About 'Wish For Home'

Muhammadiyah Welfare Home (MWH). Not many have heard of it and some may not be aware of its existence. Located at the junction of Mountbatten and Fort Road, the ‘colonial’ pre-war 2-storey bungalow building has devotedly sheltered almost 600 children from broken
families over the last 20 years.

Take a walk around the compound and you would observe that age has taken its toll on the
structures. The roof where the children sleep leaks whenever it rains. Remedy work does not
last long before the dilapidated roof gives way again. The frayed wooden doors and tattered
floors appear vulnerable to any form of hard thumps.

Currently housing 60 boys, MWH is sorely congested. Space is a constraint. The Home is
not able to take in and care for more children and has to turn away those who are in need of
dire protection. Besides, the current residents do not have the privilege of an adequate
classroom for revision. The open dining area is treated as a study area during tuition time.
School-going children are conditioned to wakeup as early as 4.30am to take turns to use the
washroom. This is because only 3 bathing areas are available to provide for 45 school-goers. For
some attending schools as far as in Woodlands and Boon Lay, they have to scuttle to catch the
first morning bus to the nearest MRT station so as not to be late for school. “This is real. It has
been a challenging daily routine activity for the boys”, as acknowledged by the staff themselves.

For several years, MWH management has tried to relocate MWH to a new premise, with not much success. However, with the help of the Ministry of Community Development, Youth & Sports (MCYS), MWH is granted a new premise at the former Min Xin Primary School in 07. Hope and intense joy filled the air as the long-awaited wish seems to finally arrived. Unfortunately, the shift to the new site is hampered by the lack of funds to support the renovation and the restoration work.

The final project cost is $3,087,500. After MCYS funding, remaining costs to be borne by MWH: $499,500

Realising the poignant predicament that MWH faces, MWH volunteers initiated a fund raising project, in support for a better environment for the children. Thus, this is how ‘Wish for Home 2009’ comes about. A volunteer driven project to support the worthy cause.