Awardee Sharing
| 2021 – 2022 | Bachelor of Social Science Programme in Social Work (BSSc) |
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| Master of Social Science Programme in Social Work (MSSc) | |
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Ms. Chan Choi Kiu (BSSc Programme in Social Work, Year 2, 2021-22) |
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The Journey of Growing – Grateful I would like to first express my deepest gratitude for the opportunities I have been given in the past. Among all the services, the most inspiring must be the Cambodia Service Trip. While I was visiting the garbage village, I saw children searching for hope in tons of garbage; while I was visiting a local school and an orphanage, I gained a deeper understanding of those children who lack a key ingredient for healthy development – love. I remember when I saw the smiley faces of the kids, I was determined to protect their smiles as I realized that the childhood of every child was invaluable. With that aspiration, I and some like-minded friends have set up Dream Compassioneers, a joint-school international volunteering organization for education (https://zh.dreamcompassioneers.org/). Dream Compassioneers aims to provide daily necessities and education opportunities for school children in poverty-stricken regions all over the world, improving their life in the long term. Until now, our organization has organized different service programs and social advocacy. These activities included “Grant A Wish: Supplies Donation”, “Free Tuition Service”, “2nd DC Debate Competition”, and “Hong Kong Student Service Leaders Award 2021-2022” etc. I was so fortunate to be awarded the Big Fish Scholarship, as not only does it recognize the past efforts I have paid, but also further encourages me to continue to explore and lend a helping hand to all people in need. Throughout the interview, it is my great pleasure to get to know Mrs. Teresa Lam’s spirit and dedication to serving the betterment of our society from her friends, family members, and companions. Inspired by Mrs. Teresa Lam, both enthusiasm and the invaluable experiences gained drove me to organize different service projects in the future. Many as I gain from the past, I promise to contribute to society in the future wholeheartedly and to carry the good name of CUHK Social Work in the future. |
Mr. Li Yangli, Colby (BSSc Programme in Social Work, Year 4, 2021-22) |
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I transferred my major from Chinese Language and Literature to Social Work, for the sake of gay empowerment through social campaigns. Perhaps because of my own gender identity, I used to emphasize gay rights over other agendas. However, as I gain more social work experience, I realized the essence of social oppression: regardless of gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion, and social class, social oppression originates from the same root: the misunderstandings between social groups, which followed by prejudice, stigma, and discrimination. If the dichotomy of heterosexual versus homosexual continues in gender advocacy, a mutual and genuine understanding cannot be achieved. Therefore, I initiated a gender-diverse sex educational project with my schoolmates, “Sextitude”, to create a diverse and open platform for young people to voice out and discuss gender issues. The project consists of two parts: sex education ambassador training and community education. In alignment with various non-governmental organizations and experienced social workers, we will organize a series of half-year workshops for a group of tertiary students to facilitate them in understanding different gender issues, including the diversity of gender identities, communication within intimate relationships, sexual safety and pleasure etc. After participating in the training, the students will become sex education ambassadors and promote a peer-led sex education on online social media platform, through writing interview articles and responding to reader’s questions. We are getting ready to leave our echo chamber, to initiate a dialogue with people outside the gender community. Sextitude is still taking its baby steps forward, slowly and discreetly, but it is moving forward anyway. I hope we would have more companions. Meanwhile, I would like to express my gratitude to those who walked with us: my teachers and academic advisors. More importantly, I would like to thank my project teammates Joyce, Sumyu, Candy and San. Without you all, there is no Sextitude. Also, it is my honour to receive the Big Fish Award from Mrs. Lam and her family members. Not only does this scholarship encourages me to keep putting effort in social work profession, but it also supports me to persist in social innovation, especially in terms of gender empowerment. There is still room for improvement for me and Sextitude. I do hope we could establish a community of diversity, inclusiveness, freedom and equality. To learn more about Sextitude, please follow us @ sextitude_hk. |
Ms. Wong Ching Yin, Jessie (MSSc Programme in Social Work, Full-time Year 2, 2021-22) |
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Different from other scholarships, the Big Fish Award established by Mrs. Teresa Lam’s family is not only a scholarship but more of a purpose of reminding me about the passion, teamwork and innovation needed to be a good social worker, guiding me to becoming a good social worker. This experience has made me realize that social work values are not just knowledge in books or classrooms, but are reflected in the heart of every good social worker. Just like Mrs. Teresa Lam who is commemorated in this scholarship, her selfless acts have encouraged each one of us. In the whole process of the scholarship application, the emphasis is not on the "result" (academic achievement), but instead on the "process" (the development of personal qualities). Especially in group activities, it is necessary to combine the knowledge and experience of social work students of all grades, exchange and share with each other, and work together to apply social innovation thinking to social services, so as to meet the needs of society from a new perspective. It rekindled my original intention when I switched from marketing studies to enrolling in social work courses, hoping to seek breakthroughs and transformations in social services with out-of-the-box thinking. From the sharing of Mrs. Teresa Lam’s family and friends, I learned how Mrs. Teresa Lam has practiced the humanistic spirit in social work and life. I am now serving sick children and their families. With these learning experiences, I hope to become an outstanding social worker by following Mrs. Teresa Lam’s footprints and passing on the spirit of social work. |
Ms. Lui Nga Yan, Rain (MSSc Programme in Social Work, Part-time Year 3, 2021-22) |
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I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Mrs. Lam Yu Lai Ling, Teresa's family for establishing “The Big Fish Award". This award is a great recognition for me because the selection criteria are based on not only academic performance but also our personal qualities. During the individual and group interviews, it was very impressive that the representatives of The Big Fish Award and the CUHK Department of Social Work had put a lot of effort to get to know and select the participants sincerely. In the process, I shared a lot about how my past experiences made me who I am today, and inspired me to become a social worker; meanwhile, I also seemed to get to know Teresa gradually, by understanding and experiencing her humanistic attitude and value. This also reminds me of what kind of social worker I would like to be. For some, helping professionals can be just a job or only the application of theoretical knowledge and skills. Nevertheless, the beliefs, values and attitudes of the helping professionals matter the most and become the source of hope for true healing. Now I am working in the palliative care sector for terminally ill disabled people in the “Embracing the Setting Sun” project of Tung Wah Group of Hospitals Jockey Club Rehabilitation Complex. The disabled and frail elderly are likely to be ignored by society, and they are often in great suffering. However, when seeing their pain and the heaviness of their lives, I would stick to the values taught by the CUHK Department of Social Work and the spirit left by Teresa, hoping to bring kindness, hope, and love to the clients, and embrace the suffering and value of life even near the end of life. |