It has been five years since Poe Phu Thin left her home in Myanmar to work in Singapore as a migrant domestic worker (MDW). Before this, she was working as a tuition teacher teaching mathematics for five years. While she enjoyed teaching primary school students, the salary was not enough to support her family, that was when she made the decision to work in Singapore. As a tutor, education is something she is very passionate about and she tries to cultivate it through lifelong learning. “The more you read, the more you know and the more you learn, the more places you can go. There’s a lot of things you can learn online!”
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A Friendly Face at Aidha
Most Aidha students and alumnae will recognise Ting Claravall as the energetic emcee at our graduation ceremonies and events (both virtual and in-person!). But did you know that Ting has been with Aidha since the early years? A long-time volunteer who started in 2009, one of her first volunteering projects was producing Aidha’s first-ever graduation video! Ting was instrumental in spreading the word about Aidha, helping to grow our Facebook page and newsletter, together with the Aidha team back then. Ever since, she has played an active role in the Aidha community – as a mentor and also as an emcee for Aidha events and graduation ceremonies.
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Ismiatun’s Big Plans!
Ismiatun Iskun came to Singapore from Indonesia more than 20 years ago, leaving her then four-year-old son. During her time working here as a foreign domestic worker (FDW), Ismiatun attended several courses to expand her skill-set. With the encouragement and support of her employers, she started taking sewing courses and learned how to design and create her own bags and more from scratch! With further self-directed practice and research, she was able to create more elaborate and intricate designs and is excited to try other designs!
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Volunteer Spotlight: Laura Zaccaria
As a passionate supporter of women’s empowerment and financial education, Laura Zaccaria was moved by Aidha’s mission and recognised that she could use her skills to support our programmes. Laura has been a volunteer mentor since 2015 after finding out about Aidha through her friend Prerana, who is also a seasoned Aidha volunteer. At the time, Laura was at a point in her life where she was trying to find something meaningful to spend her time on and channel her energy and volunteering with Aidha was just the right fit!
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Employers Supporting Students!
Aidha alumna, Nurul Adim (more affectionately known as Ana by her employers) has been working in Singapore for almost ten years. She left her home in East Java, Indonesia, to work in Singapore after her family lost income and found themselves in financial need. Nurul chose to work in Singapore, feeling that it is not too far away from Indonesia and that her basic English would mean she could comfortably converse with her employers here. Nurul has been happily working with the Phua family for over eight years now since their first son, Gabriel, was around a year old.
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Emelda’s Convenience Store
Emelda Cariaga left her home in the Philippines almost 30 years ago to work as a foreign domestic worker in Singapore with a clear goal to financially support her family. She realised the importance of being financially stable, and she was determined to learn how to make the most of the wages she earned. When her employer introduced her to Aidha’s courses, she didn’t think twice about joining. Her employers gave her the support she needed and offered to sponsor her enrolment fees.
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Meet The Team!
We’d like to introduce two new members of the Aidha Team, Elaine Juan (Elle) and Linette Chan! If you’re an Aidha student, you must have chatted with our friendly Campus Manager, Linette. But did you know that Linette was also one of our riders at our recent Bike Ride? And if you are an Aidha volunteer, Elle is the go-to person for all volunteering matters. Get to know them better in this feature!
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Riding for Aidha
Every year, Aidha corporate partners, supporters, volunteers, staff and students come together to ‘Ride for Aidha’ in OCBC Cycle. This year, the much-anticipated sporting event was re-conceived as a Virtual Ride. Despite the changes to the event, the Aidha community rose to the challenge and we’re delighted to have more than 135 riders now completing their distance rides on behalf of Team Aidha.
The new format allows cyclists to choose their own route and day of cycling. They’re completing their rides between 1-15 November, and you can follow their progress on our social media pages. Please support our riders by donating here.
Read MoreFriends for Keeps at Aidha!
Meenakshi Sanghi and Belinda Fowler became friends while studying to be English teachers and both joined Aidha as ‘Improve your English’ mentors soon after. Passionate advocates for women’s education, they love that as Aidha volunteers they can make a practical difference in students’ lives.
Meenakshi and Belinda are also office volunteers and they’re a great help in Aidha’s events and marketing campaigns.
Light Up the World
After graduating from high school in Lampung, Indonesia, Rara Anggriani worked at her relative’s shop selling spare parts before heading to Malaysia to become a domestic worker. After a couple years in Malaysia, Rara arrived in Singapore in 2012 to work as a domestic worker and has since helped fund the construction of a family home in Indonesia as well as set up another spare parts shop that is managed by her mother.
