Joycelyn Chan, 27, is passionate about people, especially children. Despite her young age, she is already sponsoring two children from Welikanda Area Development Programme (ADP), Sri Lanka – Jathupriya (6) and Nuwan (9).
In July 2017, Joycelyn joined the inaugural sponsors’ visit to Sri Lanka. “My heart ached when I first arrived at the community. Life is harsh for the people there. At that time, they were going through a drought so water supply was greatly reduced. Despite their circumstances, they were still overflowing with joy when they spoke about how their lives have drastically improved with World Vision’s help.” Joycelyn also commended the ADP staff on their passion, dedication and sacrifice to help the people of Welikanda.
For the electrical engineer, the highlight of the trip was meeting Jathupriya. “She is a lovely and pretty girl; a bit shy and reserved as compared to her 2-year-old sister. She was a ball of nerves yet so excited for our meet up that her body temperature was slightly high when we met. But we had a really good time together.”
Touched by what she saw and experienced in Sri Lanka, Joycelyn decided to sponsor another child and that was when Nuwan came into her life. “Many of us are blessed in so many ways that we often take life and the things we have for granted. We forget to ‘live’ and to be grateful for the things we have. This has motivated me to share about child sponsorship with my friends, colleagues and family. It may not cost them much but it means a whole lot for the children and their community.” Many of Joycelyn’s family and friends have now come on board as a child sponsor.