Never too old to help others

Defying retiree stereotypes, some senior citizens in the Klang Valley are devoted to aiding those in need, even saving lives

AS a person enters his or her senior years, productivity does not necessarily need to decline.

Some resourceful seniors in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur have found their calling.

Yee Ying Ying, 69, plays various roles at Life Line Association Malaysia (LLAM), which works towards suicide prevention.

Besides supervising young volunteers, Yee also heads LLAM’s “play therapy” programme which offers mental health therapy sessions with fun-filled games.

She has served LLAM for two decades.

Her devotion to the organisation is underscored by her own experience.

Prior to joining LLAM, Yee had experienced upheavals that nearly pushed her to the brink.

Doing her bit: Sixty-three-year-old volunteer Yap Siew Yeng adjusting a gurney in a Malaysian Red Crescent Society ambulance and making sure everything is in order. — LEW GUAN XI/The Star

When her husband suffered a stroke in 2000, Yee said her whole life was upturned.

She said throughout the 20 years of their marriage, her husband had been her rock, which enabled her to focus on her career and take care of their children.

“My life was turned upside down when he lost the ability to care for himself after the stroke.

“I had to do all the household chores and care for him, while continuing to look after our family,” said Yee, who was a primary school teacher from 1975 to 2014.

Her mental health was greatly affected when her husband suffered another stroke at the end of 2001, which resulted in semi-paralysis and aphasia (speech impairment).

Yap sorting out the items in a first-aid kit together with her colleague Kelly Cheng.

Yee threw herself into her work at school to cope with the tremendous stress from the demands at home.

“I kept asking myself. Am I fit as a wife? Am I to blame for all my husband’s miseries?

“Those days, I used to shout and cry at midnight in a park near my home just to release tension,” she said.

It was then that Yee read about LLAM from a newspaper.

She became a volunteer as a means to find respite from the trouble at home.

Danial says senior volunteers are valuable assets for an organisation and the community.

“It turned out to be the greatest decision I had ever made.

“Surprisingly, all my LLAM colleagues tolerated my emotional instability very well.

“At LLAM, I also learnt to look away from my own situation and focus on treating others with empathy.

“Now, I can help others who have had a similar experience.

“LLAM is like my second home.

“Without all the values it taught me, my family would have been broken up,” said Yee.

Physical helplessness

Yap Siew Yeng, 63, has served the Malaysian Red Crescent Society (MRCS) for some 10 years.

“From 1989, I had been selling chee cheong fun in Jinjang, Kuala Lumpur, until I fell and broke my ribs in 2009.

“After the fall, I constantly needed help in my daily life.

“This drove me to acquire skills in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) to restore my health,” she said.

Choon says the life experiences of seniors equip them with more empathy for those who seek help.

Through someone in the TCM programme, she came to know of MRCS and she has been a volunteer ever since.

As a member of the Kuala Lumpur fifth volunteer aid detachment, Yap is actively involved in first aid work for sports events.

Her team attends to serious injuries which the sports teams’ own medical personnel cannot handle.

“Not only did I learn how to help injured people, I also gained a lot of valuable experience through dealing with different situations,” she added.

Protecting the vulnerable

Jayamurugan Vadivelu, 67, took a very different path towards volunteerism.

Growing up in an estate in Port Dickson, Negri Sembilan, the former police officer described himself as being “born with the passion for helping others”.

“I witnessed a lot of ill treatment and bullying of estate labourers and spoke up for them.

“That is also why I wanted to become a police officer.

“I wanted to protect vulnerable communities,” said Jayamurugan, who served the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) from 1971 to 1996.

Being in the police force granted Jayamurugan more resources to provide support to those in need.

In 1992, he led a police programme called “Thaneer Panthal” which provided free food and drinks for Thaipusam devotees via charity stalls at Batu Caves, Kuala Lumpur.

“During my years serving as a police officer, I realised that there were many types of vulnerable communities that needed help and protection.

Murugeswaran: The government should incorporate volunteerism as a subject in schools.

“So, I joined the Damai Disabled Person Association Malaysia (Damai) because it has vast expertise and knowledge in helping underprivileged people, particularly those with disabilities,” said Jayamurugan, who has served Damai for around 20 years.

Through Damai, Jayamurugan established his project called “Gong Xi DeepaRayaMas”, a programme that encourages children with disabilities from various backgrounds to mingle with each other and showcase their talents.

“In 2002, I brought children from two homes for the disabled in Hulu Langat for a picnic.

“There, I witnessed the happiness on their faces as they enjoyed themselves.

“So, I came up with the idea for the programme to provide a platform for these children to improve their self-confidence,” he added.

Jayamurugan said Gong Xi DeepaRayaMas stands for “Gong Xi Fa Cai, Deepavali, Hari Raya and Christmas”, an amalgamation of major Malaysian festival names, symbolising unity.

He said youngsters should actively contribute to society.

Jayamurugan says youngsters should actively contribute to society.

“Youngsters should grasp the principle of ‘what goes around comes around’.

“The more you give to society, the more you will get,” he added.

Acknowledging the existing age gap among MRCS volunteers, Yap has also called for more youths to step up and equip themselves with first aid skills.

“Currently, most volunteers in MRCS are middle-aged or senior citizens.

“I hope that more youngsters can join us so that more help can be given to those in need.

“Everyone has control over their time so it should not be hard for youngsters to squeeze time into their busy schedules to volunteer,” said Jayamurugan.

Yee, too, encourages more youths to volunteer.

“High qualifications aren’t everything.

Jayamurugan (right) and former magistrate Nor Aishah Muyop (centre) during a Gong Xi DeepaRayaMas event in 2013.

“It is more important to practise self-reflection and sincerely treat people around you with kindness,” she said.

The heads of LLAM, MRCS and Damai have expressed their appreciation for their senior citizen volunteers.

Calling them a “treasure to the organisation and society”, LLAM president Choon Lee Meng said she admired their “selfless contributions” through “turning their time and energy into love”.

“Their life experiences help them understand the challenges one would face at different stages of life and have equipped them with more empathy for those who seek help.

“Youths should really engage in volunteerism as this is where they learn new skills and gain valuable experiences, adding depth to their lives,” she said.

MRCS deputy secretary-general Datuk Danial Iskandar Abd Rahman said senior citizen volunteers were “valuable assets for the organisation and the community”.

Besides supervising young volunteers, Yee also takes calls from those who need help.

“Many are unaware of how important senior citizens are.

“Based on their experience, they can provide constructive advice to us in most situations.

“MRCS calls for more youths to be volunteers to gain unique experiences.

“They can also bring about positive impact to society, just like our senior volunteers,” said Danial.

Damai president Murugeswaran Veerasamy said age should not restrict one’s ability to serve others.

He lamented that there were insufficient youth volunteers.

“The government should incorporate volunteerism as a subject in schools to instil a sense of empathy and compassion among students from a young age.

“Such exposure could inspire the youths to delve into a lifelong commitment of serving the needy,” said Murugeswaran.