Focus on Singapore investment immigration and listen to Singaporean stories: Ma Bo, who was transferred to work locally from Hangzhou, China, believes that living in Singapore makes him a part of this community, and volunteering is a way to give back to society and contribute to others. He has participated in the "Chinatown Volunteers" activities for three years, visiting over 30 elderly people living alone on Banda Street every Saturday, rain or shine, to offer his "filial piety."
Ma Bo (35), who was transferred from Hangzhou, China, to work in Singapore at the end of 2009, began participating in neighborhood volunteer activities three years ago after witnessing a scene while dining at a hawker center: "I saw very elderly people helping me wipe the table, and I suddenly thought of my own grandfathers. It should have been me, the grandchild, standing up to serve them, but I was just sitting there eating, and it felt very uncomfortable," Ma Bo said.
From that moment on, Ma Bo began to think of ways to offer the "filial piety" he couldn't express in Singapore to the elderly here.
In 2011, he found the "Chinatown Volunteers" service group through the "SG Cares" website and met his "mentor," Li Sufeng (48).
Li Sufeng is a "veteran volunteer." Since middle school, she has volunteered for various organizations, including the Singapore Red Cross, accumulating over 30 years of volunteering experience. As she grew older, she realized the importance of caring for the elderly and dedicated herself to the "Chinatown Volunteers," a group that has been established and operating for 35 years to provide volunteer services to the elderly in the Chinatown community and neighborhood.
According to street zoning, the "Chinatown Volunteers" are divided into different groups. Group B6, to which Li Sufeng and Ma Bo belong, has about 10 volunteers and is mainly responsible for home visits to elderly people living alone in the Banda Street area every Saturday afternoon. Li Sufeng is the group leader, and Ma Bo is an extremely active regular member. Speaking of this member who joined three years ago, Li Sufeng is very satisfied: "Ma Bo is indeed a very capable volunteer; he is my 'right-hand man.'"
There are other volunteers in the "Chinatown Volunteers" who are new immigrants from Malaysia. According to Li Sufeng, Ma Bo is the only volunteer who is a new immigrant from China. Ma Bo works as a senior programmer at an international insurance company and is usually very busy, but as long as he is in Singapore, he insists on volunteering every Saturday.
"The word 'volunteer' contains the word 'work' in Chinese, but I don't treat this as 'work' or a 'task' at all. This is a cause I want to serve others from the bottom of my heart, and I feel it is something I can do for a lifetime," Ma Bo said sincerely.
Li Sufeng joked on the side: "I've recorded that statement of yours." Ma Bo replied: "I definitely mean what I say."
The two "old comrades" burst into laughter, a "revolutionary friendship" cultivated through years of volunteer activities.
Every Saturday afternoon between 2:30 and 5:30, the team of B6 volunteers in blue uniforms visits over 30 elderly people living alone on Banda Street, rain or shine. Li Sufeng said: "We come to keep the elderly company, talk to them, and ask what help they need. If it's something we can do that day, like changing a light bulb or buying groceries, we help them immediately; if they need to paint the walls, we make other arrangements. We also hold regular luncheons to take the elderly out for meals and outings."
Many small things that young people might consider easy are extremely difficult for the elderly due to physical weakness or mobility issues. On the day of the interview, Ma Bo and Li Sufeng had just finished visiting part of Block 5 on Banda Street. Ma Bo said: "The grandmother on the 16th floor has limited mobility. Things like bread or cooking oil are easy for young people to buy, but it is quite difficult for people in their 70s or 80s to do."
Most of the elderly cared for by Group B6 live alone, with only a few having children who come to visit. Li Sufeng said: "For example, there is a 'Samsui woman' in our neighborhood. She came to Singapore when she was very young and worked all her life, missing out on marriage and having children, so she has remained single until now. She has no relatives in China, so we take care of her."
In his few years with the "Chinatown Volunteers," Ma Bo said there have been many touching stories.
"What left a deep impression was a very kind elderly man I met when I first started. I felt a connection the first time I saw him. He had lost a leg, and our group lacked strong male volunteers, so every time we took the elderly out for an outing, I was the one who carried him from his wheelchair into the car," Ma Bo said. "I would arrive early every time I came to drink coffee and chat with him downstairs. We were very close, and I felt I could take care of him for a long time. Caring for him was like caring for my own family; I poured all the love I had for my family into elderly people like him."
Ma Bo and the first elderly person he cared for became close friends across generations, but the old gentleman passed away the year before last. Ma Bo went through a very difficult and painful time, during which Li Sufeng provided him with some counseling.
Li Sufeng said: "You have to remember that we are caring for the elderly, and their passing is inevitable. Being sad shows that you are a person with feelings, but you cannot dwell on those emotions." In fact, when the elderly man Ma Bo was caring for passed away, Li Sufeng's own mother-in-law also passed away. She couldn't be in two places at once, so she had to entrust Ma Bo with handling the funeral arrangements, including contacting the undertaker and cremation services.
"It was really cruel to have a young person who hadn't been volunteering for long handle these things, but he performed really well," Li Sufeng said, patting Ma Bo on the shoulder.
Ma Bo believes that working and living in Singapore makes him a part of this place, and volunteering is his way of giving back to society and contributing to others. "This is not just a simple volunteer job; I have made many good friends, realized many life lessons, and have a more positive and proactive attitude toward life. To me, the 'Chinatown Volunteers' is like a big family. I feel this is not just 'integration,' but a rich harvest for me."
Li Sufeng said: "Honestly, I have never thought of Ma Bo as a 'new immigrant.' He lives here, breathes the same air as I do, and does the same things we do. He is a Singaporean."