The time was 6.30pm on a rainy Monday evening. In a vegetarian restaurant, a group of young folks (not more than ten of them) were crowded around three trays of bee hoon, engrossed with wrapping them up into small packets. This was a typical scene for the Soup Kitchen Project where a group of volunteers meet up every week to help distribute food to the less fortunate around the Little India vicinity.

The day starts at the New Fut Kai Vegetarian Restaurant, which has supplied three large trays of bee hoon to the organisation at a cheaper price. The volunteers then gather the 100 packets of food and they are then dispatched into two different teams, each distributing the food to an area in need.

“I find helping out really fun yet meaningful at the same time,” says Hafidz, a volunteer who has been helping out weekly since August. He found out about the charity through the social networking site, Facebook.

Woon Tien Wei, who is one of the founders of the Soup Kitchen Project says, “We started the project because we wanted to give back to society in what little way we can. We have existed since 2009, and the reason why we can still carry on is due to contributions from the public and we have a main sponsor, the Body Shop.”

Tien Wei was extremely protective over the beneficiaries, with a firm request that we do not take their photographs. He comments, “They are not charity cases, nor do they need to be pitied. It’s just that they, like most of us, at times need a helping hand.”

We followed the team who were heading towards the rented, two-room flats. The Soup Kitchen Project obtained a list of the residents in need from the town council, and will visit this same list every week. Most of the beneficiaries we met were families or senior citizens. It was a short and simple moment between volunteer and beneficiary – the volunteers knock on the door, and then asks how many packets of bee hoon the residents wanted, the food is passed, and the volunteers go on to the next family.

If you think about it, it is a simple gesture, made possible with the kindness of a few people. “I guess the Soup Kitchen Project is about using what we have to help someone. You don’t need a lot of money to make a difference,” says Tien Wei.

In line with this Christmas season, we will like to celebrate the efforts of those volunteers who don’t just do good deeds during Christmas but all year round. Christmas isn’t just about giving to your friends and families, but it’s about sharing some love with the people out there who are not even blessed to enjoy Christmas. Here at Makansutra and Makanation, we would like to wish all our readers a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!