上世紀六十年代香港依然非常貧窮，有數量不少的貧民，每年香港收到不少由富裕國家捐贈的救濟品分發給窮人。吉澳屬於窮鄉僻壤，久不久有救濟品運來島上分派給水陸村民。通常救濟品由村公所接收統籌，然後在學校經校工分發。救濟物資有數種：食物、文具、舊衣服等。食物包括麵條、麵粉、生油、袋裝奶粉等。食物當然大受家庭歡迎，文具是我們學生的至愛，一個長方形的紙盒入面有鉛筆、間尺，練習簿等。最不受歡迎的是舊衣服，非但有很濃的消毒水氣味，而且全是西方人的大尺碼，少有合穿的，只可拿來當抹地布。至於奶粉，由於村民不習慣飲牛奶，獲派奶粉很多用作餵豬，學校老師知道後覺得可惜，從此接收奶粉後留一部份存放學校。由學校安排校工每朝早燒水用奶粉冲幾大桶牛奶，學生每人帶一個杯上學排隊領牛奶，每人一杯，補充營養，直至奶粉用完為止。

 

這些救濟品對村民的幫助卻遠遠不及「嘉道理農業輔助會」，英文簡稱（KAAA）。很多鄉村建築，道路橋樑，都可申請得到農業輔助會捐贈英泥。風災雨災過後，農作物損失慘重，吉澳農民亦能申請到嘉道理農業輔助會的救濟金度過難關。嘉道理農業輔助會在1950年代初推行資助養豬計劃，向農民提供免息貸款助建豬舍，豬舍吉澳人叫豬寮，更向農戶免費贈送母豬耕牛，並可申請飼料貸款，小豬長成賣出後農民才需還款。吉澳很幸運，得到農業輔助會的資助，在現時吉澳遊樂場對出興建了一連十多間豬舍的養豬場，讓有興趣養豬的村民抽簽分派，抽中的便能免費獲派豬舍一間。

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In the 1960s, Hong Kong was still quite poor, so each year, it received a lot of relief goods donated by wealthier countries for distribution to underprivileged families. As Kat O was remote and inaccessible, it depended on these relief goods for some time. They were delivered to the island for distribution to villagers living on land and sea, usually through the village representatives, who applied to the relevant departments. Usually, the relief goods were received and co-ordinated by the village office and then distributed at the school by the janitor. There were several types of relief items: food, stationery, used clothes, etc. The food included noodles, flour, raw oil, bags of milk powder, and so forth. The food was very popular with families of course. Stationery was a favourite with the students: a rectangular box containing pencils, rulers, exercise books, etc. The least popular items were old clothes. The most unpopular clothes were the old ones, which had a strong smell of disinfectant and were all in Western sizes, so they rarely fit properly and were used as cleaning rags. The villagers were not used to drinking milk, so a lot of the milk powder was used to feed the pigs. When our teachers learnt about this, they felt sorry for the villagers and kept a portion of the milk powder in the school after receiving it. The school arranged for the janitor to boil water and brew several large buckets of milk with the milk powder every morning. Each student took a cup to school and lined up to get a cup of milk.

 

Of much greater value to the villagers was the support provided by the Kadoorie Agricultural Aid Association (KAAA). Villagers could apply to the KAAA for cement for village buildings, roads and bridges. And in the aftermath of storms and heavy rains, the farmers of Kilmore could apply for KAAA relief grants to tide them over. In the early 1950s, the KAAA introduced a subsidised pig farming scheme, offering farmers interest-free loans to build pigsties. Kat O was very lucky. Thanks to the village representatives' efforts, they obtained a subsidy from the KAAA to build a pig farm with more than 10 pig sheds opposite the current Kat O Recreation Ground. Villagers who were interested in raising pigs drew lots for a free pig shed.

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