Meet Sophie Lian, a 12-year-old crochet enthusiast from CHIJ Primary Toa Payoh! Driven by a deep love for animals and a passion for their welfare, Sophie embarked on a fundraising journey to help more animals  By selling handmade crochet items, she’s raised and donated funds for the animals at the SPCA, showcasing the power of compassion and creativity in making a difference.

Tell us more about yourself! Your name, age, and one fun fact about yourself.
My name is Sophie Lian from CHIJ Primary Toa Payoh and I am 12 years old. I like to crochet and I started learning to crochet when I was 10 years old. I like crocheting as I can make useful and cute things like pencil cases, scarves and tote bags, as well as keychains and coasters. My favourite creation is a heart keychain which I gave my mother for Christmas!

Who or what inspired your love for animals and their welfare?
I have always been an animal lover since I was young because I thought they were cute and intelligent creatures. When I read in the newspapers that some people abandoned their pets and abused animals in Singapore, I felt sad as I didn’t want animals to be mistreated, and wanted to help them in some way.

What’s your favourite animal, and why?
I like dogs and hamsters because dogs are very cute, loyal and obedient and can help you to guard your home. I like hamsters because I have a pet hamster and she is very adorable and furry.

Do you have a pet? What is your favourite thing about your pet? (If you adopted a pet) Why did you choose to adopt a pet?
I have a pearl winter white dwarf hamster called Hammy Hou-teenie. She is called Hammy Hou-teenie because the first night we got her, she escaped from her cage just like the famous escape artist Houdini. We were so impressed that we called her Hammy Hou-teenie! Thankfully, she has not escaped since that night. Hammy likes to eat flax seeds and sunflower seeds. The best thing about my hamster is that she digs really intricate burrows and I taught her to stand on command and come when her name is called.

What inspired you to fundraise for SPCA? Why did you decide to embark on this project?
In school and at home, we are taught to be kind to others, so I thought that I should do something for the abused and abandoned animals.

I knew that SPCA helps abused and abandoned animals, so I decided to combine my crochet skills with my love for animals and sell my own hand-made crocheted items to raise money for SPCA.

My father and I created a PowerPoint presentation to showcase the different crochet items that I could make so that we could send this to friends and family to share more about my fundraising project. I sold different types of coasters and small stuffed toys as well as Christmas ornaments. In 2022, I managed to raise $300 for SPCA. I did this again in 2023 and raised $350 for SPCA.

I am very happy that I managed to raise some money for SPCA and contribute to the funding that is needed for SPCA to take care of abused and abandoned animals.

What is the one thing you would like to share with others about caring for all animals?
We should care for animals because they can help us in many ways such as providing friendship, reducing stress and they are an important part of our ecosystem.

We should also do research before we get pets so that it reduces the likelihood of us abandoning our pets if we find that the pets are not suitable for our lifestyles and require more attention than we can afford.