The Flying Seniors Project: Home Delivery Service
Our vulnerable elderly, especially those who live alone, are among the most adversely affected by the pandemic. Ambrose Ng, our Hong Kong Association of the Order of Malta member together with his wife Teresa Lo, decided to launch a new initiative named “The Flying Senior Project”, aimed at providing support for the elderly in our community.
In collaboration with the H.K.S.K.H. Western District Elderly Community Centre, the first event was hosted last February 28 under the theme of “Home delivery service”. Before setting off, the social workers held a briefing for the 16 volunteers -including a 6 year old – on the correct form of greeting for the elderly, questions to ask and possible issues that may arise during the visit. Seven volunteer groups were formed to deliver electric hand warmers, soup vouchers and noodles. The need for minimal social contact did not stop our volunteers from chatting with the seniors from the doorstep, while taking the opportunity to identify any special needs for the Centre to follow up on. All were amazed by the cheerfulness and energy of the elderly. It was a productive afternoon with the volunteers visiting a total of 21 homes in 2 hours. The volunteers returned to the Center for a debriefing and sharing session on lessons learnt from interacting with the seniors and how to make future events even more impactful.
Project Leaders, Ambrose and Teresa, remarked, “In Hong Kong, there are 1.1 million elderly of which more than 143,000 live alone. The Covid-19 pandemic poses additional difficulties for them. We hope that this Project will allow the Order to play a role in supporting our seniors.”
