) or https:// as an added precaution.Ms Sharon Liat, President of The Girls' Brigade Singapore,
Friends from the Girls' Brigade fraternity,
Friends from Grace Orchard School,
Families, Girls' Brigade girls and officers
A very good afternoon.
1. Thank you so much for having me. I have three reflections about today's "Friend In Deed" event. I must confess, for most of my schooling life I was in a boys' school, so I did not have much association with the Girls' Brigade. But this is my second event with the Girls' Brigade in the past month, and I do hope you see me as a friend, indeed.
2. On a more serious note, when we talk about doing good deeds, our aspiration is to build a society that is caring and compassionate, what Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has called a 'We First' society. Building a more cohesive society cannot rest on the shoulders of one entity or person alone. To that end, we see many sponsors and support from the agencies here. When we are able to galvanise the public, private, and people sectors together, we harness the collective power of good deeds in our society, and we bring society together.
3. My second reflection is in the context of a "Friend In Deed", and you've seen that in the video as well. This programme is about bringing friendship across different communities, groups, and backgrounds in Singapore. What makes this programme special is that it also brings dignity and choice to those it serves on the ground. Whether we are the ones giving or receiving, none of us is too far away from a circumstance where our roles might be reversed. So in that sense, this is a powerful message. In our desire to help one another as fellow Singaporeans, we must also bring a lens of friendship, a sense of camaraderie, and togetherness within our society.
4. My third reflection is that, in the Girls' Brigade, we are trying to instil values in our girls. In schools, we not only talk about competence, such as knowledge or information retention. What we truly want is to build character in our girls. When you make friends, make friends who inspire good deeds. In the friendships that you build within the Girls' Brigade or across communities, make sure these are friends who bring you towards goodness, togetherness, and building a better society for us all.
5. Finally, tomorrow is Mother's Day. There are many mothers here, and I want to acknowledge not only your contribution to the Girls' Brigade, but also that you are shaping the mothers of tomorrow. If you are an officer or volunteer who is not yet a mother yourself, you are actually channelling your motherly instincts to nurture the girls. The girls themselves will one day be mothers, so it is so important that we develop in them good values and character, because they will then carry forward our society and the next generation of good people and good Singaporeans.
6. With that, I wish everyone here a Happy Mother's Day. I am honoured to launch the sixth edition of the Girls' Brigade Friend In Deed. Thank you.