Singapore: St. Theresa’s Home an oasis of peace for the elderly
By Claudia Torres – Singapore
“The love of God abides in the world.” That’s what’s written in Chinese on the wall behind the altar inside the chapel at St. Theresa’s Home for the elderly, Pope Francis’ second-to-last stop in Singapore before he returns to Rome on Friday.
The Catholic nursing home was established in 1935 by the Little Sisters of the Poor, and today is managed by Catholic Welfare Services (CWS), a non-profit, social service agency founded in 1959 with the aim of uplifting the lives of the less fortunate in the community.
It’s a peaceful oasis for elderly people in Singapore who have nowhere else to go. A light breeze and the comforting sound of birds chirping in the trees filled the grounds with a sense of tranquility as the Director of Nursing, Gillian Beins, showed me around.
“Every little thing that we do for the elderly residents, we do it with our heart,” she said, “and I look forward to coming to work every day, because doing little things with great love gives me a lot of satisfaction, working among the elderly residents in St. Theresa’s Home.”
“They are my best friends actually,” she said, standing next to residents Bridget Ng and Bertha Hang, who sat quietly in their wheelchairs outside their room. “I don’t consider them patients or residents,” said Gillian. “Actually we are friends.”
“Very good friends,” confirmed Bridget, who shared her impressions of the home and of Pope Francis.
Pope Francis is “a very nice man,” she said, and she joked that she was happy she wouldn’t have to travel all the way to the Vatican to see him. “He’s so good; he comes here to see us. We are so very, very happy, so very lucky,” she insisted.
Bertha, Bridget’s good friend and roommate, said she too was “very happy to hear the good news” that Pope Francis was coming to visit them. When I asked her if she has many friends at the home, she pointed to Bridget with a smile. “Only we two speak English,” she laughed. “The others all speak Chinese.”
Candy Lin, HR Manager, said that for her it’s a privilege to work at St. Theresa’s Home, where she has been employed for 20 years. She too is happy to finally be able to see the Holy Father in person. “Pope John Paul came [to Singapore] 38 years ago, and I missed that, so I feel that I wouldn’t want to miss this opportunity again,” she said.
She also expressed her admiration for Pope Francis’ tireless dedication to the faithful—he’s almost 88 years old and about to complete the longest Apostolic Journey of his pontificate. “Despite his health challenges, he’s still full of zeal,” she noted. “He still wants to go on and on for his people. I think he wants to create this hope in people, and bring us together,” she said.
St. Theresa’s Home currently houses 185 elderly men and women, on average between the ages of 80 and 90.
“More residents have been coming to the home,” explained Executive Director Victor Seng. “Family members are not able to take care of their own parents, because most of the time they are actually with their own children, and they are also working.” He also noted that the high cost of living in Singapore keeps many couples from having kids. Because of this, he explained, “the gap between the young and the old is getting wider and wider.”
Victor explained that Catholic Welfare Services sees to all the financial needs of residents whose families can’t afford to pay for the home.
In addition to receiving government support through subsidies, St. Theresa’s Home also benefits from cooperation between different religious groups.
“Whether you’re a Buddhist, or any other religion, healthcare in Singapore is actually a standard practice,” explained the Executive Director. “What we all do is to love these people,” he said, affirming that “all religions practice and advocate the beautiful thing called love.”
In addition to local staff members, the nursing home employs workers from Myanmar, the Philippines, India and Malaysia. It offers residents medical services, rehabilitation activities and pastoral care.
Victor said his goal is to give older people “a happy and good life before God takes them back home,“ and to give them “the best care and love” that he can – that love of God that abides in the world and, in a very tangible way, in St. Theresa’s Home.
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