In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic hit the world hard. Singapore was not spared. People from all walks of life were affected as circuit-breaker measures were implemented during the second quarter of 2020.
In such times, when social distancing was enforced, vulnerable sectors of the population were disproportionately affected. This includes the elderly. The stream of volunteers bringing life to Thong Teck Home for Senior Citizens had slowed significantly.
Undeterred by such a crisis, volunteers from Humanist Society (Singapore) (HSS) collaborated with other volunteers from VolunteerSG and the National University of Singapore to organise ZOOMba Gold from on 6, 13, 20 and 27 June 2020. In fact, HSS’s very own member Lionel Cheah took charge of contacting and liaising with partner organisations.
On these Saturday afternoons, Zoom calls were set up between the volunteers and the seniors in Thong Teck Home. During these sessions, volunteers led seniors through Zumba, a type of exercise that combines cardio, muscle conditioning, balance and flexibility.
At the strike of 1.00 pm, one by one, the webcams of the participants of the Zoom call flicked on to reveal the brilliant faces of the seniors and the volunteers. In compliance with social distancing measures, the male and female seniors, many of whom were in wheelchairs, were spaced out neatly in front of the cameras in their respective rooms. Clearly, they were anticipating the start of the activity.
Thereafter, the facilitator led the seniors through the seven steps of the warm up. The atmosphere was relaxed and cheery as other volunteers often chimed in to help translate the explanation of the steps into Mandarin, which was the seniors’ preferred language.
After the warm up, the main facilitator of the session then proceeded with the highlight of the activity – performing simple sit-down aerobic exercises to the rhythm of a selected song. The facilitator first demonstrated the steps. Then, volunteers and seniors alike moved their arms and head in accordance to the tempo of pop tunes like “Can’t Stop the Feeling” (13 June), as well as familiar regional evergreens like “Chan Mali Chan” (6 and 27 June) and “Rasa Sayang” (20 June). All were mesmerised as they performed the half-dozen or so basic, repetitive and highly symmetrical Zumba moves in sync with the melody.
As the final beats of the songs played through the speaker, volunteers warmly applauded the seniors for their enthusiastic participation. Indeed, the seniors gave positive feedback, saying that they enjoyed the exercises and the interactions, especially in a period when many people feel socially isolated.
Then began the three-step cool-down exercises. Once again, seniors and volunteers took in deep breaths, wiggled their fingers and stretched their sides together.
An HSS volunteer, who prefers to remain anonymous, had stepped up to be the main facilitator on 20 June, and also led the seniors through the warmup and cool-down segments on 27 June. “What an experience indeed!” he said. “Although I attended both the 5 and 19 June rehearsal sessions and wrote a script in Mandarin, I still felt nervous while demonstrating the steps and explaining them in a language I have still yet to master. There were other hurdles too – technical problems, ensuring that the steps can be clearly seen through the confines of the field of view of my webcam, as well as occasionally looking at the seniors in both rooms to check if they are able to follow the steps. But seeing the seniors’ passionate involvement, as well as the thumbs-up signs they showed through the cameras brought us immense happiness.”
This is precisely in line with what Humanists have observed. Altruistically helping others does bring joy to oneself too.
While the coronavirus pandemic has brought about ugly instances of selfishness and discord globally, one must not forget that calamities like this had also brought about the best within humanity. The spirit of volunteerism lived on through the COVID-19 period, and HSS and their partner organizations are certainly glad to have played a role in it.
About VolunteerSG
HSS warmly thanks VolunteerSG for helping to make ZOOMba Gold a success.
VolunteerSG is a platform to promote volunteerism and catalyse social change through empowerment and collaboration. They engage youth and community partners in conversations of social issues and action!
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