Helping Youth Heal: Standing Together Beyond Crisis
On 26 November, Hong Kong endured one of its worst fires in over 70 years. The blaze at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po raged for more than 40 hours, claiming at least 160 lives and injuring many more, making it the deadliest residential fire worldwide since 1980. As we enter the Christmas season, a time of peace and togetherness, our hearts go out to all who are grieving this unimaginable loss.
This tragedy reminds us of life’s fragility and the importance of compassion and practical support. While investigations and learnings will unfold in the weeks ahead, helping us understand how to prevent such disasters in the future, we know that healing must begin now. Resilience can often be framed as systems and structures, but at its core, it is about people. Resilience is enhanced through connection, as people stand together in uncertainty and restore confidence for the future.
KELY Support Group’s mission has always been to empower young people with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to make positive choices and overcome adversity. Today, that mission takes on new urgency as we help them process emotions and take the first steps toward healing.
As a member of KELY’s Board, I am profoundly grateful to our staff, our volunteers, and partners who embody these values every day and will be at the heart of these next steps.
On November 30, we hosted a virtual workshop, “Healing Together – Supporting Youth and Families Through Crisis,” offering practical ways to cope with shock, grief, and helplessness, and to support one another with kindness.
Our ongoing commitment to care:
- Peer Support Circles: Creating small group sharing in schools for those directly or indirectly affected, guided by trained staff and peer supporters.
- Expanded Mental Health Support: Partnering with schools in Tai Po and nearby districts to provide workshops on trauma, grief, and resilience, and connecting youth to specialised care when needed.
- Confidential Help Channels: Maintaining safe, confidential ways for young people to reach us through school-based workers and social media.
- Community Collaboration: Working with schools and community partners to offer talks, classroom sessions, and support for teachers and parents on recognising distress and encouraging help-seeking.
Our priority remains psychosocial and emotional support for youth, and our approach reflects KELY’s core values: supportive, empathetic, non-judgmental, inclusive, and confidential. Resilience and recovery are not about ignoring pain; they are about moving forward together.
To our friends of KELY, your support matters now more than ever.
Volunteer your time to mentor and inspire confidence or make a financial contribution. Your contributions sustain KELY’s vital programmes: mental health and wellbeing, drug and alcohol prevention, and positive youth development. Every donation, big or small, makes a real difference. Our youth matters, your support matters.
This Christmas, let us honour those we have lost by choosing compassion, kindness, and togetherness.
“Even in the darkest night, a single light can guide us forward. Let us be that light for one another.”
