“Ok kids, you can go sit in the little cars now. They will switch it on for you,” ushers the lady standing beside the merry-go-round. The children, seated patiently amongst the crowd, break into shouts of joy and rush to the ride. After taking their seats, one young boy politely asks: “How many times can we go on this?”
“As many times as you like,” she replies with a smile. Eyes shining and ear-to-ear grins, the boy and his friends cheer loudly to her gracious response. There are about 50 children gathered at the Curve mall, Petaling Jaya, this afternoon with only about four to five caretakers in sight. These doe-eyed children hail from Rainbow Home and Siddharthan Care Centre, homes for underprivileged and orphaned children. Today, they are here as special guests for the Curve’s and eCurve’s Christmas campaign launch.
“Isn’t it wonderful to see them so joyful?” a fellow journalist whispers next to me. I wholeheartedly agree. You can’t help but feel a sense of satisfaction seeing the children happily enjoying themselves in this makeshift Candyland right smack in the middle of the busy shopping mall. It’s a feeling of pure bliss that permeates the air as laughter and squeals of joy ensue once the merry-go-round starts.
Community first
As I take my seat next to Jazmi Kamarudin, senior general manager of the Curve, he greets me with a friendly but firm handshake. “It’s always a joy to see the kids so happy here even though it is only for a short while. It’s not going to be easy later when we have to wave them goodbye as always,” remarks Jazmi with a smile.
Adding, he shares: “Both malls (the Curve and eCurve) have been doing special events for the underprivileged and those in need from the surrounding community since they started operations back in 2004. I always believe in good karma – no matter how small or big you are. And as a shopping mall, we need the surrounding community to support our businesses and being charitable is just one of our ways to engage with them.”
Whle he does admit that the homes they’ve brought in thus far may not necessarily be within the vicinity of the neighbouring community, he believes that it is still important for them to contribute in any way they can, as responsible Malaysians. “Helping people require no boundaries. We just want to bring cheer to anyone in need,” he explains.
He also confesses that it’s never easy when it comes time to shortlisting the charity homes every season. There’s only enough space for two or three homes at a time. “We do try our best to spread the love and joy as much as we can,” he confides.
Showing love and joy
Suddenly, the stage doors open and a colourful old man steps through it. Bearing a rainbow umbrella with sweet treats hanging from its corners, he cheerfully dances to The Candy Man, a song popularised by the movie Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory. More dancers follow out of the recesses of the stage door to join the candy man on stage, lending vibrancy to the already colourful scene.
How are the children feeling so far, I ask Joshua Benedict James, the caretaker of Rainbow Home who is seated behind me. “Today’s event is such a precious gift for the children because it has been a long time since they have enjoyed themselves this way. It may seem like nothing to most people, but to them, it means the world,” he replies.
The Siddharthan Care Centre caretaker, Malligah Kanan, seated next to Joshua nods in agreement, saying: “It’s always a dream to have the children out and about because it allows them to experience what it is like outside. In a way, it helps the child cheer up and feel less sorry for themselves… which they sometimes do when they hear stories from their more fortunate friends at school.”
Both homes house about 15 to 30 children from as young as four years old to 18 years old. Many of these young ones hail from underprivileged or single parent homes that don’t have enough means to provide for them. Some are unfortunately orphaned and came to live at the homes through the welfare association. Help and sponsorship sadly have been far and few in between in recent times and the children have not been able to experience much of the world like most children do.
Hence, welcoming them to an event, such as the one in the Curve and eCurve – albeit simple – allows for the children to feel loved and cherished. “We do our best to ensure the children grow up in a well-rounded environment. We provide them with whatever we can manage. We do not deprive them of many things. But there are some things money just can’t buy, such as feeling loved and wanted,” confides Malligah.
Chipping in, Joshua says: “We treat them like family and since I have parents who love me, I try my best to emulate that to our children. But it is never that simple. If given the chance, it’ll be great if more people come over and engage with them. Then hopefully that will help them feel less unwanted or unloved.”
Small acts, big effects
As the show and gift giving ends, the caretakers gather the children to escort them over to the other end of the mall at eCurve where a French- inspired Christmas circus awaits. Gina Long Ahmad, the assistant general manager of leasing and advertising & promotions joins us as we slowly make our way there.
“I can’t wait to see the kids be wowed by the circus acts we’ve prepared for them!” she enthuses, adding: “We have jugglers, gymnasts and magicians to entertain the kids and hopefully transport them to a magical circus show that they probably wouldn’t have experienced before.”
Curiously, I wonder aloud what she hopes for in return for putting in the time to set this elaborate event up for the children. She shakes her vehemently and says: “A gift is not a gift if you expect something in return! All we want and hope for is that their visits are filled with joy and happiness. And hopefully through this, they will learn good values as while feeling appreciated by the gesture. And with a bit of luck, the kids will return the favour to others when needed.”
She goes on to say softly: “Not everyone is born privileged, especially these kids from these homes. Hence, it is always good to be able to share with them whatever privileges we have been blessed with through the years with them. And as Malaysians, I believe we’ve been taught well to give with an open heart and share our blessings with those less fortunate. Even if it means our time.”
Settling ourselves into our seat, awaiting excitedly for the show to begin, Jazmi concludes: “We’re a community mall as you know and we feel that whatever wealth we’ve made throughout the year has no meaning until we share it with the community. Our generosity is from the heart and is genuine. We don’t just give back during festive seasons, we give back whenever we want to. This is just an added bonus that complements the festive joy.”