Stay Home with RSVP
Past Stay Home With RSVP Activities
Since circuit breaker in April 2020, RSVP Singapore started an entirely new initiative named #StayHomeWithRSVP, a series of fun and enriching stay home activities for seniors. From cooking sessions to live drumming practices, from chit-chats to exercise sessions; seniors are kept actively engaged! Looking for fun activities to do at home? Have a look at our past stay home activities below for inspiration. If you’re recreating any of our activities, don’t forget to hashtag #StayHomeWithRSVP.
#StayHomeWithRSVP is on a weekly basis, so do check back on this webpage for even more of our exciting activities! To register for our upcoming activities, you may click here.
Chit Chats with Board
Mr Koh Juay Meng
19 November 2020
In November, we hosted a casual Chit Chat session with our Chairman to catch up with all volunteers. The session saw over 80 volunteers joining us and thank you to all who participated in the session. During the session, our Chairman, Mr Koh Juay Meng, touched on several updates and highlights as Singapore moved into Phase 3 of re-opening and what our volunteers foresee volunteering will look like in Phase 3.
Mr Koh Juay Meng
21 August 2020
A total of 104 volunteers and staff participated in the Tea with Chairman session! RSVP Chairman Mr Koh Juay Meng touched on several things during the chit chat and shared more regarding how volunteers can progressively volunteer in this “new normal”.
Mr Koh Juay Meng
14 July 2020
The term ‘new normal’ is one that has been thrown around by many, but what exactly does it entail? In this session, RSVP Chairman Mr Koh Juay Meng, PBM, shared about his future plans for RSVP in the context of the ‘new normal’ and how the organization would continue to move forwards amidst uncertainty and changing times. A total of 31 volunteers and 20 staff attended this session and shared their thoughts on these new updates, expressing their excitement for what lies ahead.
Ms Genevieve Chua
3 July 2020
With Singapore’s reputation of being a fast-paced country to live in, RSVP Board member Ms Genevieve Chua’s self-care tips on maintaining physical, mental and emotional health was definitely relevant to all who were present. Some of her useful tips on feeling less stressed included engaging in the 4-7-8 breathing exercise, or using essential oils such as rose oil to promote calmness. To get a good night’s sleep, Genevieve suggested cutting back on caffeine consumption in the day and to have a hot shower before bed.
Mr Ngiam Tong Yuen
17 June 2020
Shared experiences foster a sense of belonging and bring a community together, which explains why this chit-chat session with RSVP Board member Mr Ngiam Tong Yuen was a particularly sentimental one. Participants took turns to share their best memories at RSVP, creating a wonderfully nostalgic atmosphere as everyone fondly looked back on each enjoyable experience together. A total of 23 volunteers and 13 staff took part in this session, contributing to the reservoir of recollections that made up the RSVP experience.
Mr Sunny Chan
29 May 2020
In this engaging and fruitful chit-chat session, RSVP Board member Mr Sunny Chan (also a seasoned gardener) shared about his extensive gardening experiences and gave sage advice on how he grew some of his plants. The discussion took root when other participants started chiming in with their experiences with their houseplants. A total of 21 volunteers and 23 staff took part in this session.
Mr Raymond Chan
15 May 2020
The extra hours spent at home during the Circuit Breaker period provided an excellent opportunity for many to try new activities that they otherwise might not have had time for. In this informal chit-chat session with RSVP Board member Mr Raymond Chan, participants shared the new hobbies that they had picked up during the period of staying at home, ranging from baking and cooking to gardening and sports. A total of 23 volunteers and 17 staff attended this session, exchanging suggestions on what new pastimes others could also try out with all the newfound time on their hands.
Mr Foo Chee Meng
30 April 2020
The Circuit Breaker period meant that most people would have to limit interactions with others outside of their own home, but that was not necessarily a bad thing. For many, this was a golden opportunity to spend more time with their family members! During this informal chit-chat session with RSVP Board member Mr Foo Chee Meng, participants shared about the fun activities they had done with their family to pass the time and grow even closer together. A total of 27 volunteers and 20 staff attended this session.
Mr Koh Juay Meng, PBM
24 April 2020
With the Circuit Breaker period approaching, questions on how this would affect day-to-day life were certainly on everybody’s mind. Amidst such uncertainty, RSVP Chairman Mr Koh Juay Meng, PBM, led a discussion with volunteers and staff on topics such as how livelihoods had been affected by strict government measures, as well as how members managed to keep their spirits up and remain occupied during the period. The session was attended by a total of 47 volunteers and 23 staff, which allowed for an engaging and insightful discussion.
Makan with Me
5 August 2020
In this session of Makan with Me – National Day edition, Ms. Marie Mattar hosted the session with volunteers and staff. During the session, volunteers and staff were encouraged to share their best memories of the National Day Parade over lunch! A total of 22 volunteers and staff attended the session and had a great time reminiscing about their memorable recollections of the National Day Parade.
26 May 2020
In the third Makan with Me session, Ms. Marie Mattar and the participants shared about how they spent their Hari Raya during the Circuit Breaker period, a new and interesting experience as it had to be done within their own homes. Of course, no celebration is complete without the talk of good food, which was why many eagerly shared about the kinds of yummy treats they got to eat during the festive period, making everyone else hungry in the process! A total of 10 volunteers and 14 staff attended the session, bringing a cheerful and lively atmosphere with them.
5 May 2020
To kick off the week, Ms. Marie Mattar held another casual, yet lively chit-chat session with other volunteers and staff. A total of 16 volunteers and staff took part in this free and easy session.
21 April 2020
Hosted by RSVP Board member Ms. Marie Mattar, the very first Makan with Me session served to kick off our Stay Home with RSVP initiative, a series of activities that our volunteers can take part in from the comfort of their own homes. A total of 25 volunteers and staff attended the casual chit-chat session, bringing their lunches along and catching up with each other as though it were a physical lunch date!
Cook with Me
Beer Bread
25 September 2020
RSVP ChefSR volunteer Malar shared her exclusive Beer Bread recipe during an interactive Zoom session with volunteers and participants. 42 volunteers and staff participated in the exclusive screening of her Beer Bread recipe.
Click on the following link for Malar’s Beer Bread recipe.
Nori Roll
21 August 2020
Who does not like a simple yet delicious Nori Roll recipe? In this session of Cook with Me, RSVP volunteer Nancy Quek shared her latest and exclusive Nori Roll recipe! A step-by-step instructional video of preparing the Nori Roll was filmed and screened during the interactive Zoom session where participants were encouraged to ask questions about the recipe. 37 participants attended the exclusive screening of Nancy’s Nori Roll recipe.
Click on the following link for Nancy’s Nori Roll recipe.
Yoghurt Recipes
1 July 2020
Volunteer Elaine took things up a notch and shared easy and fuss-free dessert recipes. This time, the spotlight was on one simple ingredient – yoghurt! The recipes she shared were 2-ingredient Instant Doughnuts, 30-minute Oven-Baked Tandoori Wings with Cucumber Yoghurt Dip and Yoghurt Burger Buns.
Elaine also talked about some tips about yoghurt and how else it could be used in other recipes. After that, she held a live Q&A session for the participants.
Click on the following links for Elaine’s Yoghurt recipes.
Butter Rice and Crispy Chicken
5 June 2020
In this Cook with Me session, volunteer Elaine focused on a simpler dish – this time teaching viewers how to cook this simple, yet delectable Butter Rice with Crispy Chicken. With mouthwatering crispy chicken thigh baked on top of fluffy and buttery rice, this is no doubt a winner chicken dinner. A total of 61 volunteers and 12 staff were in this session.
Click here to download Elaine’s Butter Rice with Crispy Chicken’s recipe.
Baked Sweet & Sour Fish Parcel
22 May 2020
Having received rave reviews for her twists on local dishes, volunteer Elaine shared with participants how she made her tasty and easy Baked Sweet & Sour Fish Parcel, with another healthy twist! Who doesn’t love a speedy and healthy meal like this? Truly this is goodness all wrapped up in one tight little bundle. 15 staff and 41 volunteers were in attendance, having been reeled in and satisfied by Elaine’s fish dish.
Click here to download Elaine’s Baked Sweet & Sour Fish Parcel’s recipe.
Healthier Nasi Lemak
6 May 2020
Brought back by popular demand, volunteer Elaine hosted another Cook with Me session, this time with a healthier spin on a familiar classic – Nasi Lemak! Viewers were given the opportunity to learn how to cook this beloved dish and were given air time to voice out concerns or questions in the end. A total of 43 volunteers and 16 staff took part in this session.
Click here to download Elaine’s Healthier Nasi Lemak recipe.
Angel Toast
29 April 2020
Starting off our Cook with Me series, RSVP volunteer Elaine from ChefSR shared how she made her simple yet delectable Angel Toast over a Zoom session. Participants were given step-by-step instructions on how to achieve the impressive final product, and also had the chance to clarify any questions they had during a live Q&A session at the end. This session was wildly popular, with 46 volunteers and 8 staff in attendance and eager to learn from Elaine.
Click here to download Elaine’s Angel Toast recipe!
Work Out with Me
Chair Yoga by Varsha
17 November 2020
Volunteer Varsha conducted a session to introduce Chair Yoga to participants and taught them some basic Chair Yoga poses they could easily try at home!
HAPPY Exercise by HAPPY Trainers
6 November 2020
HAPPY trainers Florence and Yun Bing conducted a HAPPY Circuit Training with 22 of our lovely volunteers!
HAPPY Exercise by HAPPY Trainers
15 October 2020
HAPPY trainers Florence and Yun Bing conducted a HAPPY Circuit Training with 15 participants and engaged them with basic HAPPY moves!
Yoga with Varsha
16 September 2020
What better way to relax your busy mind than to do yoga – a gentle and relaxing way to improve your posture, breathing, and coordination. Yoga also helps one to develop mindfulness. To help our volunteers and staff de-stress, RSVP Singapore volunteer Varsha conducted a one-hour yoga session with 19 participants and taught basic yoga poses that could be easily done at home.
Body Percussion by HAPPY Trainer
28 August 2020
HAPPY trainer Lily guided 33 energetic participants in simple body percussion moves!
HAPPY Circuit Training Exercise
9 July 2020
Volunteer Florence Lim, who is a certified HAPPY trainer, guided participants in a few sets of fun and easy HAPPY Circuit exercises with participants.
HAPPY Body Number Exercise
19 June 2020
Volunteer Lai Chong Kian, who is a certified HAPPY instructor, held a simple Body Number exercise session for seniors over Facebook Live. The purpose of the exercise is to delay frailty and improve cognitive functions, while at the same time also improving mental and physical strength. With simple on the spot marching and arm movements, the exercise was easy for seniors to learn and follow.
HAPPY Stepping Exercise
1 May 2020
The Healthy Ageing Promotion Programme For You (HAPPY) Programme is a physical exercise programme that helps seniors in improving their mental well-being, memory, functional ability and strength.
In an up-tempo way to get hearts pumping, volunteer Malli led seniors in a simple and fun stepping exercise session held over Facebook Live.
AWE Fun Drumming Exercise
12 June 2020
Volunteer Genevieve Chua held a second AWE fun drumming session over Zoom. This time, however, Genevieve ramped up the difficulty of the drumming session by using more challenging drum steps.
12 May 2020
Volunteer Genevieve Chua, Vice Chair and Honorary Treasurer of RSVP Singapore held a fun drumming session over Zoom. Adapted from the Music Rhythm and Reminiscence portion from the Age Well Everyday (AWE) Programme, this light-hearted session aims to improve cognitive functioning, as well as reduce anxiety and stress levels. The participants had a great time grooving to Chubby Checker’s “Let’s Twist Again” while playing their own drums as they followed along with Genevieve’s drum tutorial. In total, 22 volunteers and 11 staff attended this session.
AWE Mindfulness Practice
25 June 2020
Ageing well is not just about being physically active, but also involves taking care of one’s psychological health. In this mindfulness practice, volunteer Peng Guan taught viewers how they can have happiness and joy in their lives by teaching them how to give loving-kindness and compassion to themselves and to others.
Virtual Christmas & Year-End Party 2020!
23 December 2020
What better way to end the year with a virtual Christmas and Year-End party for all volunteers and staff!
Nutrition Health Talk by NKF
17 December 2020
More than 70 volunteers joined us on 17 December for a nutrition talk conducted by NKF Singapore. To help our volunteers understand how diet can play a fundamental role in their health, NKF Singapore shared a wide array of topics such as practical tips on healthy eating to prevent chronic illnesses such as diabetes and hypertension. Thank you NKF Singapore for conducting this session and we certainly hope all our volunteers gained a better understanding of how diet impacts health.
3-Part Series on Senior Guiding!
9 December 2020
Our final part of our casual Chit Chat session with Senior Guides saw the continuation of “Discovering Mural Arts in your Neighbourhood!”. For this session, participants were encouraged to share some of the murals they have seen in their neighbourhood, their interpretation of the murals and uncover the stories and meaning behind the murals
2 December 2020
Art brings people closer together! Hence, part 2 of our casual Chit Chat session with Senior Guides saw us “visiting” several mural arts seen in the various parts of Singapore! A few of our Senior Guides shared some of their favourite art mural pieces and their interpretation of the art pieces with the participants.
25 November 2020
To share a little more about RSVP Singapore Senior Guiding Programme and learn what does it take to be a Senior Guide at RSVP, a casual Chit Chat session was conducted with our Senior Guides! During the session, participants gained a better understanding of the different volunteering opportunities we offer in our Senior Guiding Programme and had the opportunity to raise questions with our Senior Guides.
“Using Telegram” Tutorial
12 November 2020
Cyberguide Trainer Kendra Ong hosted a Facebook Livestream session and taught participants all the tricks and tips on getting started on using Telegram!
RSVP Celebrates Deepavali!
9 November 2020
RSVP Singapore’s first-ever virtual Deepavali celebration, hosted by our lovely volunteers Malar and Seetha! Over 30 volunteers joined us for the festive celebration and thank you Malar and Seetha for sharing many interesting facts about Deepavali.
Beyond Dialysis Talk by NKF
29 October 2020
Recruitment Talk by Boys’ Town
21 October 2020
To help our volunteers understand more about Boys Town and their programmes, representatives from Boys’ Town conducted a recruitment sharing talk with RSVP Singapore volunteers! 50 volunteers and staff attended the sharing session by Boys’ Town and learned more about how they can play a part in helping the youths.
Chit Chat with Volunteer Leader
1 October 2020
Volunteer Leader Mr Lai Chong Kian shared with over 22 participants about his volunteering journey with RSVP Singapore and his motivations of volunteering. Mr Lai is truly an inspiration to many, based on the sentiments shared by fellow volunteers during the session. We definitely hope his sharing has motivated more of our volunteers to step up and continue doing great things with us!
Kopi, Teh and Contemporary Art Online
10 September 2020
In September, four of our Senior Guides were involved in the Singapore Art Museum’s Kopi, Teh and Contemporary Art Online exhibition. Four sessions in English, Tamil, Malay and Mandarin respectively were conducted in the month of September. Our RSVP Senior Guides conducted virtual sharing sessions on Zoom and shared with participants three artworks from the Singapore Idols series by Singaporean artist Dawn Ng.
Tips on Storytelling
3 September 2020
What makes a good storyteller and what are some storytelling techniques? RSVP volunteer Seetha conducted a sharing session to impart useful storytelling tips and techniques for children from 7 to 12 years old. The highly engaging and insightful session saw 28 participants and everyone definitely did learn a thing or two about storytelling!
Kopi, Teh and Contemporary Art Online
10 August 2020
In August, our Senior Guides were involved in the Singapore Art Museum’s Kopi, Teh and Contemporary Art Online exhibition. Four sessions in English, Tamil, Malay and Mandarin respectively were conducted in the month of August. Our RSVP Senior Guides conducted virtual sharing sessions on Zoom and shared with participants three artworks from the Singapore Idols series by Singaporean artist Jing Quek. These sessions saw over 100 participants!
Awareness Talk by CPF
7 August 2020
In this one-hour session on Zoom, CPF officers shared useful bite-sized information with volunteers and staff on interesting topics such as Retirement Sum Topping-Up Scheme, CPL Life/ Retirement Sum Scheme and CPF Nomination. All the participants gained a deeper insights on the various schemes that are relevant and had the opportunity to raise queries with the CPF officers. A great turnout of 73 volunteers and staff participated in the talk!
[NSA e-Nuggets Series] e-Entertainment (YouTube)
19 May 2020
As part of the National Silver Age (NSA) e-Nuggets Series, RSVP Cyberguide Volunteer Kendra was invited by C3A to share a tutorial on navigating through Youtube. Kendra taught her viewers on the basics such as learning how to explore, search for, like, save and subscribe to videos on Youtube. She ended off her session by giving a glimpse of one of Youtube’s more remarkable features: 360 degree videos. This Facebook Live session was attended by over a hundred viewers.
“How to Use Zoom” Video Tutorial
19 May 2020
Zoom, a teleconferencing application often used by businesses, has become a sensational hit among others, having been used to connect during the COVID-19 pandemic. To keep up with the times, volunteer Kendra stepped up and shared an in-depth video tutorial on how to use Zoom on mobile devices. In this simple step-by-step guide, Kendra taught viewers how to download the application, register for an account, and shared more about Zoom’s features.
Craft with Me
28 May 2020
All of us have heard the old adage: One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.
In her first Craft with Me session, volunteer June proved that old discarded materials can be transformed into new and functional products with just a few tweaks. Through the art of paper quilling, June taught participants how they can make their very own environmentally friendly cup coasters, using just a few simple materials like recycled magazines and ice-cream sticks. A total of 16 volunteers and 17 staff took part in this crafty activity.
Click here for the instructions for making June’s cup coasters.
Mini AWE Zoom Session
20 June 2020
A fitness sensation among our volunteers and staff, volunteer Genevieve was featured in a mini AWE Zoom session hosted by NUS Mind Science, where she was given the honor to share her beloved AWE Fun Drumming exercise with other participants. In this hour-long session, there were other mindfulness panel talks by practitioners, ranging from topics like therapeutic horticulture and mindful awareness practices.
For the full video, you may refer to the link here.
How to Use Zoom on iOS
23 June 2020
With the popularity of our previous video about using Zoom on Android devices, there came a need to produce a similar guide for iPhone and iPad users. In this session, volunteer Harriet showcased an in-depth tutorial on how iOS users could download the Zoom application on their phones, register themselves on the platform, as well as explained more details about Zoom’s many features.
A Day In An MDOP Session
15 July 2020
Participants were treated to a glimpse of a Mentally Disadvantaged Outreach Programme (MDOP), which was led by MDOP volunteers Gillian, Amidah and Emmelin. In this programme, these volunteers conducted tutorials that covered sign language greetings and crochet mask extensions. Participants also had a brain boost as they took part in a brain gym exercise as well. A total of 10 volunteers and 9 staff participated in this session.
