ISSUE 2, Volume 2010
Art For Life
We are ONE! In the year that has gone by, we
have taken our children from the Community
Children Centre to Port Dickson, brought more to
the Zoo with the Rotaract Club and accepted
more homes (Ozanam, Juara, Harvest, Sunbeam
and Budimas) into our programme. New classes
were introduced, in the area of Drama and
Creative Writing as well as receiving sponsorship
from Dutch Lady! Our new teachers, Jan,
Jessica, Andrew, Tony and Jeremy, moved into
the rhythm of things to get the childrenʼs talent
recognised. We hope to give the children every
possible experience that their circumstances
have eluded them thus far. Any support that you
wish to offer us to help them would be greatly
appreciated!
The year thatʼs passed had truly been eventful with Table of Contents
your partnership and with this anniversary issue, we
want to thank you for your patronage and support for Page
the programme! It is indeed a great privilege to take
on the task of producing this newsletter to bring you • Front Cover 1
pieces of good news woven together by individuals
who care to make a difference in the lives of the not-
so-fortunate. You have made it possible with your • Editor's Note 2
contribution, your investment of time to realise
something that has never been done this way before.
In my other profession as a dive instructor, I have • Activity Highlight 3
encountered many individuals who have money but no
time, have time but not much money, have money and
have lots of time. When I told them of this effort, a few • Kids Say... 4-5
of them said, “I want to sponsor a child! How???” And
soon, this gave rise to the need of having regular
updates to highlight each child in our programme! We • Anniversary Event 6 - 10
hope that this effort will be supported by people like
you in forwarding the whole e-newsletter on.
• Contact Us 10
We are grateful that you are reading this and we
appreciate any assistance we can get The kids got to
experience the thrill of being in fast cars, the hardcore
poor in Kapar gets to learn to dance and the Myanmar
kids get to learn music! Though each effort has its
challenges, we believe it taught us more than what we
were teaching the kids! What better way of giving can
you think of if not for the giving of your time, effort and
a little money? Iʼm sowing into their future, would you
like to join me too?

The Editor.

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3
Catching the kids at rest was a rare I like to play in a drama I
moment to contest their attention with the also like to dance. I can
showing of a dance video at the recreation move! I like to move here
room. The editor tried to find out what and here....
made them tick in an academy that .............*wiggles!*............
focuses on developing their creative skills.

I like drums! But I like piano too! No,

I want to play with drums! I want
to learn how to hit the drums!

Rinisha Thevaroobin, 9 years old,

has been in Rumah Juara since she
was 4 years old. She loves drama
classes.

Little Alvin Gan is 8 years old. He

has been in Rumah Juara since he
was 4. Kids at rest! Watching a dance video....

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 StART

I like drama a lot! I love to I get to read aloud & play

mime! I can be anybody I want! games at drama class! I like to
I also like drums! And play act!
games!

William Raj, 10 years old, had been at Rumah Joshua Ho reads well, participates
Juara since he was 5. enthusiastically at role play in Drama Class &
has a swell time with others!

Your contribution in any way is definitely making a difference in the lives of these children who would
otherwise, never be given the chance to express themselves through creative arts.

Thank you and thank you!

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Anniversary  Issue  –  Newsle1er  
2008 April
June 1. First  Audi,ons  –  we  were  very  nervous  as  it  really  
Josh  Lee  le)  his  posi,on  as  Brand  Director   hit  home  that  we  were  embarking  on  an  
at  Naga  DDB  and  came  onboard  as   unchartered  path.  No  other  NGO  in  Asia  have  
Programme  Director  at  StART  Society.   really  done  what  we’re  about  to  do.  Clearly,  we  
Dra)ing  out  the  blueprint  was  the  first   were  going  to  be  pioneers  in  this  field  and  
order  of  important  things  to  do.  Visi,ng  shelter-­‐ approach.  And  we  had  to  be  exemplary.  
homes  was  next.  Not  having  a  venue  or  anything  in  
place,  it  was  a  steep  climb  convincing  supervisors  and   2. First  teachers  –  We  managed  to  lure  a  few  
minders  of  shelter-­‐homes  that  the  programmes  were   teachers  away  from  their  more  lucra,ve  
bona  fide.  A)er  approaching  15  homes,  6  agreed  to   opportuni,es  elsewhere  for  a  worthy  and  unique  
get  their  kids  onboard.   cause.  Leroy  (guitar  and  stomp),  Martha  (piano  
and  gen  music),  Siew  Foong  (art),  Michelle  (art,  
August design  and  cra))  were  the  first  batch  of  teachers.
Recce  for  a  suitable  venue  
began  in  earnest.  Loca,on   3. First  homes  –  Kudos  to  these  homes  who  were  
(accessibility,  neighbourhood  &   willing  to  grab  the  opportunity  we  had  presented.  
centrality)  and  build-­‐up  (space,   60  kids  from  Shelter,  T-­‐Ratana,  Rumah  Kids,  
environment  and  func,onality)   Stepping  Stone,  Agathians  &  Beth  Shalom  came  
was  the  main  criteria.       through  our  doors.    

November March
We  shortlisted  our  choice  of  venue  to  2  houses  (along   4. Early  Classes  –  based  on  some  Q&A’s  with  the  
Jalan  Gasing  and  behind  EPF).  With  a  discount  we   kids,  the  most  popular  art  subjects  were  art,  
could  not  refuse,  we  decided  on  the  9  room,  7,789sq   piano,  drums,  guitar  and  dance.  And  so,  those  
)  bungalow  behind  EPF,  Petaling  Jaya.   prefy  much  became  our  first  offerings.  

11.11.08  was  also  the  day  were  officially  registered  as   May
a  society  at  the  ROS  (Registrar  of  Society) 5. Community  Children’s  Centre  –  We  were  
introduced  to  the  Community  Children  Center  
(CCC),  Puchong  where  the  Myanmar  children  
learnt  English,  Science  and  Math.  We  fell  in  love  
with  these  kids  and  so  began  our  first  outreach  
project.  As  a  result,  an  addi,onal  60  kids  were  
added  to  our  roster  which  bumped  our  number  up  
to  120.

2009
January
Rachel  Yeow,  dance  teacher  extraordinaire  came  in  
full  ,me  as  Programme  Coordinator

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July
6. Thanks  to  Milk  PR,  the  kids  were  given  a   Rumah  Kids,  Rumah  Ozanam,  Agathians,  Beth  
backstage  exclusive  with  the  dancers,   Shalom  and  Shelter  came  out  full  force  to  support  
choreographers  and  coaches  from  “Merchant  of   us.  
Bollywood”  who  were  at  Istana  Budaya  doing  a  2-­‐
week  show.

9. MWM  ‘09
100  children  from  StART’s  chorus  group  were  
August invited  to  grace  the  Miss  World  Malaysia  Finals  
7. Holiday  Booster  camp  –  As  icing  is  to  the  cake,  we   Gala  Night  at  Sunway  Pyramid.  Host/emcee  Asha  
had  to  have  something  above  and  beyond  our   Gill  was  moved  to  tears  as  were  many  others  in  
weekly  programmes  and  classes,  and  so  the   the  crowd  when  the  kids  sang  “You  Raise  Me  Up”  
“Holiday  Booster  Camp”  was  birthed.  The  4-­‐day   and  “Aren’t  They  All  Our  Children  A)er  All.”
camp  saw  some  140  enthusias,c  kids  who  were  
treated  to  a  host  of  great  speakers,  ac,vi,es   October
including  jungle  tracking  at  the  adjacent  Bukit   10. Milk  +  Co.  Paint  a  Wall
Gasing  trail  and  lots  of  new  friends.  To  top  it  all,   Adver,sing  agency  which  gives  30%  of  its  profits  
Nikon  (M)  sponsored  digital  cameras  for  the   to  StART  Society  invited  the  art  students  of  StART  
“Point-­‐and-­‐Shoot”  workshop.  3  shelter-­‐homes   to  “Sis,ne-­‐ize”  its  walls  with  paint  sponsored  by  
with  the  winning  shots  got  to  take  home  a  digital   Nippon.  The  result?  A  potpourri  of  crea,vity  and  
camera  plus  pictures  with  Soo  Wincci,  Miss   enthusiasm  that  Mr.  Angelo  would  have  been  
Malaysia  ‘08/’09.   proud  of.  

September
8. Official  Launch  –  6  months  later,  we  were  ready  to  
tell  the  whole  world  we  exist  and  are  gaining  
trac,on.  So  we  got  Dato’  Meme  from  Welfare  
Malaysia  as  the  officia,ng  guest  of  honour  and  
Toh  Puan  Ena  Ling  as  the  guest  of  honour  along  
with  Da,n  Josephine  Lee  and  Datuk  Vincent  Lee  
to  officially  launch  StART  Society.

It  was  a  night  to  remember  as  friends,  fans,  

supporters,  the  Foetus  Group  family,  Miss  World  
Malaysia  Finalists,  James  Boyle  and  the  Ragged  
Tigers,  Soo  Wincci,  shelter-­‐homes  like  Ti-­‐Ratana,  

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November
11. Christmas  Journey  CD educa,on  and  outdoor  ac,vi,es  were  in  order.  
Sponsored  by  Foetus  Interna,onal,  New  Life   Teacher  Leroy  organized  a  football  evening  for  the  
Sanctuary  and  Ark  Studios,  StART  Society  captured   boys  and  suffice  to  say,  they  had  some  serious  
the  singing  prowess  of  the  Myanmar  kids  of  the   fun.  EPL!  Eat  your  heart  out!
Community  Children’s  Centre  (CCC)  onto  a    
Christmas  album.  It  took  only  7  days  and  nights  to   14. PD  Visit
complete  the  album.  The  album  raised  some   In  the  same  spirit,  the  volunteer  teachers  of  CCC  
RM85k  for  the  CCC. (Andrew  Hoo,  Robert  Lee,  Mary  Tan,  Gladys,  Gina  
and  Thompson)  realized  they  had  never  been  
12. New  classes  and  teacher  –  Vocals  and  Stephen exposed  to  the  sea.  Hence,  a  short  trip  to  Port  
With  singing  gesng  popular,  StART  was  ready  to   Dickson.  For  many,  salty  buoyant  water  that  stung  
add  more  programmes,  and  Stephen  Tok  was   the  eyes  and  so)  sand  under  the  feet  was  a  first  
invited  to  teach  vocals. experience.  

2010 15. Zoo  Visit  –  with  Rotaract  Club

March Following  suit,  the  Subang  Jaya  Rotaract  Club  
13. Football  Ou,ng headed  by  Sanjeev  Kumar  took  the  CCC  kids  out  
Volunteer  teachers  decided  learning  within  the   for  a  day  at  the  Na,onal  Zoo.  
four  walls  was  not  adequate  in  giving  holis,c  

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16. New  homes  –  It  was  like  star,ng  all  over  again  as   were  Thanuja  Ananthan,  Miss  World  Malaysia  
new  faces  from  new  shelter-­‐homes  like  Ozanam,   ‘09/’10;  Mourhna  Reddy,  finalist  of  Miss  World  
Juara,  Harvest,  Sunbeam  and  Budimas  joint  us.   Malaysia  ‘09/’10;  Shehara  DeSilva,  Group  
That  took  our  number  up  to  220  students. Strategic  Director  of  Foetus  Group  and  her  team  
from  Milk+Co.,  Carolynn  Thaw,  Jackson  Ng,  
April mo,va,onal  speaker  and  learning  guru;  Greg  
17. New  classes  –  Drama  and  wri,ng Cheng,  fitness  instructor  and  Tony  Roy,  musician  
Keeping  to  our  master  plan,  we  expanded  our   extraordinaire.  
programme  offerings  to  include  drama  for  the  
aspiring  actors  and  actresses  and  for  the  thinning   August
pool  of  writers.  And  for  that  we  got  Jessica  and   21. Ferrari  Visit
Jane  for  drama  while  ex  Crea,ve  Director,  Jeremy   Inspired  by  the  Agathian  boys,  a  horde  of  
Chin  spearheaded  the  wri,ng. supercharged  engines  rumbled  into  StART  It  
wasn’t  another  ‘mat  rempit’  episode.  It  was  12  
18. Dutch  Lady  Sponsorship   owners  of  supercars  with  big  hearts  who  decided  
Coming  along  side  us  to  provide  the  best  of   to  inspire  the  kids  at  StART  Society.  As  aptly  put  
beverage,  Dutch  Lady  came  onboard  to  supply   by  one  of  their  minders,  “the  supercars  were  
wholesome  nutri,on  to  the  kids.  Dutch  Lady  has   their  ‘sunrise.”  “Since  ‘excellence’  was  our  theme  
pledged  milk  and  beverage  supply  ,ll  the  end  of   this  year,  plus  the  fact  that  these  supercars  
the  year.     inspired  them  so  deeply,  we  decided  to  invite  a  
few  owners  to  showcase  their  machines  for  a  
good  cause,  and  Peter  Lee  (one  of  the  owners)  
responded  and  got  the  ball  rolling.

September
22. Workshop  –  Scuba  
Scuba  instructors  Pam  Lim,  Lynefe  Yee  and  
Doreen  came  onboard  to  give  the  kids  a  whole  
new  dimension  to  the  learning  experience.  The  
first  swim  session  had  the  kids  in  shrills  as  they  
frolic  about.  They  were  taught  the  fundamentals  
in  breathing  and  ‘bobbing’  in  order  to  learn  
coordina,on  of  the  limbs  later.  Most  of  them  
were  either  distracted  by  their  float-­‐away  shirts  
or  the  loose  pants  that  they  had  on.  None  of  
May them  had  any  swimming  suit/trunks.  Seeing  that  
19. Harvest  Center  and  RUNNAT it’s  a  need,  we  wrote  to  a  swimwear  
StART  absorbed  another  50  students  onto  its   manufacturer  and  we  are  wai,ng  for  a  reply.  A  
roster.  This  was  StART’s  2nd  outreach  programme   good  Samaritan  has  agreed  to  sponsor  RM1,000  
for  the  purchase  in  case  we  not  be  able  to  get  a  
and  our  immediate  project  was  to  prepare  a  
swimwear  
dance  and  choir  group  to  dance  and  sing  for  
sponsor!  
RUNNAT!
Amazing  
kindness  
June
shown  to  
20. StART  Workshop  2010
them  by  
Industry  pros  came  and  inspired  the  kids.  The  
this  great  
workshop  was  led  by  a  panel  of  notable  speakers  
soul!
that  was  nothing  short  of  amazing.  Amongst  them  

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23. Friends  of  Kapar
StART  Society  extended  its  influence  by  bringing  music  and  dance  
into  the  sleepy  town  of  Kapar,  Klang  to  some  40  excited  kids.  In  the  
spirit  of  Raya  and  1Malaysia,  StART  teamed  up  with  Friends  of  
Kapar  and  Dancepoint  to  make  this  happen.  This  is  StART’s  third  
outreach  programme  a)er  Community  Children’s  Centre  and  
Harvest  Centre.  

24. Movie  Viewing

Friends  of  StART  and  Rachel  Yeow,  our  dance  coordinator  sponsored  
money  to  purchase  60  ,ckets  to  “Step  Up  3,”  one  of  the  best  dance  
related  movies  in  decades  which  Step  Up  3-­‐D  delivered  solid  
choreography  and  stunning  visuals.  At  the  same  ,me,  20th  Century  
Fox,  Malaysia  sponsored  some  150  ,ckets  to  the  charity  premiere  of  
“Cats  and  Dogs,  The  Revenge  of  Kify  Galore.”  The  movie  is  about  
the  ongoing  war  between  the  canine  and  feline  species  that  is  put  
on  hold  as  both  par,es  join  their  prejudices  to  save  their  beloved  
humans  together  and  fight  a  common  enemy,  a  rogue  cat  spy  with  
her  own  sinister  plans  for  conquest.  The  movie  is  well  animated  and  
has  a  perfect  length.  People  who  really  like  cats  or  especially  dogs  
might  even  give  a  few  stars  more,  for  example  for  the  funny  and  
cute  video  clips  in  the  end  of  the  movie.  ✿

Persatuan StART Selangor dan Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur

Contact us during office hours at the numbers below:-

Tel: +603 7954 5423
Fax: +603 7954 7423  
Mobile: +6016 336 8185

Email: joshua.lee@start.org.my or rachel.yeow@start.org.my

http://www.start.org.my

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