Welcome to our sixth interview on our CiHK blog – where we get up close and personal with movers and shakers in Hong Kong who are proud to call themselves Canadian. You have most likely heard of Jeff Rotmeyer as Founder & CEO of Impact HK, a local charity that caters to the homeless population in Hong Kong. He also runs Love 21 Foundation, which supports Down Syndrome and autism communities. Let’s get to know Jeff a bit more!
#kindnessmatters
L: Hi Jeff! Can you tell us a bit about your background and how you came to your position now with Impact HK and Love 21 in full swing?
J: l came to Hong Kong in 2005. I was lucky to get into the NEXT scheme, which is an English teaching position in a government primary school where I ended up teaching for 13 years.That ended up giving me such appreciation for Hong Kong – especially working with the youth here.
I started diving into charity work and began using sport as a vehicle to provide individuals with a community and help them feel more involved in society. I started doing a football program for asylum seekers and refugees here. It was quite a successful program and I was approached by the Down Syndrome Association to do a similar program for them. Meeting that neurodiverse community taught me so much about the strengths of vulnerability and kindness. It became a highlight of my week working with that group on a weekly basis.
Since I was enjoying charity work and having a bit of a midlife crisis, l started a blog called the Gastrum. A section of that blog was about my charity experiences in Hong Kong and it was called “Impact HK”.
Since I was doing quite a bit of charity work and sharing about it, I had a friend who introduced me to a park in Sham Shui Po where there were over 100 individuals sleeping rough. That’s when I had my first experience of meeting the homeless community here 13 years ago. Then began the “Kindness Walks”.
L: I remember joining one of the first Kindness Walks in 2014 where we would go to the local Wellcome in Sham Shui Po. Everyone would pool in $100 on the spot to buy groceries and supplies for the homeless in the neighbourhood.
J: Yes, those were the early heydays of those walks. Earlier to that point, I was just going into the park to distribute food and then going for a beer and curry afterwards. It was quite a simple goal. But it led to a movement that attracted a lot of volunteers. So they expanded the ambition and the walks went from once a month to 4-5 times a month.
Once I realised that I could actually help individuals off the streets, that’s when I registered it as a charity. I also registered Love 21 Foundation on the same day and saved a bit on my lawyer’s fees.
Jeff leading a “kindness walk” distributing supplies to the Homeless
L: Impact HK has grown so much since then. I understand there is now a permanent facility in Tai Kok Tsui, not far away from an area where many homeless people have set up tents as their living condition. What are your thoughts on how Kindness Walks as well as other initiatives have evolved?
J: Judgment of that community is that it’s really worked. We have helped well over 600 people off the streets and into shelter. Every month, we’re seeing multiple friends graduating and becoming financially independent. We are seeing a lot of younger people and more females on the streets though. Not to mention the deaths that we witness.
The good news is, our rate of graduation a couple of years ago was 36% and now we’re well over 60%.
L: What does graduation mean?
It means that someone has gone through the support provided by our programs and has become financially independent.
J: Food support from us could still be there. As well as community and alumni support. A successful graduation would not be somebody leaving our program(s) and becoming completely alone again. This is especially important because people you meet outside usually lack friends or connections in their life.
L: Can you tell me about a specific person or case study that was quite memorable to you from either Impact or Love 21?
J: An amazing lady named Cindy. We met her while she was sleeping in a tunnel in Happy Valley. When she came to Hong Kong about 25 years ago, she was alone here. She came from Thailand and was working here on a visa. At that time, she was in really poor health.
She was in the hospital for a very long time. When she finally came out, she was unable to work because of her heart condition. She had no family or resources. That’s how she ended up living in a tunnel. When we met her, she was struggling and suffering with depression. She went through our program and has now amazingly became an employee of
ours.
Over the years, she developed more confidence. She’s always saved money. Now she works full-time with us in our kitchen. In addition to that, we have also helped her create her own chilli oil business that she’s manufacturing and selling.
It’s an amazing success story. We didn’t directly save her life, we just gave her the care and the opportunity that she needed – that all people would need to be able to escape such a situation.
Cindy – a graduate of Impact HK and full-time staff with Impact HK – with her chilli oil venture
L: What can people do specifically to help with your charity organisations?
The first step would be just caring. Second step is doing what you can – whether it be donating money, volunteering, connecting us with opportunities or resources in the city, standing up for our community, supporting events, or advocating for us at the dinner table.
Thanks for sharing your story Jeff! You can find out more about Jeff’s charities here:
