Fatherly Love « SJ Echo

Thursday, 9 July 2009

Fatherly Love

Coconut harvester toils all day to meet medical expenses needed by ailing son

Yap seen here posing with his family. Soon Heng is standing in front.

Merlimau, Melaka…..Harvesting coconuts for a living has been a family business for Yap Ah Wat who lives in the outskirts of Merlimau town, just 15 km from Melaka.
Earning an average of RM50 daily from collecting coconuts for santan, Yap is a familiar sight on his motorcycle along the road between the coconut plantations nearby and his home.
His tanned complexion shows years of working under the sun but nothing could have prepared him for what he is facing today.
His youngest son, Yap Soon Heng, 10 is suffering from ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder) and from Acute Myeloid Leukemia.
Soon Heng has suffered a relapse and his chance with re-chemotherapy is merely 30%. The family has made a decision against the re-chemo as well as looking for a donor for a bone marrow transplant.
“When we first found out Soon Heng had leukemia, we spent 60 days in University Malaya Medical Centre for his chemotherapy in 2007.”
“We went to Kuala Lumpur by bus and when we had to return after his treatment, it cost us RM150 to come back by private transport,” Yap said, adding that both husband and wife slept wherever they could in the hospital as they could not afford the cost of getting a room for such a long period.
According to him, the family gets welfare aid and this is used to purchase specially formulated milk powder for Soon Heng.
“I have two older children a daughter and son who are 14 and 15 respectively. With me is also my 81-year-old father who helps out by drying copra in the front yard of our family home.”
“We are doing all we can for Soon Heng like making sure he eats and we also source for traditional Chinese medicine to build up some resistance for him,” he added.
But the family has stopped making trips to Kuala Lumpur for Soon Heng’s treatment. Instead they head for Melaka Hospital whenever he feels unwell.
With declining demand for coconuts and a drop in prices, Yap is now facing the challenge of his lifetime – bringing up his family and also seeing to Soon Heng’s medical needs.
If you think you would like to help, contact Yap at 016-6368523.