Shared by Carey Lui, Project Manager, Baptist Oi Kwan Social Service  

Recognising the severe impact of the financial crisis in 2008 on the unemployed and low-income families, Baptist Oi Kwan Social Service initiated the $10 Hotmeal offer, complemented with the pertinent care of social workers and support services, including career counselling and community resource referral, to help ease the financial burdens of the low-income families and support the unemployed to return to the workplace.

Kiddy Heart Canteen supports the healthy growth of children

In 2013, we joined hands with Maxim’s Group to establish Kiddy Heart Canteen in Yau Ma Tei, the city’s first hotmeal service that provides nutritious meals for grass-roots children and families and has served over 220,000 hot meals over the years. Meanwhile, to ensure the holistic development of children, we have also organised a wide array of activities focusing on music, games and art, and worked closely with social workers to provide guidance on children’s behaviour and mental development, helping them integrate into the society and alleviating intergenerational poverty in the long run.

Hotmeal service and comprehensive support for those in need

Moreover, we also introduced the Lunch Club Hotmeal Canteen and Bless Canteen to support the working poor community and single parents, and offer career counselling to the former to improve their social skills and facilitate their return to the workplace. As the pandemic has brought unprecedented challenges to the grassroots, we have expanded our services according to their needs, such as hosting Covid-related webinars and offering free Chinese medical consultations and anti-pandemic supplies for patients, supporting people from all walks of life timely.

While we started with the simple intention to meet people’s needs for a hot meal, the concerted effort of our team and partners has created amazing added value for our services. From serving hot meals and improving children's nutrition, to helping the unemployed to return to the job market, these initiatives will bolster the resilience of the community in the face of adversities.

Show our care with a hot meal: https://www.bokss.org.hk/poverty-alleviation-project/service?id=99&_lang=en