SINGAPORE - Ms Aziah Salim, 54, started volunteering as a volunteer probation officer (VPO) – supporting young offenders serving probation – out of curiosity.

When she met hostile young people who refused to speak to her, she pressed on. Fifteen years later, she is still at it, driven by the satisfaction of helping wayward youth complete their probation and get back on track in life.

“I’m very happy when they’re free, and can get back on their feet and start normal life again,” said Ms Aziah, who works full-time as a marketing associate.

She was among the volunteers sharing their experiences at the first Volunteer Festival, or VFest, launched by the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) as part of its Year of Celebrating Volunteers.

Held over four weekends in July in the heartland, VFest will have booths by social service agencies on their volunteer opportunities, as well as fireside chats and sharing of experiences by volunteers at different organisations.

Each weekend focuses on a key theme specific to the resident demographics and volunteering needs in the different regions in Singapore.

They are: enabling persons with disabilities at Our Tampines Hub on July 6 and 7; strengthening families at Toa Payoh Hub on July 13 and 14; helping low-income families at Kampung @ Admiralty on July 20 and 21; and supporting youth in-risk at Lot One Shoppers’ Mall on July 27 and 28.

Speaking at the festival, Minister for Social and Family Development Masagos Zulkifli said close to eight in 10 social service agencies have put in place volunteer management processes and about seven in 10 have dedicated volunteer managers.

He added that 24 SG Cares Volunteer Centres have been set up to coordinate volunteer efforts, as well as the MSFCare Network started to coordinate family-centric programmes and connect volunteers with one another.

Such efforts to sustain volunteer engagement have resulted in a 20 per cent increase in total volunteering hours in the last two years, Mr Masagos said.

On top of her duties as a VPO, Ms Aziah had taken up another volunteer commitment as a Child Protective Service volunteer in 2021. She said building trust with the children’s families is challenging, but she has learnt not to take her problems home.

“I don’t feel alone doing this,” she said, adding that she has a group of friends of different ages and backgrounds who volunteer as VPOs under the MSFCare Network whom she meets at volunteer events.