Focus on the Family Singapore

Focus on the Family Singapore Limited is a donor-supported Institution of Public Character (IPC) dedicated to helping families thrive. It believes the family unit is the basic building block of a thriving nation. It partners individuals and organizations to strengthen family relationships through differentiated programs, trusted resources, family counseling and content placement in various media. Its desire is to witness the powerful transformation of our society through healthy and positive family values today, and for generations to come...' ^[1]

The mission of Focus on the Family Singapore is to "help families thrive at every stage and phase of life", and it envisions "transformed families, communities and societies". It has six guiding principles: the sanctity of life, the permanence of marriage, the importance of outreach, the value of children, the importance of social responsibility, and the value of male and female.^[1]

Focus on the Family Singapore was founded in 2002 by Mr Tan Thuan Seng. Since then, it has conducted innumerable talks and workshops, organized nationwide events and counseled parents and couples, dedicated to fostering sustainable and irreplaceable family bonds. In 2010 and 2012, Focus on the Family Singapore received the Work-Life Excellence Award and the inaugural Sustained Work-Life Excellence Award in 2014 in recognition of the organization’s success in promoting flexibility and work-life harmony.^[1]

Signature Events

Date with Dad

Date with Dad is an exclusive yet fun annual event for fathers and daughters to connect deeply and create lasting memories. Designed especially for fathers and daughters aged between 10 and 18 years, the program features fun bonding activities and meaningful conversations in an intimate atmosphere, where both dads and daughters can share their hearts. It also provides dads with an opportunity to affirm their love for their daughters and to renew their pledge to be the dad she needs him to be.^[2]

In 2012, Focus on the Family Singapore organized Date with Dad in Changi Prison for prison inmates for the first time. In 2013, Date with Dad was held in Changi Prison; this time, it concluded with a father's day meal for inmates and their loved ones courtesy of Starhub. This was part of their Project Family Time campaign.

Since 2009, the event has been attended by over 1,542 fathers and daughters, including 194 prison inmates and their daughters.

Adventure with Dad

Adventure with Dad is a biennial father-son urban camp for fathers and daughters to bond over shared activities and create last memories. Designed especially for father and fathers between 10 and 14 years, where both dads and sons can get their hands dirty and tackle challenges together. It provides dads with a chance to spend quality time with their sons, away from the distractions of a constantly connected society. Launched in 2014, the camp saw 136 father and son pairs impacted and challenged to build deeper and stronger relationships.

Simply Sofa

As part of National Family Celebrations 2011, Focus organized the Simply Sofa Hunt (previously organized in 2005 and 2009) for the third time on Jun 18, 2011. This creative family bonding event aimed to:

• Strengthen family bonds by providing families with a fun and novel platform to interact
• Help parents appreciate the simple joys of spending quality time with their children
• Appreciate fathers and their role in the family

Impact Programs

Connect2

Connect2 is a marriage preparation program that aims to help couples address issues that they may face as newlyweds, build a solid foundation in the early years and learn how to really love each other - for life.^[3]

No Apologies

No Apologies aims to have open and honest dialogue with youth about abstinence and practicing safe sex. Teenagers are well aware of the potential physical consequences involved in engaging in premarital sex, we address the emotional, mental and social implications in this workshop. We believe that in sharing with them the truth and facts about sex, they will be well equipped to make wise life choices.^[4]

Focus on the Family Singapore's No Apologies programs is 1 of only 6 sexuality education programs approved by the Ministry of Education.^[5] Following the media attention and public outcry in Singapore regarding the content of sexuality education programs offered in schools by external parties, the Ministry of Education suspended all sexuality education programs in schools, except those conducted by the school teachers.^[6] The ministry then conducted a vetting process.^[6] The resulting shortlist Singapore schools may engage to conduct sexuality education workshops consisted of 6 organizations: Fei Yue Community Services, Cornerstone Community Services Centre, Focus on the Family Singapore, Touch Youth, High Achievers Training Consultancy, and Eka Training Group. No Apologies.^[5]

Parenting with Confidence

Parenting with Confidence is a positive, practical and fun parenting workshop that provides essential tools and timeless principles in raising independent and intelligent children who go on to be knowledgeable and responsible adults. It will inspire parents to help their kids realize their potential while understanding the unique intricacies in dealing with each age group.^[7]

Sticky Notes and Push Pins

Sticky Notes and Push Pins is a workshop tailored for young people excited about their future and looking to make plans. They will be encouraged to explore what love, dating and marriage means to them and what they should expect in a healthy relationship. This program aims to equip them to make discerning and informed decisions when it comes to their future relationships.

It is a three-hour workshop aimed at youths between 17 and 20 years old.^[8]

The Heart of Success

The Heart of Success workshop introduces staff to the idea of work-life integration and how to maximize whatever time they have allocated for work and personal life. It is designed to help them get to the heart of true success and serve as inspiration to find significance and purpose in work. Leaving them motivated to exceed expectations in the workplace, and enjoy rewarding personal relationships.^[9]

SG50 Initiative

Raising50 is Focus on the Family Singapore’s initiative in conjunction with SG50 to educate and raise awareness about foster care in Singapore. The campaign aims to raise 50 foster families for 50 children and 200 families to wrap around them in support. It was also launched as part of the Foster Our Future initiative which aims to promote and protect the Value of Children and the Sanctity of Life.

Part of the campaign included an exclusive screening of The Drop Box Film in June 2015 which was shown to over 3,000 people across 3 days.

In the Media

Focus on the Family Singapore has been heard regularly on radio stations 938LIVE and BE107FM, and can be found contributing to local publications such as Blissful Brides, Simply Her, Singapore's Child, Weekender, and more. It is also a regular monthly contributor to Yahoo! and popular site The Asian Parent.^[10]

As an advocate for Family, its opinions and professional expertise are often sought after and featured in the media. Focus has also had many letters published in both The Straits Times and TODAY in response to national issues.^[11]

Published articles include:

• Help dads achieve better work-life balance
• Provide support, comfort to all women mulling over abortion
• Focus on the family in the new year

Counseling Services

Focus on the Family Singapore also has a team of trained and experienced counselors that offer effective solutions through sound counseling for individuals, marriage couples and families.^[12] In 2014, Focus counselors have handled 302 cases across 1,108 face-to-face sessions.^[13]

Recent Incidents

On October 7, 2014 a Hwa Chong Institution (HCI) student who attended a relationship workshop, It’s UNcomplicated (IUC), conducted by Focus, shared a letter she wrote to her principal on her Facebook page with feedback on the program, saying the program stereotyped males and females.^[14] Focus has since issued an official response on their website, citing that the content of the workshop was based on well-researched material by trusted family life and relationship experts, including Dr Gary Chapman (noted for his concept of Love Languages) and Jeff and Shaunti Feldhahn (social researchers in the United States) whose work is internationally recognized.^[15] A groups of HCI students who attended the same workshop posted an alternative account of what happened at the workshop.^[16] Another student who attended the same program at a different school also shared her positive experience at the workshop.^[17]

Author Shaunti Feldhahn, whose material was cited as part of the program, wrote an open letter in response to the issue.^[18] Acknowledging that the highlighting of male-female differences was designed to be the most light-hearted of sharings during the workshop; she said that the producers of the program booklet could have presented the message in a different way so as to avoid perpetuating the idea that “girls do not mean what they say”.^[19] On October 17, 2014 a letter co-signed by 13 research scientists from NUS and Yale-NUS contended that the evidence of stark sex-based differences - in both gross brain function and the majority of our cognitive functions are inconclusive.^[20] Other research, however, supports the findings of striking differences in the neural wiring of men and women that lends credence to some commonly-held beliefs about their behavior.^[21]

Focus has been conducting sexuality and relationship programs for the past 12 years. Specifically, the program in question has been attended by more than 14,000 students from 13 schools since its launch in 2013. It was reported that 73.0% of more than 1,000 students who attended the 10 workshops conducted at HCI, rated the workshop as Very Good/Good, while 87.7% of the students rated the facilitators as Very Good/Good in feedback forms which students submitted anonymously.^[15]

A workshop approved by MSF-SDN since Jan 2013, IUC is a relationship program developed for Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) to help young people understand and communicate with the opposite sex and provide them with tips on building healthy and meaningful relationships.^[15]

Service providers were informed in July 2014 that relationship and sexuality programs for IHLs will be conducted in-house by teachers and were scheduled to cease by end-2014.^[15]

Relationship with Focus on the Family US

Focus on the Family Singapore is operated and directed independently of Focus on the Family US, although the two organizations are closely affiliated. In 2009, Focus on the Family Singapore received SG$45,477 in grants from the larger American organization.^[22] In contrast, it received over SG$1 million from donations and fees recovered through its impact programs and services.^[22]

Management

Past and present presidents of the organization include:

• Mr Tan Thuan Seng (2002–2007)
• Ms Joanna Koh-Hoe (2007–2012)
• Mr Lim Yu-Ming (2012-2013)
• Ms Joanna Koh-Hoe (2013-current)

The organization underwent restructuring in 2012, and no longer has a president as the head of the organization. Mr Jason Wong came on board as Chairman in October 2013.^[13]

Awards and Recognition

The Work-Life Leadership Award was conferred to Mrs. Joanna Koh-Hoe, President of Focus on the Family Singapore Ltd in 2010. In 2010 and 2012, Focus on the Family Singapore received the Work-Life Excellence Award and the inaugural Sustained Work-Life Excellence Award in 2014 in recognition of the organization’s success in promoting flexibility and work-life harmony.^[23]

References

External links

• Focus on the Family Singapore website

Focus on the Family
People	James Dobson Donald P. Hodel Jim Daly
Ministries	JellyTelly Adventures in Odyssey The Last Chance Detectives Day of Dialogue Unlocking the Mystery of Life Brio Love Won Out McGee and Me! Plugged In
Issues	School prayer Corporal punishment Pro-life Intelligent design
Affiliated organizations	National Day of Prayer Task Force ProtectMarriage.com Focus on the Family Canada Focus on the Family Singapore