People of different faiths get together to help run old folks home

Slow and steady: Sardy (centre) helping a volunteer to dress a resident of the All Mighty Old Folks Home in Klebang Besar, Malacca, while Seghar (left) looks on.

MALACCA: A committee member of Klebang Mosque is adviser and welfare chairman at an old folks home run by a Christian group in Taman Mayfair, Klebang Besar.

Sardy Mahrom, 44, was so touched by how gently the two volunteers were nursing the frail, ill and sometimes bedridden residents that he volunteered his services immediately.

He was at the All Mighty Old Folks Home with other Muslims as part of a visit during the Christmas season to foster better ties with the Christian community.

“It was difficult work with so many residents but fortunately, the caregivers are patient and dedicated. They are so caring to all the residents. The residents here are of different faiths,” he said.

The home’s caretaker, Michael Seghar, said there were 20 old folks there and they had all been abandoned by their family members.

“Some of the residents suffer from Alzheimer’s disease and don’t know which side of the bed to get out of or where the bathroom is. Others keep calling out for their children each time they are alone,” he said.

He sustains the home with donations from well-wishers.

As soon as he found that out, Sardy said, he wanted to help.

Sardy said he did not hesitate to help the home as it was a tenet of his religion that assistance must be given to those in need, especially old folks, regardless of whether they were Muslims or not.

“I asked Seghar if I could join his volunteer team and he appointed me its adviser, even issuing me an appointment letter on the spot, with the additional position of welfare chairman of the home,” he said.

Sardy, who was also chairman of the Klebang Zone 7 residents committee, said that the next day he brought a fellow member of the mosque committee to be the cook at the home. His wife also chipped in with the maintenance duties and overall cleanliness of the place.

The home is in need of food, beds, mattresses and adult diapers, so Sardy wants to help it raise funds. It has cared for a total of 40 old folks since it started in 2012 and half of those have since passed away.

To add to their woes, Seghar said the owner of the premises had asked them to move out.

Seghar is seeking help from the state ­government to find another place.