekked back to the community hall for the final gathering before departure.

En. Raman sat side by side with us volunteers, explaining all that were related to the jungle. He shared his experience leading the village; the hardships he and the villagers faced; the major activities in sustaining their living; as well as some valuable knowledge on survival skills in the jungle. En. Raman also demonstrated some tricks of making fire using branches and twigs; and showed us his collection of self-made hunting tools. Accompanied with the sounds of the jungle, volunteers were then given the benefits of witnessing a live performance by En. Raman using their tribal musical instrument, flute made out of a special type of Bamboo. The specialty of this performance was that the flute was blown not using his mouth, but his nose. The volunteers were amazed by his capability.

One for the team!

Not everyday offers us a chance to save somebody’s life. But everyday offers us the opportunity to affect one. Judging by the commitment of all volunteers, the willingness to sacrifice a Sunday just to make a difference in these villagers’ lives, May 13^th, 2012, was definitely one of those days where our given opportunity was well utilized.