KOPITIAM BUDDIES

Students befriend seniors in coffee shops, then help plug them into social care system

- Chin Soo Fang

Like many other elderly men, 77-year-old Foo Hwee Wan frequents coffee shops near his home to pass the time.

The retired timber worker, who lives with 16 pet birds in a rental flat at Block 53 Marine Terrace, would sit in one of two coffee shops three times daily to chat with friends.

While he has a social life, he was not plugged into an active ageing centre (AAC), which offers activities and support for seniors living nearby in the community. It fosters social interaction, introduces activities to enhance their health and wellness, and makes referrals for care services, if needed.

In May, Mr Foo was approached by Ms Liu Yibai, 22, a student from the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, University of the Arts Singapore, and her schoolmates as part of a social care advocacy project.

They offered to draw a caricature of him as an ice-breaker while asking him questions about himself.

After building rapport with him over a few weeks, the students mapped out his daily routine in the neighbourhood so that they could introduce him to fellow seniors whose activities regularly overlap with his.

The social care advocacy project, called Hack Kopitiam, was initiated by philanthropic house Lien Foundation and undertaken by multidisciplinary design agency Forest & Whale.

It finds alternative ways to reach out to seniors who are not attending AACs, particularly senior men, who make up only between 10 per cent and 20 per cent of participants, said Lien Foundation chief executive Lee Poh Wah.

The proportion of women and men differs across AACs, but men are typically vastly outnumbered by women, partly because the activities offered may appeal more to women.

While AACs increase their outreach to many seniors, there are limitations in their physical locations and variety of activities. Coffee shops, which are ubiquitous and regular hangout spots for many senior men, can be touchpoints for the AACs' engagement, Mr Lee said.