Courts gives $24,000 of furniture, appliances to low-income elderly
Taxi driver Syed Hassan Ahmad Alkaff is a cheerful man, smiling when he talks and constantly breaking into laughter.
You would hardly guess that the 68-year-old is single-handedly supporting himself and his ailing wife, who has mobility issues from osteoporosis and a thyroid disorder.
He told The New Paper: "We worry about not having enough to pay her high medical bills every month, much less think about buying furniture and household appliances."
The elderly couple's worries were eased slightly thanks to Courts' Charity Home programme, which was launched earlier this year.
For Ramadan this year, the retailer of home electronics and furniture products yesterday donated items such as sofas, bedding, standing fans, kitchen appliances and digital TVs, worth more than $24,000 in all, to low-income elderly Malay beneficiaries of local charity Care Community Services Society (CCSS).
The 22 beneficiaries live in rental flats in the MacPherson area.
Courts employees volunteered to hand-deliver these products to the families, clean their homes and host them to iftar at the CCSS Senior Activity Centre.
Among the items Mr Syed received was a 40" Smart LED TV and gas cooker that replaced their current faulty set.
He said his wife "wants to cook sambal goreng and lontong during Hari Raya for our family", which includes seven grandchildren.
Another beneficiary, Madam Tumi Teron, 89, lives alone and struggles with medical expenses for her high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
She was pleased with her stylish new dining set that replaces her current one, with broken table legs and chair legs after more than 20 years of use.
She told TNP: "It's the main place where my family eats and congregates (during Ramadan)."
Mr Ben Tan, Courts' country chief executive officer, said: "After the warm reception to our launch (of Courts Charity Home) at Chinese New Year, we're delighted to give back to another segment of the community this Ramadan by fulfilling real needs for homes."
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