Charity art auction to teach youth how to fish and raise funds for children's home
There will be a charity auction to raise funds for Yayasan Sunbeams Home on Sunday, June 9, from 2pm to 5pm at Ampang Spectrum Mall (first floor).

Yayasan Sunbeams Home (Sunbeams) is a non-governmental, self-supporting foundation which cares and nurtures for the displaced, abused and neglected children of single parents. It was founded in 1995 by a pastor Alvin Tan, and his late wife Lucy Tan, both teachers by profession. It all started when they had to bring home a young child and care for him because his parents were unable to do so. From there, their vision to start a children's home was birthed.

Sunbeams Home has since grown to 135 children, both boys and girls with ages ranging from two to 18 years old. Over the years, it has given guidance, shelter and a future to hundreds of children who have been sent to the Home, some by their own parents who have been unable to care for them, and others rescued from abusive homes.

The home comprises seven sectors: Boys’ Home, Girls’ Home, homeschool programme (Sunbeams Community Learning Centre), food programme (Food-on-Wheels), daycare service, a branch in Alor Gajah, Melaka, and Orang Asli care and education.

Deep concentration during the painting session. Photo: Artime AmpangThe auction – which is organised by art centre Artime Ampang in Kuala Lumpur – will feature over 80 pieces of art, including 25 pieces painted by youth from Sunbeams at an art jamming session held last month.

Themed 'My Dream Pet', the 25 youth from Sunbeams – guided by facilitators from the art centre – painted their choice animal.

“It was the first time for some of them. Some of them said they'd never even held a paint brush before,” reveals Artime Ampang founder Agnes Doray Chan, 65.

Some even asked why they had to paint and said that they didn't like it, says Chan.

“But we told them: 'It's part of life. Sometimes, we've to do things that we don't like such as chores/housework, going to work, etc. When we're able to do stuff that we don't like, it helps us to grow faster, survive, and achieve more in life',” she says.

“More than just a painting session, they got to learn life lessons and living skills,” she adds.

“What was meant to be a three-hour session grew into a five- or six-hour session as the youth persevered and unleashed their creativity on canvas.”

One of the youth showing her talent. Photo: Artime Ampang“This is the second time we're having a charity event in aid of Sunbeams because their cause – which focuses on the children's education – is very close to our heart,” says Chan, whose three children – Dominic, Danny and Rina Doresamy – are also involved in the project.

“At the previous event – which was a Christmas one - we had kids as young as four right up till 18 years. Each child was given a canvas and they had to create/paint their own tote bag,” she adds.

“This second event will benefit teenagers (from the ages of 13 to 18) from the home. We wanted to teach them 'how to fish' for themselves instead of depending on charity handouts. Since most of them grew up in the home, it's good for them to learn to give back and also contribute towards the home,” she says.

And, besides the funds going to the home, they will also get a portion of the proceeds (30%) for what they have painted, so they get some pocket money. This is to teach them about the value of money because when they've to “work” for it, they'll value it more, she adds.

“In fact, art can take us very far. It's a way of communication, especially for children to learn to think out of the box and help them to develop the skills they need to survive and be successful in life,” says Chan.

“In addition, for the month of May and June, it's Mothers and Fathers Day. So, we had art jam sessions where parents and children could paint together and have a family bonding time. And it's up to the parents to convince their child to learn to give by contributing their artwork for the charity auction, if they want to,” she says.

A majority of the parents encouraged their children to contribute their paintings. Some even offered to buy back their children's paintings which are put up for the auction, since the proceeds would go to charity, she adds.

Chan is contributing several pieces of her own art for the charity auction. Photo: The Star/Ming Teoh

Besides that, Chan and her art facilitators have also contributed some of the own artwork for the charity auction.

They hope to raise RM10k from the charity auction. The starting bid for the youth's paintings is RM150, while the larger pieces might have a higher starting bid.

More information: facebook.com/YayasanSunbeamsHome
family,lifestyle,children,children's home,orphanage,fundraiser,art auction,Yayasan Sunbeam Children's Home
Charity art auction aims to teach youth 'how to fish' as well as raise funds for children's home.