Community Heroes: How I use my skills as an ex-tech insider to uplift underprivileged families and workers

My passion for giving stems from a deeply rooted belief in social responsibility and a desire to make a positive impact in the community.
Growing up in a family that emphasised the importance of charity, my sense of giving back to others and society has always been through monetary donations.
Then, when I worked in the tech sector as an operations specialist from 2020 until earlier this year, I actively took part in a range of employee initiatives, including those focused on gender and racial equality, and those empowering persons with disabilities.
The experience inspired me to start various projects during that time, which combined my professional skills with my passion for social responsibility.
These included running personal branding sessions to help single mothers find jobs or promote their businesses on social networking platform LinkedIn. 
When the Covid-19 pandemic hit in 2020, I saw how it devastated underprivileged communities and I wanted to help them.
That was when I founded Uplift in 2021, initially as a food distribution platform.
We worked closely with food banks, suppliers and community centres to distribute necessities to underprivileged families.
My first project, Project Rice Rights, delivered 5,077kg of rice to food banks and community centres from August 2021 to January 2022.
With support from Temasek Trust and my own fundraising efforts, we provided a stable source of food for these families.
We also sponsored rice supplies to other food distribution initiatives.
My efforts to connect these ground-up communities with the tech industry also resulted in partnerships that boosted our collective fundraising and volunteering efforts.
One notable success was securing year-round food and snack distribution with Meta’s micro-kitchen team for frontline workers at Tan Tock Seng Hospital in June 2022.
After the pandemic, I learned the importance of sustainable giving — not only empowering those in need but also cultivating kindness among our beneficiaries.
This ensures that philanthropy becomes circular and transformative in the long term.
Consequently, Uplift pivoted to creating kindness workshops for vulnerable children and families.
As the Covid-19 situation began to improve, the immediate need for food distribution decreased, revealing a higher demand for initiatives aimed at empowering beneficiaries through mentorship and sponsorship.
These included career guidance and family bonding activities.
Uplift, once a team of three, is now run solely by me. Beneficiaries come from our close partners, and volunteers are often friends and other business sponsors.
Our activities include dessert-making workshops for underprivileged families and children in constituencies such as Bukit Batok East and Kreta Ayer-Kim Seng. These are done in collaboration with charities such as Love Nils, which supports children with cancer.
The workshops, conducted quarterly, teach participants to spread acts of kindness while having fun with their families.
For example, we might teach them to make a chocolate cupcake for themselves and another for a neighbour, accompanied by a handwritten message.
To date, we have served more than 67 families who have children with cancer and 50 families in various constituencies across Singapore.
One of the biggest challenges since pivoting from food distribution is building trust and engagement within the community.
Moving from providing immediate, tangible aid to offering long-term support and guidance requires a shift in mindset for both beneficiaries and volunteers.
It takes time to build relationships and convince people of the value of these new initiatives. 
Maintaining momentum and sustaining these programmes long-term also presents challenges, such as ensuring ongoing funding and volunteer support. 
Despite these challenges, I have experienced significant successes. 
One of my proudest achievements is being recognised as a finalist in the “inspiring youth” category at the Singapore Silent Hero awards in 2023.
It validated the impact of my efforts and motivated me to continue driving positive change.
Looking ahead, Uplift will focus more on supporting underprivileged women, especially those from lower-income households and ethnic minority backgrounds.
Insights gained through various women support groups revealed that while women increasingly receive mentorship, sponsorship is still significantly lacking.
This gap means that many women, despite having guidance, do not have advocates to promote and support their career advancements and personal development.
Witnessing these challenges inspired me to take action as a male ally. I believe in the principle of “it starts with me”, striving to be the ally that many of my female friends and beneficiaries do not have in their circle.
By organising initiatives such as makeup masterclasses for lower-income women, I aim to boost their confidence and job readiness, contributing to their empowerment and social mobility.
Additionally, we will reach out to female youth and create online trust and safety workshops, in partnership with tech companies, to protect them from online harm.
Through these initiatives, I hope to continue making a significant impact on the community, inspiring others to join in the effort to uplift those in need.
For those seeking to make a similar impact, my advice is to start small but think big.
Begin with manageable initiatives but keep an eye on the broader impact. Small, consistent actions can build momentum and lead to large changes over time.
Also, be resilient and adaptable. Challenges and setbacks are inevitable.
Stay resilient, be prepared to adapt, and press on continually with your initiatives. Flexibility allows you to overcome obstacles and find new opportunities.

ABOUT THE WRITER:
Luo Chen Jun, 35, works in the public sector and is a social impact advocate, dedicated to driving positive change both in Singapore and globally. He is the founder of Uplift, a ground-up initiative that empowers underprivileged families and vulnerable children across Singapore. 
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