Three people talk about how they overcame personal hardship, and their hopes for 2018. Their stories may be different, but they point to common themes: the resilience of the human spirit and the power of hope. In spite of the obstacles faced, they have something to smile about in the year to come.
Sheril Ameilda, Polytechnic Student
Third-year polytechnic student Sheril Ameilda, 19, considers 2016 the worst year of her life. For months, she went to bed hungry, having to skip dinners, and slept between just two and five hours a day because she wanted to finish her homework and household chores. The family’s financial situation was dire for much of last year because her mother was the sole breadwinner and they tried to minimise spending by getting by with one or two meals a day.
She was awarded financial bursaries from NTUC Income’s OrangeAid Future Development Programme in September last year and this year. Each time, she received $3,000. The programme supports tertiary students from the lowest income households by providing financial assistance for their school fees and living expenses and also equips them with financial literacy skills and career guidance.
Sheril says the bursaries have helped to alleviate her family’s financial burden and things are looking up. Her older brother found work as a cook in May 2017. There are now times when their meals consist of rice, vegetables and a meat dish. They sometimes go to hawker centres or treat themselves at Pizza Hut or KFC.
In 2018, Sheril will graduate from polytechnic, while her younger sister will complete her studies at culinary school. When they find jobs, it will mean greater financial stability for the family.
Sheril, who hopes to become a teacher, says: “With perseverance, I can give my family a better life and I, too, can live a better life.”
Madam Mary Yeo, Single Mother
Single mother Mary Yeo, 46, with four children aged between six and 10 – was thrown into disarray six years ago, when she gave birth to twins and her husband could not deal with their constant crying. Leaving her husband, Madam Yeo had no one else to turn to as she was an only child whose parents had died.
Between 2012 and 2015, thanks to the help of social workers, they stayed in three homes run by various charities. Things got slightly better in 2015, when she managed to rent a one-room flat in Boon Lay, where the family now lives.
Besides social workers and financial assistance from the Ministry of Social and Family Development, other organisations have also stepped in to help her.
Club Rainbow (Singapore), which helps chronically ill children and their families, has volunteer tutors who give tuition to two of her children: Jonathan, 10, and Jacqueline, seven. Her twins Josephine and Joycelynn are six.
Jonathan was born with a cleft lip and palate and has gone through several operations to fix it. He joined Club Rainbow in December 2015 and has since received two bursaries of between $300 and $400 because he achieved good academic results in school.
All these little blessings go towards relieving her financial burden, says Madam Yeo.
But the biggest ray of hope has come in the form of a job offer as a clinic assistant. If she takes it up, she will be able to earn $2,000 a month. One would think she would leap at this opportunity, but instead priorities finding an after-school care for her children.
Madam Yeo says: “People have suggested that I give up my children for adoption. But I don’t want to because they are my responsibility and I want to care for them.”
Ms Jasmine Ho, Chef
For close to three decades, Ms Jasmine Ho led a contented life as a pastry chef and home economics consultant. She trained teachers on the subject and worked for various food and catering companies, including Singapore Food Industries and Sats.
But for the past 10 years, the 51-year-old had also been suffering from pains that stemmed from a compressed spine. An operation last March at National University Hospital to decompress her spine went awry and she had to undergo a second operation which resulted in the loss of all sensation in her limbs.
She willed herself to press on with physiotherapy because she wanted to go back to work. But because she suffered from persistent muscular spasms and has to use a wheelchair, she felt that she could not fulfil the requirements of her old job.
Things started looking up in September this year, when the SPD – a charity that works in partnership with adults, youth and children with disabilities – linked her up with social enterprise My NoNNa’s, which trains and employs people with special needs to prepare, cook and serve Italian food in schools.
The social enterprise was then about to open My NoNNa’s Wheelchair Workplace Friendly Cafe at the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD). My NoNNa’s founder Geraldine Tan, 48, says she hired Ms Ho on the spot in spite of the latter not having cooked Italian food before.
Ms Ho is hoping to regain her ability to walk next year, although she can take only a few unassisted steps at the moment. “I want to go back to as normal a life as quickly as possible. I don’t want anyone to despise me or view me as useless,” she says.
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Source: The Straits Times, 31 December 2017