Baptist Oi Kwan Social Service
Baptist Oi Kwan Social Service was founded in 1982, and is devoted to practice ‘Christian Social Service’ in conformity with the integration of the Christianity belief and the Social Work profession. We provide a diverse range of social services for elderly, people in recovery of mental illness, children and adolescences and families with a holistic caring manner. In the past three decades, the Centre has been trying to fill the gap of the current social service system by introducing various innovating services. Now, the four major service areas covered by the Baptist Oi Kwan Social Service include the Children, Youth and Family Integrated Services, Comprehensive Mental Health Services, Comprehensive Elderly Services and Employment and Training Services.
Hotmeal Service
The occurrence of financial tsunami in 2008 led to the increase of unemployment rate, some families bore a negative equity and fluctuate incomes, and some insisted to earn their livings while reserving social resources for those who are more in need. To respond immediately to the incidence, the Centre organized a series of lunch seminars in December 2008 which aimed to provide supports for the community, and to address the various degrees of impacts brought to the society. In March 2009, Oi Kwan established a cross service task force to further investigate and implement feasible proposals. Thereafter, the Hotmeal Service, which offers hot food, was launched to provide pertinence supports.
Gladly sponsored by the Lee Hysan Foundation and the Partnership Fund for the Disadvantaged, the Hotmeal Service was first initiated in the WanChai District in 6 July 2009. The purpose of this service was to support the population which was affected by the financial tsunami. Recipients could enjoy a dinner set, which contains rice, soup and two dishes, with a very low price HK$10. In addition, social workers were available to offer counselling sessions and employment information; also, recipients could join support groups for emotional supports.
So far, the Hotmeal Service has extended to numerous districts all over Hong Kong, and expended its target groups to people with various needs. Among them, the Hong Kong’s first Hotmeal Service for impoverished children and parents named Kiddy Heart Canteen. Besides providing a nourishing set of dinner for the families, registered social workers will deliver a series of activities for children’s education and parents support after dinner. The activities aim not only to ensure the children are given fair nutrition and fair chances to be nurtured and develop, but also to help reduce the parents’ pressure and strengthen the family resilience and bonding, so that the risk of developing intergenerational poverty will be lowered. In order to promote mutual concern in the community, beneficiaries of the Hotmeal Service will be encouraged to serve as volunteers to help delivering meal sets for low-income individuals with difficulties in mobility.
The success of the Hotmeal Service relies totally on all the supports, in terms of finance, resources, activity sites and volunteers, provided by the goodhearted people from the community. Until now, the Hotmeal Service has distributed over fourty thousand sets of meal, and the number of beneficiaries has exceeded ten thousand. We treasure the supports from the passionate community in the coming future, and hope to share the mission of applauding for those who strive to be self-reliance, as well to uphold the ‘Lion Rock Spirit’- the indefatigable virtue- for our next generations.