THE phone rings in the neat but nondescript room in a Chai Wan high-rise. Suddenly all chatter stops. Rosemary Birch takes a deep breath before answering.
It could be anyone on the line, a pregnant teenager, a middle aged woman who has gambled away the housekeeping money or a man who has had sex with a child.
But whoever they are, whatever they have done, they are desperate and need a sympathetic, non-judgmental ear and for anything up to three hours, the sounds you'll hear are 'Hmm, yes, hmm . . . then what happened?'.
This is the world of the Samaritan volunteer. She is not a counsellor, not a problem solver, just a good listener. Rosemary, the director of The Samaritans, has been doing this for 18 years, making her one of the longest serving volunteers as tonight The Samaritans celebrate 20 years in Hong Kong.
The territory's Samaritan office was the first to open up outside Britain and began life under the direction of Andrew Tu. It grew out of the Lok Fu Estate clinics run by his wife, Legislator Elsie Tu, in the early 60s.
Twenty years on and the demand for the service continues to increase. But unfortunately there are more people with a loose grip on hope than there are volunteers to hear their problems. And there is a good reason for someone to be on the end of the line.