01 Jul 2011
By Ruth Loh
Many people give to charity, but few have dedicated as much of their time, effort and money to the less fortunate as Mdm Theresa Yip. Every month, the 81-year-old drops by Singapore General Hospital (SGH) to donate $100 to the SGH Needy Patients Fund. If she isn’t able to make it one month, she makes up for it by giving $200 the month after.
Behind this humble act has been a lifelong journey of charity that started in the 1950s when Mdm Yip began giving to charities, homes and the less fortunate in many ways. An excellent dressmaker who learned her skills in school, she put them to good use supplementing her income as a nurse.
“I had two children to raise,” the feisty Mdm Yip, who now has five grandchildren aged 16 to 30, said matter-of-factly. “Sewing and knitting baby clothes, toys and other things helped me earn extra money.”
Noted for her fine needlework and the beautiful clothes she made, Mdm Yip later turned her skills to benefit the needy. Then a midwife at Kandang Kerbau Hospital – her first and only employer – she volunteered to teach handicraft skills to elderly people.
For nearly 30 years, Mdm Yip was a familiar – and welcome – presence at many homes for elderly folks. On her regular visits, she brought household items to the residents. “I took biscuits, powder, soap, toothpaste – all those daily necessities,” she said.
She cooked meals for old folks at community clubs in Kallang, Kolam Ayer, Kreta Ayer and the like. Not only did she volunteer her time, Mdm Yip also contributed ingredients for the meals she cooked. In 2003, Mdm Yip joined the Lions Befrienders.
Between 2007 and 2009, she was director of the club’s Bendemeer branch. As a Befriender, she looked after elderly people living in one-bedroom flats and on government welfare. She distributed household necessities door-to-door – meat and vegetables at one home, laundry powder and washing detergent at the next – making friends along the way.
Mdm Yip’s love and care for the less fortunate was recognised by the Ministry of Health, which honoured her with a Merit Award in 1978 and a Long Service Award in 1985 for dedicating 30 years to nursing. In 1999, the Lions Befrienders Section gave her an Outstanding Award.
Nowadays, her knees won’t allow her to continue with her gruelling pace of work supporting elderly people, but they can’t keep her away from her mission of love. Each month, as she has since mid-2010, Mdm Yip pops into SGH to hand over a gift of $100.
When asked why she chose to give $100 a month, she said: “When I cooked for charity once a month, I spent about $100 each time on ingredients. Now that I no longer cook, I want to continue to donate the same amount.”
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