Zhou Yuhan, 13

School: CHIJ St. Nicholas Girls’ School

Topic: A letter on a class celebration proposal

Award: Distinction, Junior Category, 2024

Dear Mrs Tan,

I would like to organise a class celebration for my Math teacher, Mrs Lee.

After reading from the news that Mrs Lee selflessly donated her kidney to an unknown stranger, I was impressed and surprised by her heartwarming act of compassion and strength. It must have been an extremely difficult decision to choose to donate her own kidney to someone whom she didn’t even know, to reach out and save the life of a stranger at the cost of her own health and well-being. It must require a great deal of courage and generosity to donate an organ which you will never get back. Although not everyone is eligible to be an organ donor, we can all play a part in serving those in need through different kinds of initiatives such as raising awareness about organ donation and fundraising. Mrs Lee sacrificing herself to give someone a new lease of life has impacted me greatly and I would like to show her that one act by a selfless person can change and influence the lives of many others positively.

As such, I would like to organise a class celebration to honour her contribution to society. We could have a class gathering after school as well as make gifts for Mrs Lee to celebrate and show our appreciation and admiration for her. During the class celebration, we could hold a talk about organ donation so the class can learn more about what those with organ failure go through on a daily basis. This would allow the class to understand the importance of organ donation and its impact on the recipients, empowering them to support those in need. My classmates and I could do different kinds of crafts to give to Mrs Lee. For instance, we could make paper stars and heart shaped bookmarks out of origami paper. We could use the stars to fill a glass jar and write positive messages on the bookmarks to give to Mrs Lee.

This would allow us to celebrate her contribution as well as increase awareness about organ donation. This allows us to show and remind her that she is loved and appreciated, encouraging her to continue inspiring and uplifting others.

Organ donors are like stars whose legacies will continue on forever, shining as beacons of hope and light for those with organ failure and brightening their lives. They contributed as much or even more than our everyday heroes like medical staff and firefighters but do not get as much recognition. Thus, please support me in welcoming Mrs Lee back to school after her one-month leave and celebrating her contribution of courage, compassion and love together.

Yours sincerely,
Yuhan

Disclaimer: Please note that the views and opinions expressed in the essays for the Live On Festival 2024 are those of the participants and are not endorsed by the National Organ Transplant Unit (Ministry of Health).

To learn more about organ donation and organ transplantation in Singapore, please visit www.liveon.gov.sg