Hong Kong's domestic helpers express themselves in Unsung Heroes choir

When not working with children in her day job as head of performing arts at Peak School, Jane Engelmann helps the grown-ups of Discovery Bay express themselves through DB Glee, the community choir she started four years ago.

Four months ago, she created another choir - Unsung Heroes - made up entirely of foreign domestic helpers, and wrote a song just for them.

Titled I Wish I Could Kiss You Goodnight, it pays tribute to the many women from Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and elsewhere, "who are putting other people's children to bed instead of their own".

A single parent, Engelmann says the song and choir are a way of expressing gratitude for the support of helpers who have been with her through difficult years.

The choir got off to an inauspicious start in September. Anticipating a big turnout, Engelmann printed out a great stack of enrolment forms and secured a huge venue through Paul Tough, headmaster of the Discovery Bay International School. But no one showed.

"My assumptions were far out and I felt deflated. I wondered if it was a silly idea, why nobody was coming. My friend even went down to the plaza to try to round people up. Around 4.30 a few ladies turned up and by 5pm we had six. They were nervous and quiet and I realised that I wasn't dealing with budding superstars but humble and rather shy ladies."

News spread, however, and Engelmann soon found herself in a quandary. Many helpers who wanted to join couldn't afford the ferry ride to Discovery Bay, so Engelmann set up another choir on Hong Kong Island and took on two choir sessions each Sunday, as numbers grew to 50.