Siem Reap, Cambodia, 25 March 2012 – 12 volunteers, 5 different colors (of Project Happy Feet t-shirts), 12 different backgrounds, 1 ultimate aim: to empower lives through education and training.
The group boarded a plane headed to Siem Reap today. It is the first day of the inaugural Project Happy Feet Volunteer Leadership Experience (PHFVLX) – a programme designed to give key PHF volunteers greater insight into the organisation, so that they can learn, reflect, and grow as leaders to take on more responsibilities in the organisation.
Beyond the smiles and the jokes is apprehension, fear and uncertainty, all of which we are hoping to break out of, to build a team that will make an impact on the lives of the underprivileged.
“This being the first PHF VLX, it is really exciting to have such a diverse group of dynamic individuals, each with their own ideas, experiences and aspirations,” said Terence Quek, 37, Director of Communications and Outreach, PHF. “It will be a tremendous learning opportunity, not just for the individuals themselves, but for Project Happy Feet as an organization, which is also on its own journey of growth in making footprints of change.”
Looking forward to tomorrow’s activities, Project Happy Feet intern, Tan Fei Ying, 19, said: “I hope that every pair of slippers we give out will make a positive impact on the child. We also have a very interesting team, I hope to learn from everybody’s strengths and experiences.”
As we closed the day, the team reflected on the change that we hope to make in the lives of the children we will be visiting. Over coffee and milkshakes, the team pondered on many questions of ethics: Are we making positive footprints of change, or are we creating an unhealthy cycle of dependency? Are we building a sustainable environment or are we imposing our own moral standards on a culture we are not familiar with.
As we set out bright and early on the morrow, we will bring along our thoughts and our aspirations, and we will do our very best. Because that is what you do, when you are making footprints of change.
