Our Story

"I am deeply moved by the community care to people with intellectual disabilities that has shown in this incident."

 

Missing Trainee

Finding a missing person in a small city like Hong Kong is not an easy task. Especially when everybody has to put on medical masks during the pandemic period. It is extremely difficult to notice or even distinguish a missing trainee by giving a quick glance at someone’s eyes or outfits. The Hong Chi District Support Centre – N.T. (North District) was informed by a hostel nearby that a trainee with intellectual disability (“Lai Fong”) was found missing earlier this year. After the news had been spread in the centre, a Hong Chi volunteer search team was immediately formed to start conducting searches in the communities surrounding the North District. During the 21-day search, team members experienced constant worries and repeated disappointments which made them emotionally exhausted and overwhelmed. The heartwarming care and support they received in the community has provided a strong backing for the team to keep looking for and finding Lai Fong.

 

Organized Searches in North District

When our staff learned that Lai Fong was found missing, they started recruiting volunteers on the WhatsApp group to get updated information from the hostel and also to organize searches at the same time. Since Lai Fong lives very near to the centre, she used to join centre activities every Saturdays. Tobi Yeung, the centre’s Senior Training Instructor who has known Lai Fong for over 10 years said, “When Fong was found missing, she wore the exact same outfit that she wore on the Saturday gathering. After collecting her latest photos taken on Saturday and some personal information, with the agreement of Fong’s family, we drafted a missing notice and posted it on social media. At the same time , our staff went through all the places and shops where Fong used to go. We shared her missing information with shop keepers and community members nearby, and asked for their help.” In order to find the missing Lai Fong as soon as they could, staff members scattered throughout different parks, footbridges, wet markets, fast food restaurants, bus stops and other places in Tai Po, Sheung Shui, Fanling and the Kwu Tung district.

 

Community Support

Community members provided actual support and assistance when the team was conducting searches. Apart from receiving help from community churches, a team of 40 volunteers named “Going Home” was formed by community organizations to join searches for Lai Fong. One of the community members, Ms To who is a fast food restaurant operator, went to a bus terminal nearby and shared the news of the missing trainee with bus drivers during their break time. “I wanted to give them a helping hand when I saw the centre’s staff hanging around the shops and bus stops for days to try to find Fong.” Mr Hau who constantly goes to the podium at public estates every day, also shared the news to his neighbors. “I wish they could find the missing trainee as soon as possible,” said Mr Hau.

 

Worried about Her Safety

The centre received several calls reporting that Lai Fong had been seen in different places in the Sheung Shui district. Once the team received news about Lai Fong, they rushed to places where people said she had appeared. Each search resulted in disappointment because most of the time she was mistakenly recognized. Even though the results were disappointing, the team still believed they had a good chance to find Fong as she had been seen by others. “We really worried about her safety. We have contacted the North District Hospital every day to check if Fong had been found,” said Jessica Lee, the centre’s manager.

 

Feeling Relieved

The team was anxiously planning another search after Lai Fong had been found missing for weeks, but then Ms Lee received another call saying that Lai Fong had been found in Tsuen Wan. “Ms Leung was asked to put Fong on the phone to let us confirm her identity. As soon as we heard her voice, we rushed to get a taxi right away. While we were on the way to Tsuen Wan, we kept comforting Fong with a video call and she asked Ms Leung to take her to a restaurant,” Kiki Ti, Training Instructor said. “When we saw Fong, we had to hold back our tears. Our fears and worries would only make her feel worse.” When Kiki spoke about this, her eyes could not help turn red.

 

A Simple Act of Kindness

Thinking back on the scene when Lai Fong was found, Ms Leung said she saw Lai Fong standing next to a rubbish bin with a cup of pearl milk tea in her hands while Ms Leung was on the way to evening school at Tsuen Wan. “When I saw Fong, she looked filthy, scared and a little lost. So I talked to her to see what I could do for her. After a while, I realized that she was the missing trainee. I recalled that I had seen her photo on social media, so I called the centre immediately,” said Ms Leung. A simple act of caring helped Lai Fong to get away from street sleeping.

 

Community Love

Ms Lee said, “Our team is deeply moved by the community’s love and care for people with intellectual disabilities. We sincerely thank all volunteers and neighbors for giving their helping hands to us. When we reached out to the community, it became a large scale public education to help promote better understanding for people with intellectual disabilities.” Once again, the team extends its heartfelt gratitude for all the support, love and care received from the community. Christmas is the season of blessing. We wish you all a merry Christmas and a happy New Year filled with love and joy.

 

Please click here to watch the full video interview