Maintenance workers often give the impression of being rude, stubborn, sweaty and dusty with a spanner always in their pocket, when in fact they can be quite cordial and meticulous.
In the House of To Kwa Wan Stories (“ToHome” for short), a group of maintenance workers volunteer to provide free service for their underprivileged neighbours in their leisure time. Whether it is an old lady living alone whose water heater malfunctions, or a Pakistani refugee who has a leaking pipe at home, these workers do not hesitate to show up at their doors and fix their problems, during which they chat casually with their neighbours about anything from everyday life to social and livelihood issues, thereby reducing the gap between people.
In addition to offering maintenance services, these workers also visit their neighbours door-to-door, set up street booths regularly, and organise various activities in festive occasions. Examples are a haunted house at Halloween and a countdown bazaar on the New Year’s Eve. Through these events, they are truly sharing happiness with others and enhancing cohesion in the community. Unfortunately, ToHome is about to be demolished and relocated. We do not know if the connection among these volunteers and their neighbours can be maintained and continued. Yet, as long as the volunteers are still around, the human touch will remain despite changes in the environment.
維修師傅給人的印象總是粗魯的、木訥的，口袋裏永遠裝著「士巴拿」，一身塵土伴著一身汗水……其實維修師傅也有親切和細心的一面。
「土家」故事館就駐紮了一群義工師傅，善用自己的工餘時間，免費為基層街坊服務。無論是獨居婆婆的熱水爐壞了，還是巴基斯坦難民家中的水喉滲漏，師傅都義不容辭地上門解決問題；一邊維修一邊傾談，由家長里短談到社會民生，藉此拉近彼此距離。
除了維修服務之外，這群義工師傅還會挨家挨戶探訪，定期擺設街站，逢年過節更舉行多元化活動，例如萬聖節民間鬼屋、除夕夜倒數墟市，真切地做到「與眾同樂」，加強了社區的凝聚力。可惜「土家」遷拆在即，義工師傅和街坊之間的連結未知能否延續。不過，一日有他們，即使地方變，人情味總不會變。
