Ho Yuen Hoe - Charity Work

Charity Work

A devout Buddhist from youth, once her children had grown up Ho decided to serve the Buddhist cause, and to dedicate the rest of her life to caring for others. In 1958, she became a Buddhist nun at the age of 50. In 1969, aged 61, Ho bought a two-storey detached house in Richards Avenue with her savings, and turned it into the Man Fut Tong Old Peoples' Home for aged sick and single elderly women. Most of the 20 or so residents had neither enough earnings to support themselves nor any relatives to turn to. In order to raise additional funds for the home, she cultivated and sold prize-winning white orchids at Tanglin, and vegetarian food at Kong Meng San Temple in Bishan. She cleaned, cooked, took her charges to the doctors, helped them to collect their social benefits and even sometimes saw to their last rites.

Venerable Ho's work was unknown to the public until 1996, when she was featured in a television programme – The Extraordinary People – at the age of 88. As a result, the public came to know more about her and her nursing home. When asked why she had set up an old folks' home, Venerable Ho replied:

I used to feed the old folks at some of the homes, and it would sadden me to see them so yellow and sallow. One of them told me, they would go in 'vertical' and probably exit 'horizontal'. I might be illiterate but I wanted to give back to society. I didn't want to sit around and wait to die.

Inspired by Venerable Ho's devotion and compassion, volunteers and donations began to stream in, allowing the home to provide better medical care and facilities for its residents. Spurred on by the desire to do even more, she approached the government for a piece of land to expand her old folks' home. The Ministry of Health gave her a 5,000-square-metre (1.2-acre) plot in Woodlands, on which she oversaw the building of a new home. To help in raising funds for its construction, she published a recipe book called Top 100 Vegetarian Delights in 1998, which brought in more than S$100,000 (U$66,667). In August 2001, the new four-storey building was opened at Woodlands Street 82. It houses nearly 235 sick and elderly and provides residential, rehabilitation, and day-care services. The home is open to all regardless of age, gender, race or religion. It regularly organises in-house activities such as cooking, hand-craft, karaoke, and games, as well as visits to places of interest and participation in various community events. The original home is now a Buddhist temple, the Lin Chee Cheng Sia Temple.

Despite her advancing age, Venerable Ho continued to raise funds to provide better medical care, and she set up committees to help organise Dharma classes for children and secure donations for various Buddhist causes. During an interview given to The Straits Times in 2004, she said: "Everything in life is transient. Only charity is real and enduring. When you give, you receive. Charity is the best antidote for bad karma."

She was not only successful in raising funds, but she also secured donations in kind and services. A Hindu charity, Shree Gniananda Seva Samajam donated S$75,000 to the Man Fut Tong Nursing Home in 2004, which was raised through ticket sales for a charity draw. On 11 February 2004, President S R Nathan, attended her birthday-cum-charity dinner and gave a speech in tribute of her contributions to the country:

This Man Fut Tong Nursing Home Charity Dinner event marks the 96th Lunar Birthday of Ven. Ho Yuen Hoe. More importantly, it reflects what Ven. Ho has done over many years to look after the needy sick and distressed elderly, irrespective of their race, language or religion. As we look back at what Ven. Ho has done for her cause over the years, she well deserves to be recognized as a formidable role model for both young and old Singaporeans ... My wife and I wish Ven. Ho a Very Happy Birthday – good health and happiness, and thank her for her valuable contributions to the community. We also wish the Man Fut Tong Nursing Home every success in serving the sick and needy elderly in Singapore.