Dialect Church volunteers show their fun-loving side during an outing at East Coast beach.
Contributed By John Koh Tat Wan
City Harvest Dialect Church is a close-knit spiritual family; its members serve God, pray for the elderly in the congregation and also have fun together. Each year, two to three gatherings are organized for all the volunteers and their family to have a time of relationship building and strengthening of family ties. These outings also serve to integrate the new volunteers and their families.
On July 10, 60 people took time off their busy schedules and headed to the East Coast beach for a time of fun and recreation.
Everyone was divided into four teams during the games segment. Enthusiasm and excitement was strong in the air, and team spirit was the overarching factor in all the activities.
In one of the relay games, individuals had to fill plastic bottles with seawater using only what they were wearing. Thereafter, teams had to bury two of their team members in the sand, leaving only their heads exposed. To end the relay, teams had to do a caterpillar walk. This activity not only revealed the creative side of the people but also drew much laughter as everyone cheered each other on.
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| CN PHOTOS: Tan Song Kow |
Chan Choy Ngan, 32, one of the organizers, expressed how happy she was to see everyone having a good time. “It is an honor to be part of the organizing committee for this outing. I am able to serve the workers and enjoy their fellowship even though we work hard together during the week in church.”
A volunteer with CHDC, Doreen Chua Siew Luan, 50, shared, “The outing helped to ‘break the ice’ as I got to know the other volunteers better. It also reminds my husband and I that family life matters.”
Vincent Lee Tiong Woon, 37, an interior designer, commented how this outing enabled him to catch a different side of people. “Through the activities, [I had the opportunity] to see ‘the other side’ of a person I don’t normally get to see when serving in the dialect ministry.”
Said Maria Tok, who supervises the CHDC, “The reason we have such gatherings is because showing appreciation to our volunteers and their families is important. There is a certain level of commitment required serving in dialect church and it definitely requires a lot of support and understanding from family members. This is because volunteers continually give their time and effort to serve, above and beyond their family and careers, so we want to recognize and appreciate them for that.”
