Making Life's Road A Little Easier For Another

When we entered the e-nnovators awards 2000 contest, we never expected to win. Nor did we expect Donorweb to progress to what it is today. In between, the road was bumpy.

The first brick was laid when Red Cross made us their IT partner in February. What followed was a mad rush to get donorweb.org ready for the national launch on 14 April 2001.

Everything was urgent - from recruitment, research, editing, site building, to logo design, interviews, and event planning.

Our dedicated volunteers are truly God sent. They were pushing ahead all the time, undeterred by the short timelines and near-impossible workloads. Whenever times got tough, someone would always come forward to pull some extra weight. They also had to put up with the late-night meetings and avalanche of emails. It would have been so much easier to just hit the 'Escape' button.

Sure, at times big obstacles came up and we seriously doubted that we could put everything together by 14 April. But after burning countless evenings, and some thousands of emails later, we're proud to say, we made it!

More importantly, we made friends.

With these wonderful people behind Donorweb, I shared thick and thin, and the passion to make life's road a little easier for another.

That road has just begun. Come walk with us.

Charles Lim Sing Siong
Chairperson, Donorweb
April 2001

Tis a bunch of crazy pals Who hope we can somehow propel Singaporeans to be more kind And donate blood to save some lives We hope to spread our message clear And dispel any unfounded fear But ultimately we're a wacky bunch So join our team and grab some lunch!*

(*to make some sense of this last line, see profile on Chin Yin, the one who wrote this poem)

Mr Norman Ho, Policy and Legal Advisor
As a senior partner with Rodyk & Davidson, Norman advises corporations on legal issues relating to real estate development and management. He is also currently the Legal Advisor of the Bone Marrow Programme. His wealth of experience and legal expertise has been a tremendous asset to Donorweb, and his dedication and industrious work ethic is a model for the whole team. But lest you think otherwise, he is one hip and happening yuppie lawyer who zips around in his droolsome SLK. He enjoys meeting people, reading, singing, scuba diving and anything related to the fine arts.

Dr Tan Lip Kun, Policy and Medical Advisor Dr Tan Lip Kun is a Consultant Haematologist with the National University Hospital and a part-time lecturer at the National University of Singapore. Among other things, she is also heavily involved in post-graduate specialist training in Haematology at the hospital. It amazes us all how she manages to squeeze Donorweb into her hectic life to be our Medical and Policy Advisor, but we're mighty glad she did. Don't let her steely exterior daunt you though, for she's one cool Doc with a great sense of humour. Despite the weight of her commitments, Lip remains young at heart and enjoys swimming, cycling and reading.

Adrian
Adrian is the Assistant Vice-Chairperson of Donorweb. A 26-year old idealistic-realist, he works out at the gym a lot and plays rugby for the Wanderers. Likes nothing better than stretching out on a beach, listening to music, reading a good book and sipping a mug of hot chocolate on a cold day.

Beverly
Beverly loves helping people. She’s a real POTATO-fan and especially loves her grandma’s potato patties (Malay bergadel)! Beverly likes dogs and teddy bears and just about everything around her!! She is afraid of snakes and heights though. Together with Mei Ling, she forms the Dynamic Design Duo—the people behind the amazing graphics of Junior Donorweb.

Brigid
Brigid, Charles Lim’s god-sister, is a joker who frequently interjects a serious meeting with irreverent remarks. But underneath that fun-loving exterior is a go-getter who has enough grey cells to market IT solutions for a living. With her exquisite charm and overdrive, Brigid helps Donorweb in reaching out to sponsors. Being her helpful self, she also jumps readily into all other areas that needs her help.

Charles Lim
This final year NUS Law undergraduate is our Donorweb Chairperson. Leading and inspiring the team with his fiery passion, he looks ahead, around, and inside every issue. This he does with superhuman energy while he is juggling schoolwork and a host of other activities. His enthusiasm sometimes lands him in trouble, when fellow volunteers pummel him for flooding them with emails! But being blessed with a big heart, Charles takes any criticism with great humility and objectivity. Anyway, no one really gets angry with this nice and caring guy. In his free time, you will find him reading up on current affairs, politics, going to movies or engaging in sporting pursuits like jogging.

Charles Sng
This much older and much shorter Charles is Donorweb’s marcom i/c. He is envied by many for remaining skinny despite eating five full meals a day, snacks not included! Despite the small frame, he still sticks out at Donorweb meetings, cos this compulsive organiser always has a stapler and hole-puncher at hand. Charles isn’t thoroughly focused and organised all the time, though. He’s also quite good at daydreaming. When he’s not busy with Donorweb or earning his keep in corporate communications, Charles fantasizes about becoming fat.

Chin Yin
You’d think Chin Yin, our head of the Recruitment and Education Team, is either very bubbly or mad. She likes to sleep, read, travel, sing, do silly things, eat (a lot) and catch any Ralph Fiennes movie. She hopes to own a beach resort, be a museum curator or a sound engineer, and be strong in The Force. But beneath that chaos lies organized thought and action. Like her new name "Lea" ( feminine for "Leo"), she expresses herself openly and creatively as a lioness would. Handy qualities for her job in marketing technology, and for her multiple roles in Donorweb, including IT, editorial, education and recruitment.

Choon Ling
Choon Ling is a walking paradox. Extremely focused and analytical while engaging you in a serious discussion, she would deadpan a corny remark without notice. She often pretends to be a bimbo, and harbours hopes of becoming a world famous singer. In reality, Choon Ling is the events i/c for Donorweb, and holds a profession in marketing and communications.

Derrick
This Electrical and Electronic Engineering undergrad is all wired-up for volunteer work, something that he has enjoyed doing (and very well too) for many years. As part of the education and recruitment team, he gathers educational information for Donorweb whilst planning for our future recruitment efforts. Smart, gregarious, loyal and very good-natured, Derrick loves to make new friends, read or talk about anything under the sun. He has single-handedly demolished the popular belief that engineers are square.

Hock Mui
Hock Mui thinks she is a camel, and most of us would agree. Keeping a low but steady profile, she eats and drinks very little while quietly handling research and writing in Donorweb’s Editorial and MarCom teams. Very up the alley of this communications professional, who has rich volunteering experience, loves children and works in the financial sector.

Hsiu Yong
Headhunted to create the overall “look and feel” of our website and logo (don’t you just love her work?), Hsiu Yong is our resident webmaster and a web designer by profession who enjoys dabbling with astrology, going to movies and staying at home in her cosy bed.

Jeanette(in our fondest memory)
Jeanette was a spunky gal with a great zest for life. Her passions were travelling and learning about other cultures, reading and soaking in all kinds of information like a sponge. Most often, you would have found her attending all those "arty farty" plays/musicals or tucking in on her favourite laksa or chicken rice. She was a very friendly and approachable person. Her fighting spirit and kind soul remain a great source of motivation for the rest of us.

Joanne
Joanne appears to be a bit shy at first, but if you get to know her better, you will find that she's witty, funny and very sincere. Doing volunteer work is nothing new to Jo as she has a caring heart. She is efficient and professional in her work, never shirking her responsibilities. Jo is family and church oriented. She devotes a big part of life towards things she really cares for, and it shines through.

Kelvin
Kelvin loves having Yong Tau Foo for lunch. In fact, that’s his staple diet. This O+ blood-type geek is earnest and well mannered. His mind works overtime to make sure the IT development of Donorweb runs on schedule. Otherwise, he would be playing Ultimate Frisbee with Adrian and a bunch of friends at Marina South on Sundays. Occasionally Kelvin wonders what the world would be like without Yong Tau Foo.

Kenneth
The job of Donorweb’s Editorial i/c landed naturally on the shoulders of this NUS second-year Arts and Social Science undergraduate who is used to satire and critical types of articles. Being involved in Donorweb has been a humbling and eye-opening experience for him and he hopes to do more of such community projects in the future.

Meiling
Meiling is a cheerful, B+ blood-type 20-something who likes practically everything under the sun! She has absolutely no idea what she wants to be when she grows up (like 95% of the population) but is currently working as a graphics animator. She and Beverly form the Dynamic Design Duo, responsible for the wacky, wonderful graphics of Junior Donorweb.

Ming Yen
One of the first things that will strike you about this final-year Law undergraduate is how sweet she looks. With a quiet, shy smile that could melt ice-bergs, Ming Yen's easy-going demeanour belies her strong character. A lawyer-to-be with Rodyk &Davidson, she is loyal and dedicated to her friends and is a great comfort to those in need of a listening ear. Kind and generous, she is always sparing a thought for the people around her and mixes easily with people of all ages.

Oliver
Oliver doesn't speak often, but when he does, everyone sits up and listens. That serious image is just one he wants to keep as an investment analyst. Out of the office, let him have a nice relaxing drink (non-alcoholic will do) and he'll be spouting politically incorrect nonsense in no time. That's when everyone wants to shut him up. Putting aside his schizophrenia, Oliver is a very capable and responsible person, so have no worries when you want to shoot "arrows" at him. At Donorweb, Oliver is in charge of forging ties with medical institutions, charities and other recipient oriented agencies.

Pin
Pin is a marketing executive with Hard Rock Hotels. On the Donorweb team, she is the invaluable vice-chairperson whose ever calm and mature disposition anchors the team and makes sure that things get done. She has a big heart and would like to help out in international charity organizations such as World Vision one day. Her ultimate dream is to settle down in Seattle, run her own Balinese restaurant and hike in the mountains on weekends. For now, you would find her poring over books in Borders, or just sipping a cuppa at StarBucks in her free time.

Ronnie
Ronnie is the Technical Manager at Ingram Micro Asia Ltd. He gives talks, advice and provides solutions on the IT aspects to major companies both locally and internationally. His experience has shone through as he gamely took on the mantle of being our IT chief. Ron is a very dedicated volunteer, helping out in many charitable projects and as President of the Singapore Palm Users' Group. Lest you start painting an image of an IT nerd, Ron is wacky and fun to be with. Just refrain from engaging him in any IT talk cos the jargon will leave you utterly confused.

Sharonn Eric
Sharonn (yes, that's two 'n's) packs a lot of punch in a small frame. This outspoken HR consultant with Arthur Anderson seeks corporate opportunities to publicize Donorweb via retail outlets all over the island So call her if you own a café or restaurant chain, but look out for her wry (some say warped) sense of humour.

Sheau Wen
Previously a lawyer with the Intellectual Property Department of Drew & Napier, Sheau Wen is currently taking her Masters at NUS. Far from being a 'conventional' lawyer, Sheau Wen takes pride in shattering the stereotyped image most people have of lawyers. A simple, friendly, dedicated person with rich volunteering credentials accumulated from her varsity days, she has a heart of gold and is always willing to do her bit to help make another's life a little easier.

Sylvia
With a ready grin and an infectious sense of humour, Sylvia isn't your typical final-year Pharmacy undergraduate. She spends more time globe-trotting to attend international Pharmacy seminars than in school but we managed to track her down and roped her in to help out with Junior Donorweb. Blessed with many talents, she bakes like a pro and has an enviable artistic streak as evidenced by her many hand-made gifts and tastefully decorated room.

Winifred
Friends and colleagues have often described Winifred as a pack of dynamite. Her petite frame belies the energy with which she juggles her work in communications with her role as media relations i/c for Donorweb. Like many other volunteers on the team, Winifred has participated in a number of charity projects before this.

And we would like to thank...
These are just the people who have taken on formal duties at Donorweb. There are many more who have volunteered their help in different ways. Amongst them are: Cheng Huat, Gabriel Lim, Gin & Mei, Jayenthi, Jos, Murshidah, Regina , BigThink and many others.