A life grounded on destiny and love

Actions defines a man (1928-2022)

By Foong Pek Yee

The teenager survived the perilous journey and landed in Singapore.
First trip out from his village in Ipoh, Perak, Tung Sam Chee – my third maternal uncle – was only armed with the determination to survive.
That was shortly after the end of World War 2 in 1945 and, life was simply harsh and unpredictable.
His parents decided to send him to Singapore after losing  two older sons in the crossfire between the Japanese and communists earlier.
But the end of  World War 2 only saw civilians  caught in the confrontation between the British colonial government and communists in then Malaya.
That was life in a turbulent era.
Last goodbye:  Leaving Ang Mo Kio, Singapore on July 29, 2022 –  his home for about five decades.
The 17-year-old never looked back after landing in Singapore.
Perseverance, hard work and,  encounters with good people saw him settled down in Singapore.
He met and married the love of his life, Wong Wai Kwan, and they were blessed with three children; sons Kum Choon and Kum Cheong and daughter Sow Mun.
By then he already had his company on tooling business.
Life was a bliss for the family until fate dealt a cruel blow.
His wife passed away from kidney failure in 1974.
She was 34.
Third uncle stayed strong for their children – a promise he made to his wife- and to love them no matter what.
In 2005, he  lost his second son, 39-year-old  Kum Cheong, to brain tumour.
Again he remained strong for his children, and had kept a brave front as Kum Cheong battled with the disease.
Seventeen years later, on July 25,  third uncle who was 94, passed away peacefully in Tan Tock Seng Hospital in Singapore, leaving behind Kum Choon, Sow Mun, their spouse and five grandchildren.
And his loved ones found consolation that he finally reunite with his beloved wife and Kum Cheong whom he missed dearly.
They were laid to rest side by side in the columbarium in Kong Meng San Buddhist Temple and Monastery in Bishan, Singapore.
Rest in peace: Prayers at Kong Meng San after the cremation on July 29, 2022
A proud son of Singapore, third uncle was forever patriotic and grateful for the opportunities he got as the nation evolved from a struggling post war island to a major global financial hub.
A  filial son and a  loving and caring  husband and father, he had stayed strong whatever challenges life threw at him.

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