(Kota Raya 1am Tuesday 30.8.11)

Its Aidilfitri. A time to reflect on the holy month of Ramadan and to look forward to celebrating.
Over the last few weeks I have already celebrated.
Celebrated the new friends we have found in Reach Out.
Celebrated the compassion and camaraderie in our sponsors and street volunteers.
Celebrate the willingness to share and care for those in need.
We do this all year but there is something special about the 'new' Reach Out that has appeared over the last few weeks.
Like tonight.
We were out with a great crew when I got a call from Khairul and the KL Swifters who told me that they had just decided on the spur of the moment to come out with us. We met up at Pudu Raya Bus Terminal.
Like Sue who was just passing Kota Raya when we had just finished the nights operation, and stopped to say hello and offer any help she could.
Like Amin who gave me an sms and said he was coming out and wanted to know where to meet.
Like Chin Wei who just felt the need to come out tonight.
Like Hee Ling who decided to help out tonight to allow our Muslim volunteers the night off to celebrate.
Like Danial who has just returned to Malaysia and came to the packing for the first time on Saturday and was on the streets tonight.
Like Shoubli last night who brought his wife and two daughters out to help.
In fact everybody who just comes, without fuss, quietly and with dignity to do what is needed.
We went down into those dark and forgotten areas the last couple of nights. Onto the riverbank, under the flyovers where the forgotten of KL sleep.
The crews worked away without any fuss, quietly and with dignity as they always do.
No hooha here. No media. No photos in the papers or on the TV. Just a support crew making things happen. The Run Leaders. The Committee. The Volunteers. The sponsors.
All doing their part without any fuss, quietly and with dignity.
Is it all worthwhile? You bet it is.
Even if just one of our street friends feels the dignity and sincerity of our volunteers then that will be passed on by them to others and the cycle of care and decency increases.
And that can only make things better. A better place for the future.
And Reach Out continues to do what we can without fuss. Quietly. With dignity.
The Frontline is stronger with all of you. And our street friends know.
They feel it. They know you care.
Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri. May all of our Reach Out Warriors be blessed with peace, light and love always.

The Frontline Revolution.

Sometimes life is really funny.

Don't mean yahoo, haha type funny, but just sort of weird funny.

Strange may be a better description!

Just when things seem really tough a revolution happens.

Not evolution, (that's a step by step process), but a huge, smack you in the face, mind blowing revolution of change at one go.

And you can't figure out why.

You think you may know but then when you analyse it, you can't really make out the reason.

And that's where I am right now.

How did this happen? Why? What?

It started at the end of July when members of our Committee and operational staff resigned owing to operational differences and walked away. The founders stayed.

We picked this up and with Feexa and Jenny we got things sorted very quickly. Zakir came on board as a Committee member and the founders reformed a new Committee in double quick time. New Run Leaders stepped forward (Mustaqim, Zakir, Shazana), and with our old teams of myself, Amin, Jenny and Feexa we never missed a step. Maple, one of our founders took up the post of VP and Tiki one of our original members came onto the Committe

Runs continued uninterrupted.

Feexa gave up her normal job to focus on putting everything in place.

We got new sponsors, huge numbers of new volunteers, a new packing and storage place.

People just appeared and the response was quite incredible. I have never seen such a response.

Never!

I am still totally stunned!

Whatever we needed for our street friends just appeared through donors responding to Feexa's Wish List Campaign.

Zakir got our Twitter account up and running. He got our Google calender up and running and volunteer databases in place.

Our registration came on in leaps and bounds and we have a great facility to pack on Saturdays, register volunteers and do the necessary briefing and awareness briefings courtesy of Dato Mustaffa and all at Amcop Security Resources.

Volunteers are out in their Reach Out t-shirts.

But the key was the response from the good folks out there.

That's what stunned me.

Volunteers came in huge numbers. They packed. They came to food distributions late at night, in the afternoons and whenever we needed folks.

The Sahur for the Homeless event on Friday 19th August was a perfect example of this. The use of social networking and word of mouth saw 105 volunteers arrive. They came by car, bus, train, motorcycle, on foot, in fact any way they could. They came in the pouring rain and high wind.

They brought gifts or just themselves and friends.

Some just came by themselves because they wanted to.

Because they cared.

I watched the volunteers interact with our street friends, some of the volunteers never having been on the street before and I was humbled. I was almost in tears when I saw the compassion.

Compassion in action. True compassion. No agendas. Just a care for those in need.

It was then that I realised that Reach Out had turned the corner. It had moved to a level I had always hoped we could achieve. Something my darling Feexa and I had dreamed off.

You see, Reach Out has been evolving, step by step.

But by 5am Saturday morning when we finished operations after the sahur event and street feeding operations, I realised there had been a revolution!

There had been a huge shift in Reach Out.

I got home exhausted. I sat down, lit a ciggie and cried.

I don't cry. Not in my style. But I cried. Tears of thanks. Tears of joy. Tears of hope.

I saw hope in our revolution. I saw so many people who care, who can share our vision, and who do it without thought. They worked with the poor because it was the right thing to do and for no other reason.

I saw hope for humanity. In our little world of Reach Out I saw hope on our own doorstep.

I still can't explain it. I can only see the circumstances that took place on the streets over the last few weeks. I can only thank God for this blessing that we have been given, that we have been allowed to do the work we do and can ,with guidance, make the difference to those in need.

The people of Reach Out are true warriors. No medals, no glory, no titles.

Warriors on the frontline of the fight to eradicate poverty in all its forms.

I am proud to lead and share "The Frontline".

I am proud to walk with these warriors.

How Many More?

About thirty minutes ago I read in today's Star newspaper of a case yesterday, (Friday), where a single mother in her 30's died giving birth to a baby girl in a toilet in a factory near Melacca.
She bled to death.
The newspaper report is an afterthought.
Its not on the front page, or second page, or fifth page, but hidden away, almost like the newspaper is not interested in the issue but will report it cause there ain't much news really apart from the Bersih rally and stuff.
I don't know the circumstances.
I don't know why she was a single Mum.
I don't know what the issues are with her pregnancy.
I don't know why she chose to give birth in a factory toilet
But I do know one thing. SHE AND HER NEWBORN BABY GIRL DID NOT DESERVE TO DIE LIKE THIS!
There is no excuse in any society for this to happen.
There is also no excuse for the media to almost ignore this.
This should be front page news.
So should domestic violence.
These issues should be reported. They should be front page news.
These issues should be condemned by all decent society.
These issues should be condemned and addressed by the Government and the agencies empowered to protect its citizens by investigation, and prosecuting all violators to the full extent of the law. And by enacting measures to protect women like this from meeting their death in such an inhumane way.
Every time. Without fail.
Society has lost a woman. A woman who was working for her life. Who was bringing a gift of new life into the world. She was someones daughter. Someones sister. Someones friend.
And we, (yes we, all of us), lost her in a most traumatic and disturbing way.
Disturbed. You bet I am.
And now she is nothing more than a post note in a newspaper.
I know my blog is about voluntary work, but I see girls on the street, homeless and afraid when I'm with Reach Out. And this is why this tragedy disturbs me.
We try and help. But what happens to the ones who fall through the net that we and other NGO's don't see and therefore cant help?
Are they destined to die in toilets, afraid, alone, ignored, in pain, abused?
I started White Ribbon in Malaysia to empower men to stand up against abuse to women and girls. Women also need to stand up against this. I still believe that men and women can be empowered to stop these types of events that I discuss above from happening. But we need to really, really push this hard.
Before another girl dies unnecessarily.

They Need Your Help!

I love this photo. Its taken at 02.15am on Sun morning on the banks of the river between Pasa Seni LRT and Dayabumi, (down river).

Artist unknown.

Message clear. Says it all!

Values.

Been a really interesting week or so with Reach.
Funny how you really see peoples values when the fan is on and the brown stuff is flying!!
Thankfully, our boys and girls that work with Reach are made of strong stuff.
Reach is moving. Going from strength to strength.
We have had to adjust our street food run timings so as not to overlap other organisations who are working on the street.
They may not even consider that but we want to make sure we get food to the needy at the time they need it and if that means we have to adjust our times, so be it.
You see, its easy to come out at 7pm or 5pm and feel that you are doing something good. Or on Saturdays or Sundays.
No issue with doing that, but don't you damn well dare start spouting in the press about what you are doing. That's EGO!
We are out at 11.30pm, 2am, 4am, Sundays, Mondays, Wednesdays, in fact everyday of the week. We feed in places where other groups cant or wont go. So don't get holier than thou through the press.
If your gonna do this do it for the right reasons.
Then we have the Obedient Wives Club.
Lots in the press.
I'm supporting the AntiOWC for one main reason.
I DO NOT accept that domestic violence is the fault of the victim! Thats what they have said and repeated time and time again.
That's why I started White Ribbon Malaysia. To add Malaysia to the growing global movement called White Ribbon.
I know who this OWC are and who they are linked to and if you don't stand up against this then you condone their actions/statements/views by your silence.
Of course if you agree with the OWC then fine. I don't. That's my choice. And its everyones choice to stay quiet or make their concerns known.
So lets just say, I say NO. NEVER. NOT IN MY LIFETIME will I accept and stay quiet on the OWC and their shameful, disgusting, discriminatory views on women and girls.
NO. NEVER. NOT IN MY LIFETIME.
Not until they are gone and it is shown that civilised society will not allow their warped, deviant, and disgraceful stance against women to remain.
They must be consigned to a distant memory, a bad memory and one that we wont ever let come back.
Its a new Reach week.
Time to meet new friends and volunteers on the streets. Time to continue to try and get our street friends reintegrated back into society.
A time to share what we do with those that want to help.

Tough? You Bet.

Haven't been on this blog for a while. Haven't had the heart to write really.
Not been well, house got burgled, but in the end I haven't had the heart to put onto the site some of the stuff I have seen.
Don't get me wrong though. There have been some outstanding moments in the recent Reach Out journey, but I suppose, like all human beings I get depressed.
Whilst we have managed to get quite a few folks off the street and back into mainstream society, the numbers coming onto the street keep increasing.
They are from everywhere and the tide continues to push against what Reach Out is doing.
Our volunteer base is increasing and we have a group of truly wonderful people out all days and at all hours doing what we can to help those in need.
We have brilliant sponsors, although we always need more, and they, together with our volunteers keep the whole thing moving.
But are we winning the battle against poverty?
No.
That's the truth.
That's the depressing part cause we know who can do this and how they can do it and how we can help them achieve this but they don't care.
So we continue to do the best we can with what we have.
I talk a lot with our street friends. Their message remains the same.
They respect us for what we do and that we care. That the food we give is fresh and enjoyable. They look forward to our street teams meeting with them every night. They are happy that someone actually cares about them.
But its not enough.
They want jobs.
They want homes.
They want to enjoy many of the things that we take for granted.
I sit by myself sometimes at night having a last cigarette before going to sleep and I think of them. Where they are, what they are doing, how they are coping.
I think of our Reach volunteers out there doing what they can to bring relief to those in need.
And I get sad.
I think of those in power in their beds in their lovely homes or at their functions who don't even give a second thought.
And I get angry.
I walked the river last week with some volunteers from JAWI. I showed them and introduced them to the guys and girls who live under the flyovers that nobody knows about except us. They were shocked.
For a while no one talked as they took in the scene before them.
The previous joyful mood as we went about our work became somber and thoughtful as the new volunteers tried to understand what they were seeing.
The realisation that these were not drug addicts, criminals, drunks, but were in fact just breathing human beings the same as us, with aspirations and a life, sunk in and the reality of the street feeding programme and why Reach Out does what it does made sense to them.
And that's when I felt glad.
Glad that our street friends could show, just by their simple existence, that what Reach Out does is of value. That it is needed. That it is welcomed by those in need.
And I felt glad that a new group of volunteers maybe changed their perception of what poverty really is about.
I suppose that I should feel lucky that I have the opportunity to do this type of work. But how can I feel that when there is so much suffering.
And so I continue to pray for the strength to do what I do and for the safety of our volunteers, and for the speedy relief and end of the suffering of my fellow human beings.
I break it down into one small success after another. Celebrate these successes, and move onto the next challenge.
Once on this journey there is no retreat.
Forward, forward, always forward.
Truth and justice will prevail.
I believe that. Strongly and without question.

To Feed Or Not To Feed...That Is The Question.

Apologies to Shakespeare for the use of his prose on the title but once again the question comes up.
Not in the minds of the Reach Out folks, but with other so called 'compassionate humanitarian' groups.
Yep, its time to expose the muppets (or as they are officially know the Kechara Organisation).
So its Chinese New Year.
You would think at this time when the underclass, the poor and the disadvantaged are ignored and not in many peoples minds, that organisations purporting to help them would do so.
Just a little bit.
Not much.
Don't have to invite them out to fancy restaurants.
But just give them a little something to let them share in the festive mood.
Let them know that they are not forgotten really.
We do. Reach hasn't missed any day of feeding since we started.
Reach has organised sahur during the month of Ramadan, a Christmas/New Year Party, and now is arranging a Chinese New Year Party. Apart from these extra events, Reach continues to conduct its education programmes and street feeding programmes without a pause.
No one is missed.
Why? Because its the right thing to do. Its that simple.
No heroes medals, no datukships/datinships, just for the people.
Which brings me to the point of this blog.
I ask the question again:
Why was the Kechara Soup Kitchen premises, (which was opened with public funding/sponsorship to provide hot food, showers, washing facilities, and a place of refuge for the homeless), closed during Chinese New Year?
Why is this premises not providing cooked food to the poor?
Why is the premises not providing the facilities it advertised during its fund raising campaign?
Why did KSK tell the street folks last week that they were closed for Chinese New Year and would not be distributing food?
Why during the week prior to Chinese New Year did KSK give money on the streets to certain Chinese street friends only? This is interesting as some of those getting the cash are drug addicts. Well done KSK on keeping those in habit on the very substances so many of us are trying to get them off.
Where is all the money going that is being raised by KSK for their street food programme? Could it be going to their World Peace Centre (formerly known as Tsem Kacho Ling Monastery) to be built at the cost of MYR150 million in the Genting Highlands, and is being advertised as the spiritual centre of Asia)?
Could it be that KSK, who claim publicly to be multiracial, and having no barriers (despite potential volunteers having to be vetted by their committee before being allowed to work in KSK), in fact don't have any volunteers during this Chinese New Year as they are not multi racial.
Do they care?
Is this a continuing scam to raise money for their main Buddhist Society and in particular their head and liasons group?
The signs are there.
To feed or not to feed..that is the question.
The answer....yeah Reach feeds regardless. Reach Out's Chinese volunteers found the time out of real compassion to work as volunteers.
How many others can say that?

The Rescue.

There is never a dull moment in Reach.
But sometimes odd moments take your breath away.
There was one such moment on Saturday worth relating as this is one of the clearest indications to me of how all those volunteers in Reach come from the same compassionate world.
I was at Bus Stand Klang with Feexa, Datin Sury and Lucas just finishing off our late food run.
It was about 4.am Sunday morning.
Enn, Jaja, Amin, Jeff and Ling had gone to finish another part of the route and we were going to meet up for our final sort of debrief before heading home and getting some well deserved sleep.
However, other plans were afoot!
Datin got a call from Enn who was at the KMT. She had come across a family sleeping down some steps and under a set of arches close to the main road. Enn asked for some assistance.
So off we sped.
On arrival, and this is really difficult to explain in words, I was met by a scene of some distress.
A mother and her six children were asleep on the concrete and the father was sitting guarding his family.
They were very poor, shabbily dressed and in some distress. Enn had already provided some food for the family.
We learned the families story from the father, that he had been thrown out of his home by his daughter in law after she had used all his money to pay bills, and when they had gone there to help take care of her and her house as she had been injured.
The father had no money left and had originally gone to the Mosque in Bangsar (the one next to Bangsar Village 1), where he was denied entry by the duty security guard despite having his full family with him.
At this stage it's important to note that the children ranged in age from a 7 month old baby to the eldest being 11 years of age!
They then made their way into town and sought somewhere to hide as they were awaiting the opening of JAWI offices on Monday where the father was going to apply for a loan of cash so that he could get his family back to their original home in Sungei Siput, Perak.
Before our arrival the father had been accosted by the Police who accused him of kidnapping the children. He sorted that one out and the Police left offering no help!
Later in the evening a "good samaritan" stopped and offered to help them get back to Perak but wanted the baby in return.
Again the father managed to get his way out of this and keep his family safe.
Due to these circumstances, we made a decision that they could not hang about until Monday as they were become easy prey for those that may want to harm them, so we agreed to take them to a hotel and give them a good nights sleep, while arranging for transport to get them home to Perak later on Sunday.
After searching three hotels who were all full we managed to get them into a down town hotel, very nice place and settled them in for the night.
Enn fed the kids to give the father and mother a break.
Feexa spent a lot of time with the Mum, while the rest of us made sure they had extra blankets, enough food, and made some arrangements for the forthcoming road trip.
Amin volunteered to stay with the family to ensure their safety but as they were safe in the hotel he instead gave the father his handphone with Enn's number in case of emergencies.
The father had earlier sold his handphone to get some food for the kids.
Once settled we left and later that morning Jaja, Daisy, Eric and Fen drove down to the hotel, picked up the family, and drove them to their home in Perak, a 4 hour journey up.
Despite being tired, having little or no sleep, having been on operations since 3pm on Saturday, these Reach volunteers pushed themselves to assist a family of eight in distress.
This type of compassion and total selflessness is a beautiful thing to behold.
It is pure and honest and done for no reward.
Again I say I am privileged to work with such human beings and humbled by the experience.
Sury, Enn, Feexa, Jaja, Amin, Lucas, Jeff, Ling, Eric, Fen, Daisy you stand out with all our other Reach volunteers as a beacon of light and hope in the ever growing darkness of poverty, discrimination, pain and suffering.

Aunty Enn and Uncle Pete!

Sometimes you just know that things are going to be a bit strange when you work with Reach Out.
You get that feeling that its not going to be normal.
Such is the case a couple of Saturdays ago.
It all started quite innocently at the packing on Saturday afternoon.
Everyone working away, the usual chatter amongst this group of friends and volunteers when I got accidentally walloped on the head by a cardboard box.
Now, Jaja can pack a serious bear hug, and I found out she can also pack a fair thump with a cardboard box.
Then, a short time after, I hear one of our middle aged ladies calling "uncle, uncle".
I look round and discover she is calling me!!!
UNCLE????? ME??????
Outbursts of uncontrolled giggling ensued, led by our dear Enn, who was in tears from laughing so much.
UNCLE??? ME???
So I said to Milo and Enn after the packing that I thought it was going to be a strange sort of day. Revenge was in the air for the "Uncle" statement! After all I'm still young........(at heart)!
Off we go, midnight run and at our second stop I saw Feexa involved in a lengthy discussion with a new face on the streets, a middle aged Chinese gentlemen.
Joining the conversation he said to me that he wasn't in fact homeless, but had only come to see what this street feeding was all about as he had heard about it.
The fact that he was shoeless, a little disheveled, and had a piece of black rope tied round his trousers as a belt, led me to believe that this poor soul was not what he was claiming to be.
He was also wearing very thick round framed glasses.
The reason I mention the glasses will become apparent shortly as this tale unfolds.
So he said to me that he was so happy to see young people (pointing at Feexa) doing this type of work. I giggled.
"That's the missus" I explained.
He was quite shocked and said that he thought Feexa was only 23 years old.
I giggled again and got slapped by Feexa!
He then exclaimed that if I was her other half then I must have been a cradle snatcher!
This time Feexa giggled. She didn't get slapped!
Rather embarrassed he then told that actually I looked only late 30's, so that made up for things and certainly stopped Feexa's giggling.
Mind you it took a while for me to get Feexa back to normal from the "23 year old syndrome" that had kicked in.
Off we go on our travels and make our way down to the market in Pudu where Enn meets up with a client and passes him his food packet.
This chap then asks us to wait and he goes and gets a new chap we didn't know, introduces him to Enn, and we also give him a food packet.
Revenge is sweet.
When our new client takes the packet, Siva, (Enn's street friend), in a fierce voice says:
"Hey, you thank Aunty for the food ok".
AUNTY!!!!! AUNTY ENN!!!! Hehehehehehehehehehehe.
Revenge is mine!
There was a lot of giggling that strange day.

Word From The Streets

Firstly my apologies.
If you find the contents of my blogs and postings about Kechara a little sensitive then I am sorry.
But I urge you to check out the previous blogs here and also previous articles written on the Reach Out Facebook site.
This will allow those who are wondering why I keep naming Kechara Soup Kitchen (KSK) and the Kechara Buddhist Organisation in my writings.
I have no personal agenda against Kechara. But their work is flawed and their intention is deceitful.
The poor of Kuala Lumpur have got enough issues.
They have been abused and used for quite sometime.
And I for one will not standby and allow this to continue without raising the awareness of what we face in our own work with Reach and how this so called charitable society KSK operates.
Transparency and truth. That's what we want.
That's why I name them.
Ok now that I have got that off my chest on with the latest news....
On the midnight run on Saturday's we have been meeting at the Al Wira mamak restaurant on Jalan Pudu for sometime now.
Last week for the first time 4 volunteers from KSK came, pushed their way through where we were seated and then returned the same way to a small table where they continued to watch us. Mind you every time I looked at them they looked away quickly!
We were seated outside.
Three Chinese women and one foreigner.
We know them as they have confronted us on the street before demanding to know who we were and why we were feeding in "their area"! So rude!
So last night we meet again for a quick tea and a chat before we get on with our late runs. Once again the KSK volunteers, (2 of them), arrive. One moves his table right next to ours (despite there being plenty of room on the street and no other customers and stands staring at us, (again until I eyeball him), and as I make a move to stand up and go to speak to him he moves off into the restaurant itself.
On both occasions they are in plain clothes and seem to have abandoned their KSK t-shirts and IC cards. The arrogance has to be seen to be believed. Ask those who were there!
We move off and as we are transferring food from Datin Sury's vehicle to mine a young Chinese fellow walks up to Enn and Feexa and chats for a while. He then moves off and joins the KSK team.
Enn and Feexa then let us know that he approached us asking if he can come and work with Reach as he finds KSK "too religious"and is "very fed up with them"! Enn gives him our contacts and asks him to call, (we aint stupid and I want to do a full vetting on this guy).
Oh and by the way, last week we had a call from our fresh bread sponsor wanting to know if there was any substance in the rumours she had heard that we were replacing the fresh bread she donates to us with inferior mass produced bread on the street!
We of course invited our sponsor to come onto the street at anytime unannounced to check that there was no fact in these disgusting and unfounded allegations.
Mmmm.....
So off we go on our midnight rounds.
At Bangkok Bank I run into an old friend Kevin.
Kevin used to assists us when we packed at Bangkok Bank and has been a street friend for many years. Kevin is a great lad, collects old cans and cardboard and knows everything going on on the street.
He is....was.... ( I can qualify the 'was' after you read the following), a staunch KSK supporter.
Kevin was fuming.
I have never seen him so angry or animated.
This is what he told me, in front of other Reach Out Volunteers:
1. An old uncle who used to help us pack on the street years ago has been employed by KSK in their Jalan Imbi Soup Kitchen premises and has been speaking to Kevin recently.
2. KSK does not cook food there. All food is delivered from sponsors.
3. KSK has every item they require fully sponsored and in fact has extra food that they can't distribute so return it (dry goods).
4. This uncle has advised that KSK have made it public within their soup kitchen that they are raising funds for a "new temple". I can only assume this is the RM120 million for their monastery in the Genting Highlands.
5. Kevin advised that a KSK volunteer recently told him that KSK will raise the funds for the new temple.
6. Giant recently donated umbrellas to KSK for the street folks. None have been issued onto the street. Kevin advised that they have been distributed amongst Kechara members for their use.
7. Kevin recently brought to the attention of Justin from KSK (Justin heads operations and occasionally goes on the street), that there was an injured man near to Kota Raya and that he had a cut arm that needed medical attention. KSK ignored Kevin. The man was left to his own devices.
8. KSK have been feeding in different areas each Saturday. Kevin believes this is to try and cover more areas so they can claim to "do lots of feeding for the poor but actually they don't".
9. Last week KSK didn't feed in the Bangkok Bank area as normal.
10. KSK is feeding at different times and as such don't manage to get too a lot of the street folks.
Kevin was scathing and has advised that the street folks are now dumping the KSK food as they have found it to smell and taste 'funny'. Many Muslims on the street are refusing to even accept KSK food packets.
I asked Kevin if he had met Ruby Khong the KSK President recently as she had claimed in a recent newspaper and magazine article that she was on the streets of Kuala Lumpur 'every weekend feeding the poor".
Kevin spat and what he said cant be written here, but the gist was that no he hadn't seen her and can't remember the last time she was on the streets.
Our Chow Kit crew last night found that at 10.30pm - 11pm they had significantly larger numbers of street folks wanting food as KSK had not provided. Normally KSK are there before 10.30pm and we have to cover the folks they 'miss'.
We were fortunate enough last night to have, apart from our great normal crew, 11 Ustaz and future Ustaz from JAWI join us as volunteers on the late run.
The reason I say fortunate is that Amin, Ash and I were able to show them a KSK Styrofoam pack at the HSBC/7-11 corner containing a handful of vegetables and a handful of rice swimming in oil.
It smelt off and when I allowed Ustaz to view it he recoiled in disgust due to the smell.
The young scholarship boys with JAWI could not believe that this kind of food was on the street. Our friends from JAWI then spoke to some of the homeless at this location and were told that yes it was KSK food. Yes it had just been delivered to them. Yes they refused to eat it. Yes they ate Reach food as it was hot and fresh.
I am making no comment on this post.
I have made my comments already in previous blogs.
But I only want to say that with each passing day more and more people are having confirmed what I have been stating about KSK, their agenda, and their treatment of the poor and destitute.
And that is why I write about them.
Because the homeless who don't have a voice have one with Reach Out.
And for that I do not apologise!

Half A Century.

I know that I said that this blog was about the adventures of Reach but allow me to wallow a little.
There is a connection here...honestly!
I've reached, (pardon the pun), half a century today. the third of December, 1960, born in Cresswell Maternity Horpital, Dumfries, Scotland.
Fifty years of creating chaos and mayhem, or so I would like to think hehehe.
So you reflect, right?
You reflect on what has happened to you. What have you really done. What is left.
I am totally blessed. Really.
I don't mean that in some arrogant, egotistical way. I mean that I have been blessed to find what I am truly supposed to be. What I really want to do. What I should be doing. My purpose.
I have travelled, been to many strange places, met many strange people.
I have done amazing things and also very very stupid things.
I have been right and also wrong.
I have been shamed and shameful.
I have had really only two jobs in my life and I adored doing both. I was a totally committed Policeman. I am now totally committed to my career in Security.
But there was something missing.
Protecting those that pay you for the work is excellent. That's business. That's life.
But helping, (perhaps also protecting in some way), those that can't pay, and doing it for the reasons of love and care....well that's a different ball game.
That's what I found in Reach.
I am also blessed to work in Reach with the most incredible human beings. Those that volunteer on the street, those that work in the education programme, those that pack the food, those that sponsor, those that offer their support without question. The friends that we work with from other organisations. Now that is what I should be doing.
And I can!
Reach gives each of us something we can not measure. It has no physical form. Is it spiritual? Maybe in some way.
But everyone of us is touched by what we do.
And Reach has been the conduit, the medium, to allow the energy and dynamic of caring people to form, grow and deliver.
I look back and I see what I have done in my life, some good, some things not so good.
Always evaluated and judged by society and what they consider 'the norm'.
But Reach forgives us our 'abnormal traits' if we work with real compassion. It drives us. It inspires us.
It ain't easy what we do. But who said if its good it was to be easy?
So in the last few years I have been able to do what I am suppose to do.
I am incredibly lucky, (yes blessed) to have found this at this time in my life.
In fact, to have found this at all.
To all those in Reach Out, thank you. Thank you for your support, your kindness and your care.
Most of all for your friendship.
Thank you to all of our street friends who allow us to do this work in helping them.
So here's to the next 50 years, (which I am really, really looking forward to).

Reach Out - The Video

From The Heart

Sometimes you just need three little letters to make a difference.

Y.E.S. That's all. Just three letters.

I finished the late run with Reach Out and got home bout 4am Sunday. Then it was up in the morning, a full day running about, gardening and the normal household chores. So at 4pm I was tired, looking forward to a long shower, a hot cup of coffee, and a smoke.
And so it happened.
Got all those done and the phone went off.
It was a message from a friend Shyam, who was asking for a boat for relief work in Kedah.
So I called around and couldn't get one so instead asked her if she needed water, food, clothes etc to which she replied in the affirmative.
I then contacted Datin Sury of Reach Out and asked if we could donate some food, etc, from our stock. I got an instant yes.
By 6pm Shyam was preparing to go up north, as was Sury and Enn. So I grabbed Feexa and decided we would all go up to help.
The emergency response kit that I am used to packing was arranged in quick time and by 8pm Sunday night we were on the road having met Sury and Enn at Tescos in Shah Alam to get some extra dry biscuits.
By 1am we had reached the Alor Setar Utara toll and waited for our local contact Mike, who had put out the SOS onto Facebook that Shyam had originally responded to.
Mike and Joanne arrived and were an immediate delight.
Well spoken, down to earth, genuine caring human beings.
Joanne is a little girl with a huge heart and had been fund raising and going into tough flooded areas at night to help those in need. I was humbled by the work her and Mike had been doing and it showed to me great courage and compassion. The true unsung heroes.
After a briefing and due to rising water, safety, and security issues I made the decision with the team that we could not get into the worst affected areas during hours of darkness and would wait till first light but in the meantime we would visit evacuation centres to assess the needs and get local on the ground intelligence.
We visited two different Government schools that were housing evacuees and this lesson was of great importance as we were able to find out which kampungs had been evacuated and this would save us time and allow us to get into areas that had not seen much relief, if any at all.
We then scoured Alor Setar and Kuala Kedah for 7-11 shops where we bought pampers, sanitary towels and baby milk powder that we didn't have and that we learned were in short supply.
From there we had a hearty breakfast of roti canai, and although our guides wanted to park on the road leading into the flooded areas I decided to go and park in a secure area, the best of which, as directed by Mike, was in the Sultan Abdul Halim Stadium.
Two hours sleep in the car saw us awake to an astounding sight!
Hundreds of evacuees were thronging the car park. Conditions there were basic to say the least. Excitement of the morning was certainly trying to use the portaloos. Not fun for the girls!!
I chatted with Sury whilst we waited for Mike to arrive, (he had to leave to attend to his home which was flooding for the second time in 24 hours), about the number of 12 ton army trucks parked beside us. Sury commented that she could drive one and I jokingly said that it would be great if we could get a truck for our run.
The next thing I know, off goes Sury chats with one of the soldiers, and comes back announcing, quite matter of fact, that we had a truck.
Stunned! I was stunned.!
We met the CO and were given a truck and three army personnel to help us.
Having loaded our goodies onto the truck, (and it was full), we set off for outer flooding areas. Most folks here had received some help and so we moved on into deeper water.
The landscape was amazing. Just water as far as we could see. Field and roads a running river. Houses under many feet of dark muddy water. People struggling on foot through the floods in search of help.
We arrived at a kampung area and started to search for people and eventually out they came, through the water to our truck. Teams of us also then went on foot house to house delivering much needed aid. Some of these folks had not received food in 5 days!
We knew of the dangers of holes, rising water, snakes and crocodiles, but not one of the team shirked their duty and all of us got more than a little wet as we ploughed through the sometimes waist high water.
We also found stranded animals that we fed.
And so it was off along kampung roads between what once had been paddy fields and which had turned into lakes with water as far as the eye could see, stopping to deliver food from the lorry and for teams to go out into the floods to deliver again house to house.
Having covered all the main severely flooded areas we still had a few supplies left and returned to Alor Setar where we went out to one of the main evacuation centres, which was housing over 2,000 people and delivered to them our remaining stocks.
By 4pm we had returned to base, changed, and with a heavy heart said goodbye to our friends from the army and to Mike and Joanne.
The journey back to KL was quiet, apart from the constant heavy rain from Alor Setar to Rawang. We met up at Sg Perak for coffee, but as we were all physically and emotionally drained the conversation was subdued.
I will remember many things from this.
I will remember the speed of deployment from my friends in Reach.
I will remember the compassion of Mike and Joanne.
I will remember the immediate yes from the army.
I will remember the way that the folks up there didn't rush us for food, didn't want to come, and how we had to invite those that could make it to come to the lorry.
I will remember their smiles.
I will remember their waving as we passed along the road.
I will remember them wanting to share their food with us.
I will remember how folks on the roadside directed us to those in need, their fellow humans.
I will remember the dogs we fed, who were so hungry but gentle in taking the food from us.
I will remember Shaym feeding a mother and her young pups who got stranded on a dry piece of ground.
I will remember the girl who burst into tears telling us that no one had been to their area and how she thought she and her elderly father had been abandoned and that nobody cared and how grateful she was to us.
I will remember the pride of being the only NGO to have reached certain areas.
I will remember singing, "row row row your boat" as we moved slowly through the floods, and also the rousing chorus of that great Rod Stewart hit from the '70"s, "I am Sailing". What the folks outside must have thought when they heard that coming from the truck I don't know.
I will remember someone asking where I came from and when I told him Scotland, he announced to the crowd that "the army from Scotland has come to save us"!!!
The photographs I have posted on the Reach Out facebook page say more than I ever can.
But most of all I will remember the camaraderie, the sharing of the idea of help to others and the fact that without hesitation Reach and our friends said YES.

You see, YES is all it takes. Such a little three letter word isn't it?

Nelson

Nelson cracks me up. Really, he makes me giggle a lot.
Not that he is trying to be funny, its just the way he is and what he comes out with that makes my day.
Nelson is a long time street friend. Many of the Reach Out volunteers interact with him and he has touched the lives of many.
Nelson can be found in most places on the days that we operate the Street Feeding Programme. Sometimes at Bus Stand Klang, sometimes at Kota Raya, sometimes at Masjid India, sometimes at Menara Maybank.
He gets around a lot and sleeps where he sees fit.
He assists us from time to time and a few weeks ago helped get me and some of the guys down a very thin, very rickety ladder from Bus Stand Klang onto the riverside to take some food to few folks under one of the bridges.
Nelson is Chinese, 60 years of age and quite tall. He has a shock of grey hair and a set jaw that would intimidate "Rocky". His English is great.
But he has a weak spot.
He hates being photographed, (hence the reason there are no images of Nelson in this blog)!
Whenever a camera, or TV crew appear, he is the first, (and sometimes the only one), to request that he doesn't have his image taken.
Its not that he is superstitious about this. But we can't get to the bottom of his reason.
Long time ago he stated that it was because he didn't want his family to know he was living on the streets.
Just recently he announced, with a dramatic simulated cut of his throat using his left hand as an imaginary knife, that his family were "shhhhhhhhaaaa...mati"!
The next reason was that he was wanted by the Police in Penang. I checked. He's not!
Last Saturday the 23rd was another classic.
Our dear volunteer Ling and her hubby Jeff were with us at Kota Raya about 2.45am when Nelson approached.
Ling was wearing one of her yoga style thick dark headbands.
Nelson wanted to know if she had converted to Islam as she was now wearing a tudung!!
And Nelson has decided that he wants to become a priest!
He had a Bible recently and was proudly showing this to us but it seems to have disappeared. He has now asked us if we can get him another.
Mind you, Nelson spends a fair bit of time at the Christian Fellowship Mission and could get one himself. Or so he claims! Another mystery perhaps.
But he doesn't want to be "a goody goody priest" He wants to be "a baddy priest".
I have still to figure out what this means!!

Saturdays, Sundays, Everydays!

I love the buzz of the packing on Saturdays for the Street Food Distribution.
I love the smell of the fresh nasi lemak or mee goreng or whatever Datin Sury and Enn have arranged for the runs.
I love to see the kids, (both the young ones and the young at heart ones), working away.
I love the noise, the chatter, the energy.
I love to see how all those from all backgrounds work together in friendship and mutual respect.
But most of all I love to see the compassion as everyone works away filling the distribution bags with the food.

But theres more than just that.

I love to see the teams meeting up at the various locations for food distribution.
I love to see how the teams overlap and support each other.
I love to share a chat and some teh before the routes go out on their various rounds.
But most of all I love to see the compassion as everyone works together distributing the bags of food to all without favour.

But theres more that just that.

I love to see the children as they arrive for their schooling under the Reach/GIS Education Programme.
I love to see them learn and grow and experience something that was denied to them by circumstance.
I love to see them smile and leave happy, looking forward to returning again.
But most of all I love to see the compassion as all involved work together arranging, teaching, and assisting these kids.

But theres more than just that.

I love to spend time with our street friends finding out who they are.
I love the freedom of being able to do our work as we believe it should be done.
I love to see the photos of our work taken by our volunteers and read their experiences on Facebook, web and blogs.
I love the fact that many people care and trust us with their sponsorship.
I love working with other likeminded organisations and assisting them set up similar programmes.
I love how the energy transfers from Reach to our clients and then returns to us in Reach in so many ways, most of which we never realise.

But most of all I love the bond between all of us in Reach and between us and those we serve.

The Rambling Scotsman

Its a new week at Reach.
I normally judge our week as starting on a Saturday and completing on the following Friday. Why? Dunno. Just always been that way.
Maybe because in the early days we only operated on a Saturday.
So its off on new adventures, a new week.
Anyway!!
Why am I writing this?
Because I often look at what I do for a living. Look at it, and look at what I do at Reach. Part of my trying to understand what its all about.
And you know what? They are very similar in many ways.
I am continually confronted by those that need help. Those that are fearful. Those that need someone to settle things down, to take care of the problem, cause they are confronted by fear.
It may be robbery/burglary/violence.
It may be personal safety or safety of their loved ones.
It may be where they are working that causes them concern.
It may be the risk of what their organisation does.
There is the general feeling of uneasiness in our region due to events in other parts of the world which have impacted on the security and safety, (or perceived levels of safety) of those living and working in Asia.
These folks or their organisations are in need. In need of someone with certain skills who can help. Settle things down. Give them some comfort to carry on.
And then there are our 'clients' at Reach.
Same issues. Fear. Uncertainty. Security. Safety.
Different threat from different source, but just as real.
And again they are looking for someone to give them the comfort to carry on.
So what's the difference between our 'Real lives' and our 'NGO lives'?
Nothing. That's what my conclusion is. Nothing.
It seems to me that there are those people with awareness and those that just sleep through their existence.
The energy is most certainly with those with awareness. It makes sense.
Those that ignore, the sleepy ones, who can't be bothered or do stuff half heartedly, theres no real energy there.
But those who are aware.........
Those that sit, breathe, watch and then do, well that's whose gonna change things.
Those that are aware.
Those that see, really see, really feel, those are the aware. They will change things. They will make things happen for the better for those in need.
So as I start another Reach week, I look at what I can do to raise the awareness.
For my own awareness levels, and for those that are new to Reach, and for those that work in other organisations who can have a direct impact to those in need.
Feel the energy.
Hold the energy.
Transfer the energy.
Live the energy.
For all of us have a responsibility to remove the fear.

The Colony

There is a colony out there of damaged souls.
Of wrecked souls.
Lost souls.
I suppose that all of us, if truth be known and if we care to admit, have damaged souls, but there are degrees of damage and degrees of recovery. Or the ability to recover perhaps.
Our position is that of having the facilities, opportunities, and access to be able to make the choice of how we address our inner peace and well being.
Others do not have the means, or call it fortunate circumstance, to be able to use the many facilities granted to us to apply the necessary 'healing' in what ever form, to repair our souls.
And so they wander and think and suffer in an endless cycle of surviving another day.
Sure, spirituality is a major part of beginning to address our repair process, but when you are overcome day in and day out with discrimination, anger, abuse, and/or hatred, spirituality, when you need it most, is not at the forefront of your thoughts. We are consumed with anger against those showing such animosity towards us and we therefore retreat into what we know...survival at any cost.
And so the cycle continues.
So we give up.
We turn away and ignore the need. Or perhaps we help only those we think are 'worthy'.
We continue to discriminate to fulfill our own perception of what is good and right not realising the damage we are actually causing and how we continue to participate in the cycle of damage.
Compassion does conquer all.
Compassion shows that there is a way out if the compassion shown is genuine.
Given without agenda.
Given to all those in need.
Not as a job. Not as a supplement to your own ego, ( and thereby causing more damage to your own soul).
Not because someone tells you to do it.
But because you realise that it needs to be done.
Don't look for heroes medals on the street.
Don't look for Datukships or Datinships for 'charitable work' if that is your focus and your agenda from the start. And believe me, there are those out there in other so called NGO's promoting themselves for this very reason
I despise those who use the poor for such material benefits only looking to enhance their own community standing. Or in the hope that they will receive such benefits.
I have no compassion for those that are willing to abuse the poor and helpless, and reserve my right to use any compassion I have been blessed with, (what little there may be), for those that need it.
And oh yes, I know who you are, and what your agenda is, and where you are targeting for your 'titles'.
But the colony grows and we can offer what we can. We can learn and apply what we learn in a true attempt to give those in need the power to repair their souls, by repairing their life.
They just need the chance.

"Is there for honest poverty, that hangs his head and all that,
The coward-slave, we pass him by, we dare be poor for all that,
For all that and all that our toils obscure and all that,
The rank is but a guinea stamp, the man's the gold for all that.

You see yon fellow called a Lord who struts and stares for all that,
Though hundreds worship at his word he's but a fool for all that,
For all that and all that his ribbon, star, and all that,
The man of independent mind, he looks and laughs at all that".

(Extracts From the poem 'A Man's a Man For All That' - Written by Robert Burns, Scotland's National Poet 1759-1796.
A poem on the rights of all humans to be treated as equals).

Malaysia Day

As a non Malaysian, (and you might find this next comment strange), but I am very proud of what your country has achieved.
My father fought here from 1950 to 1958 serving with the Kings Own Scottish Borderers Regiment, The Parachute Regiment, and with the 22nd Special Air Service, and he was in Kuala Lumpur on Merdeka Day, so as a young boy I was brought up with stories of Malaya.
My father was also deeply touched by what he saw, whom he met, and what he experienced here having seen active service in Johor, Pahang, Kelantan and Perak.
He never fails to mention Malaysia in the most warm and loving way. He feels a great affinity with Malaysia and its citizens.
I am proud to have seen the development of the country since I first visited back in 1987. I am proud for all of Malaysia's people despite the difficulties that each race and culture sometimes face during this transition from developing to developed status.
But I am also worried.
There is a large part of the community, who come from all races and religions, who are being forgotten, used, and persecuted.
The Government recently released statistics that it aims to reduce hardcore poverty in Malaysia to 2.8% of the population by the end of 2010.
So by its own admission, the Government believes that, (with a total population of 27.7 million), over 700,000 people are hardcore poor.
That is HUGE.
Recent statistics from the UK, (with a population of 60 million), states that the hardcore poor stand at less than 4,500 individuals nationwide.
How is this, I hear you ask, cause I asked the same thing.
Simple. The UK is a Welfare State where huge amounts of tax revenue are used to support the poor who have fallen through the cracks.
So here is the rub.
Does Malaysia want to become a Welfare State?
Do the hardworking citizens of Malaysia want to see their tax increased to support a 'handout nation'?
Then why does Masyarikat insist on enforcement operations to lock people away in facilities that the street people have described as 'detention centres'. In fact Dato Seri Sharizat had this explained to her when she was on the streets with Reach earlier this year by the street folks themselves.
Why can Masyarikat not loan the poor the MYR600 they need as a deposit that DBKL require when DBKL have found housing for them. I thought that there was an allocation of MYR5,000 per head as stated by the Chairwoman of the most recent Kementrian meeting that I attended. Or perhaps I was mistaken or heard wrongly. This can be paid back in installments from the meagre incomes some of the poor make.
The folks in power have a chance to solve this and eliminate the dangers of a Welfare State that are looming before Malaysia and in fact implement a model that will make Malaysia a global leader in the issue of eradication of urban and rural poverty.
If not, I am fearful that more will fall through the cracks and the numbers will increase.
I am seeing the numbers increase monthly in Reach Org's Street Feeding Programmes.
So what is Reach doing about this I hear you ask? Its a question I would ask.
The solution has been presented to The Ministry For Women Children and Community Development. The Reach strategy paper "A Vision For Humanity" was agreed, but has now regrettably been ignored. I can produce the minutes from Kementrian meetings, and can also produce the document itself.
Maybe I will post it here one day, and let others decide if it should have been implemented. There was certainly enough enthusiasim from Government when it was first presented and agreed. Ideas hijacked by individuals trying to make a name for themselves.
So we will go on our own with the support of private enterprise and do our level best to solve this problem. Not for Reach. Not for any of us. Not for the Government. But for those that are in need.
So, I wish everyone a very happy Malaysia Day, especially my friends on the street who are proud Malaysians despite being ignored and subject to frequent enforcement operations against them.
They are Malaysians too you know.