Strengthening Senior Communities in Boon Lay: Assessing the Potential for Community

Organising Initiatives

Department of Social Work, National University of Singapore

SW3105: Community Work Practice

Mr Chan Xian Jie

Mr David Puvaneyshwaran

April 3, 2023

Angie Lim Tze Yii A0241141Y

Erica Teo Hui Jing A0241026W

Freddy Ow Yong Zhi Long A0235091L

Oy Cher Xuan A0238883M

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 Findings

Introduction

KampungKakis (KK) is a neighbourhood buddy system designed to support isolated and

frail seniors across Singapore. KK aims to foster resilient and self-sustaining communities by

nurturing strong bonds between the seniors and the residents (KampungKakis, 2020). The

process involves identifying seniors in need, engaging residents who are interested to volunteer,

and pairing them to create supportive connections. However, during a recent briefing by KK

Executive Director, Kah Yoke, it was revealed that the organisation currently faces a volunteer

attrition problem. Most of their volunteers are working adults, who have returned to in-person

work, resulting in their reduced availability to support KK’s initiative.

Through collaboration with KK in which we do a study consisting of semi-structured

interviews with four seniors and field observation of the Block 188 vicinity, we aim to help KK

gain a better understanding of the strengths and challenges of seniors residing in Boon Lay, the

support that they need, as well as how these seniors envision they can contribute to the

community. From these, this report also provides an analysis of the possibilities of community

organising among them and a few recommendations that KK may explore to do so. Finally, we

will reflect on our experiences and process during the writing of this report.

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Breakdown of Interviewees’ Demographic Details

Interviewee 1: Mr Lim

Background Information. Mr Lim is a 70-year-old man who lives alone. He has been

experiencing mobility difficulties since he was 5 years old and first learned how to use a

wheelchair in his 40s. He has connections with many formal and informal agencies and

organisations such as Handicap Welfare Association (HWA), Society for Physically Disabled

(SPD) and Lawn Bowl Association for the Disabled. He says that he will approach a KK

volunteer for help with cleaning, servicing, and oiling his tyres. However, he was unaware that

KK provides medical escorts.

Routine and Hobbies. A typical day for Mr Lim consists of cooking and preparing

lunch, hanging out with his friends in the afternoon and winding down at night with YouTube

videos. Mr Lim has a vibrant social life and spends most of his days out of the house through his

friends’ invitations. He plays lawn bowl biweekly and takes part in competitions with his friends.

Furthermore, he enjoys listening to others and learning from them.

Resources. Mr Lim is aware and connected with multiple organisations and has close

friends there. Since he is aware of many organisations, he knows where to seek help when faced

with difficulties. Mr Lim also mentioned how he does not face financial difficulties as his rental

flat is heavily subsidised and he has the civil support scheme, Central Provident Fund (CPF) life

plan and Community Development Council vouchers to help him through rising inflation costs.

Lastly, he is tech-savvy and is able to use the internet to search for things that he needs.

Challenges. Mr Lim speaks about his difficulty in accessing toilets in older estates and

hawker centres. He has to plan ahead to find routes for outings with his friends on wheelchairs,

and volunteers used to help with cleaning his house. However, with the pandemic, these

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volunteer operations have stopped. Due to this, he also has trouble fixing his wall fans as he

cannot reach them while in a wheelchair. To fix his fans, he has to ask people who pass by his

house for help. Additionally, there are many events with buses catered for seniors, but

wheelchair-bound or bedridden seniors are usually left out of these events due to constraints like

expensive costs for catering hydraulic press buses and wheelchairs occupying more space.

Assets and Possibilities. Previously, Mr Lim has done advocacy work by being an

ambassador for the physically disabled, through highlighting areas for improvement in the

neighbourhood for those who are wheelchair-bound. Additionally, he has helped with

community engagement whereby he helped to organise and plan overseas trips for people in

HWA. He is also deemed as a community connector as sponsors had previously reached out to

him directly, to request for him to select some other HWA members to attend dinner events. He

also shows high adaptive capabilities and resilience through his stories of how he overcame

difficult periods in his life. Lastly, he adopts a positive mindset and is content with life.

Interviewee 2: Mr Sam

Background Information. Mr Sam is a 70-year-old senior who has been living alone in

Boon Lay for over 20 years. He does not recognise KK, but he recalled interacting with

volunteers who would visit him to chat and tidy up his house and paint the walls. Hence, he may

have engaged with KK. Mr Sam is also familiar with Thye Hua Kwan Senior Activity Centre

(THK SAC) since they often contact him to invite him to their events such as health screenings.

Routine and Hobbies. Mr Sam enjoys making breakfast for himself every morning and

spends the rest of his day actively going outside to walk alone or with his friends because he

does not like to be stuck at home. Mr Sam also likes to play sports such as swimming, basketball

and running. However, due to health issues such as high blood pressure and diabetes, he no

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longer participates in sports and prefers to walk instead in order to stay active. Furthermore, a

task that is important to Mr Sam includes visiting the clinic to get his medication and insulin.

Resources. Mr Sam has two older brothers and two younger sisters whom he is very

close to. Mr Sam also knows his neighbours and his neighbours will look out for him. For

instance, when he is leaving his house, they will ask Mr Sam where he is going and what time he

will be coming back. When Mr Sam needs help with anything, he will then ask his siblings and

neighbours for help. Furthermore, Mr Sam has many friends living in the same neighbourhood

whom he will often chat with. Moreover, with the help of Medisave and other medical subsidies,

he is able to pay for his medications.

Challenges. Mr Sam faces multiple health issues such as high blood pressure and

diabetes. Although he has blurry vision due to diabetes, he feels that it is safe to navigate the

environment as long as he walks slowly. Mr Sam also pointed out the rising cost of living and

the high cost of medication. However, Mr Sam thinks that the cost of medication is still

manageable due to medical subsidies. Lastly, Mr Sam noted that besides many smokers around

the neighbourhood, there are also drug users who may act unrestrainedly when on drug

influence. Although such incidents are fewer now due to the presence of CCTVs, Mr Sam seems

to feel unsafe being around these individuals as he mentioned that he will avoid them when he

sees them. However, in general, Mr Sam likes living in his neighbourhood and feels safe living

there.

Assets and Possibilities. Mr Sam is an independent person. For instance, in the past,

even though many volunteers have offered to help him tidy up his house, Mr Sam will kindly

reject them and do the chores himself if he can. He is also very knowledgeable about government

schemes since he watches the news very often. As such, his friends and neighbours usually turn

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to him for informational assistance. Furthermore, Mr Sam knows many people in the

neighbourhood and has good relationships with them. For instance, to feel safer being alone at

home, his neighbour’s daughter would ask Mr Sam to leave his wooden door open. When asked

if he would like to organise anything or learn something new, Mr Sam also mentioned that it is

pointless because he is already old. Overall, Mr Sam seems to be very comfortable in the life that

he leads and is not keen to change that in terms of intervening in others’ lives or changing his

own.

Interviewee 3: Mr Jimmy

Background Information. Mr Jimmy is a 73-year-old man who lives with his 31-year-

old daughter, son-in-law, and their two young children aged 4 years and 9 months respectively.

He had lived for many years in the Telok Blangah and Ghim Moh neighbourhoods before

coming to Boon Lay. He is not connected to KK and is not aware of what they do as no

volunteers visit him.

Routine and Hobbies. A typical day for Mr Jimmy consists of sending or fetching the

kids from school, roaming around the neighbourhood, and chatting with friends over meals. He

has many friends all over Singapore and will visit whoever gives him a call that day. He eats out

for all three meals as his daughter and son-in-law have different schedules due to work.

Resources. He was a business owner before retirement and has income from his CPF and

pioneer generation payouts. He has a trusted friend whom he can borrow from when he needs

some cash, and his daughter takes days off to escort him to medical appointments. His family

and himself are known to Social Service Offices (SSO) and THK SAC, who aids with his

grandson’s school fees. Furthermore, Food Bank drops off fresh fruit and vegetables

occasionally. His next-door neighbour also helps to watch the kids once in a while.

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 Challenges. Mr Jimmy has trouble with mobility and uses a scooter. The neighbourhood

is largely accessible to him except for the hawker centre which is too cramped. Due to various

health issues, he needs a lot of medication and hospital appointments, which he views as “very

expensive”, even with Medisave. However, his daughter has difficulty constantly taking leave to

accompany him to appointments, so they are attempting to request a medical escort. He also

experiences some friction with SSO, as he felt that when he asked for aid for hospitalisation fees,

they were too interrogative about how he spends his CPF which is his “own money”.

Assets and Possibilities. Mr Jimmy is independent and resilient as he takes pride in

completely financing his own lifestyle and even helps his family purchase items like diapers as

they are also struggling. He is also opinionated and bold, showing his sense of justice, speaking

up when he thought that RC staff were hoarding the fresher produce from the community fridge.

He proactively greets new faces in the neighbourhood when he sees them.

Interviewee 4: Mrs Tan

Background Information. Mrs Tan is an 88-year-old senior who has worked well into

her 80s, holding a variety of jobs. She has lived in this estate for 15 years. She currently resides

alone after her daughter and husband passed away. While Mrs Tan may not know KK, she

recalled engaging with volunteer befriending groups that visit her. She recalled how volunteers,

who might be from KK, brought her to shop at nearby supermarkets.

Routine and Hobbies. Mrs Tan starts her day by participating in the morning exercise

programme at THK SAC. On Sundays, she attends church with her family. Every Tuesday and

Friday, she collects vegetables from the community fridge between 11 am and 12 pm. Mrs Tan,

who likes to be active, enjoys spending her free time at THK SAC, engaging in activities like

Rummy-O, exercising, singing, and cooking.

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 Resources. Mrs Tan is a mother of seven children and has over a dozen photos of her

family on her walls. She shared that she feels connected to them this way. She is in close contact

with her children and relatives and receives visits from her many grandchildren at least once a

year. Mrs Tan is particularly close to her second daughter, who calls her every day to check on

her well-being. Mrs Tan is also well acquainted with her neighbours, especially those living on

her floor. Although she may not feel exceptionally close to them, she has no qualms about asking

for their assistance when needed. For instance, when her unit experienced a blackout, she sought

her neighbour’s help to fix her circuit. Mrs Tan is a regular at THK SAC and participating in

activities with other seniors gives her a feeling of camaraderie or a sense of “family spirit”.

Challenges. While Mrs Tan still enjoys attending THK SAC, she prefers the previous

staff and programmes. She wishes that the current centre’s staff and manager will resume

cooking activities, which she found particularly enjoyable. Furthermore, Mrs Tan finds it

challenging to connect with her neighbours as she feels they tend to keep to themselves by

closing their doors. Despite this, she tries to make an effort to acknowledge them when they walk

past by saying hello or engaging in small talk with them.

Assets and Possibilities. Mrs Tan is a remarkable senior with a passion for learning.

Despite not knowing English, she volunteered to participate in a singing competition and picked

up cooking skills by herself — cooking for about 350 nursery and kindergarten students. She

also has an unwavering spirit of resilience, taking care of her eldest daughter and husband who

have been fighting chronic illnesses for many years. She frequently donates clothes and gathers

items from her neighbours to give to those in need and is featured in newspapers and on

television. For Mrs Tan, a meaningful life is one where she can socialise with people at THK, see

her children happy and successful, maintain good health, and have access to basic needs.

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Significant Observations

As we walked around the neighbourhood, we noticed that there are various social service

organisations located under the rental blocks that are easily accessible to residents, such as SSO

and THK SAC (see Appendix A).

The neighbourhood also has multiple bumping spaces where residents, especially the

elderly, often sit and chat (see Appendix B). These spaces include benches on the edge of the

residential blocks nearer to the market, where residents have brought their own chairs, and the

void deck in which the community fridge is located. A spontaneous chat with two seniors (not

among our interviewees), revealed that residents are highly aware of the resources and goings-on

within the neighbourhood, such as where Taichi sessions will be held in the morning and how

they can apply for the free lunch distribution or community fridge produce collection, despite the

lady only staying here for a year. The seniors also frequently waved to other residents passing by

of whom some even cheerfully stopped to chat, indicating the familiarity of residents with each

other, at least on a light-hearted and friendly level.

However, there are physical spaces that are difficult for wheelchair users to navigate,

namely the hawker centre (Boon Lay Place Market and Food Village). None of the hawker

centres around the estate has wheelchair spaces at tables. Furthermore, pathways are often

cluttered with boxes that the stall owners use further limiting the accessibility of wheelchair

users like Mr Jimmy. Additionally, the lifts at some flats like Block 190 do not cater to every

floor, further limiting accessibility.

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 Analyses

Community Concerns

Help with Carrying out Tasks

Based on our findings, a few seniors need help with carrying out daily tasks. For instance,

Mr Lim needs help to fix the wall fans due to mobility issues and someone to assist him in

visiting the clinic. Mr Jimmy also needs someone to accompany him to the hospital to collect his

medicine as he does not want to trouble his daughter to take time off work to bring him to the

hospital. Having volunteers who visit these seniors regularly can then assist the seniors in

performing tasks that are important to them. However, as KK mentioned, the organisation

encountered a volunteer retention issue when the pandemic limitations were lifted and the

volunteers who were mostly working adults had to return to in-person work. As such, many of

them had to stop volunteering as it is difficult for them to do so given their current hectic work

schedules. In line with this, the seniors pointed out that more volunteers used to visit them in the

past than they do now.

Seniors’ Voices go Unheard

When inquiring about seniors’ interest in contributing to their community, many express

hesitation and reluctance, sharing that there is no point in doing so. Our group speculated that

this might be due to their feelings of being disregarded or undervalued in their lived experience.

When Mr Lim recounted an experience where he was interviewed by Singapore Polytechnic

students to improve wheelchair designs, he felt that his input was dismissed, as it was not

incorporated into the final design. Similarly, Mr Jimmy felt unappreciated and ignored when he

sought financial assistance at the SSO. Rather than having his stories and reasons for requesting

aid acknowledged, he experienced the process as an interrogation. Mrs Tan also felt unheard

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within the community when her beloved cooking activity was discontinued at THK SAC due to

management changes. She felt betrayed upon discovering that not only had the activity been

discontinued, but the collected dishware for cooking had been discarded.

Community Strengths

The senior residents we interviewed have diverse interests, from Mrs Tan’s love for

cooking, and being a regular at the THK SAC cooking sessions, to Mr Lim and Mr Sam’s

interest in sports. These common interests are important potential points of connection with

others.

The residents are well-connected and resourceful, as they are aware of the people and

spaces around them and reach out to tap on these resources. The seniors have an amicable

relationship with their neighbours and help each other out. For instance, Mrs Tan has received

help from her neighbours in fixing her circuit board when she experienced a blackout. Mr Sam

also used to give food to the children living in the unit beside him and took care of them when

they were younger. Additionally, Mr Jimmy’s neighbour helped him to look after his grandson

occasionally. Whenever there is a donation drive, Mrs Tan also takes the initiative to ask her

neighbours if they want to donate and then gathers everything outside her house for the

respective organisations to collect. Relationships are the basic units in kickstarting and fostering

community organising initiatives. Additionally, all residents interviewed were aware of places to

seek help such as the SSO and THK SAC in the nearby block, as well as physical spaces and

initiatives like the community fridge vegetable distribution. Many seniors also participate in

activities organised by THK SAC, such as health screening and Taichi exercises.

The neighbourhood itself also has multiple physical spaces as assets for social

connection. THK SAC is an important platform whereby residents come together to participate

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in activities together such as the game “Rummy-O”, hence reducing social isolation among the

seniors. Residents like Mrs Tan are able to form close relationships with other residents who go

to THK SAC, creating a sense of membership and belonging. Additionally, there are valuable

bumping spaces (see Appendix B), which Mrs Tan termed “老人街” (“Elderly Street”), as

seniors often gather and interact with one another. These are also potential locations where

residents can arrange meetings to discuss topics that they are interested in or organise activities

for residents to come together and bond.

Possibilities and Challenges to Community Organising

From our analysis, we believe that there are possibilities for community organising

because there is some openness toward connecting with community members. Additionally, we

find that there are common areas of concern such as accessibility, specifically in the hawker

centre, as many are wheelchair users or experience mobility issues. Given a platform to do so,

seniors may be motivated to act on these concerns. However, our group also acknowledges the

challenges involved in community organising among seniors.

Varying Levels of Participation

Bhattacharyya (2004) posits that community development aims to foster “solidarity and

agency” (p. 10) and one of the bases for community development is participation. From our

interviews, we discovered that seniors display varying levels of interest and passion, which may

explain the different participation levels in the community. Using Arnstein’s (1969) ladder of

citizen participation, Mr Lim demonstrates certain degrees of citizen power in both formal and

informal organisations, such as HWA, as he played an integral role in spearheading initiatives

and advocating for wheelchair users.

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 On the contrary, the other three seniors we have interviewed may lean towards a

tokenistic form of participation, as they prefer to participate in community activities without

assuming leadership roles or taking part in decision-making processes. Therefore, it is essential

to ascertain the varying levels of participation among seniors in Boon Lay and tailor activities

that accommodate to their individual preferences, experiences, and autonomy.

Different Conceptions of Community

From the seniors’ perspective, contrary to the common understanding of community as

people living in the same neighbourhood, the overwhelming consensus is that community is first

and foremost, their family with whom they feel a sense of belonging but may not necessarily

reside in the same neighbourhood. For seniors like Mrs Tan, a community consist of those who

share similar interests or engage in social activities together like cooking in THK. In comparison,

seniors feel a weaker sense of solidarity with their neighbourhood community. Although they are

open to connecting with their neighbours, most did not try to go out of their way to do so.

Instead, they would engage with friends living in other areas but not neighbours in their vicinity.

Through stories that Mr Lim shared, he seemed to play a huge role in his community

where he engaged with other wheelchair users in HWA and helped to organise overseas trips for

them. However, when probed about his engagement or knowledge about those living in the same

flat, he had a much lower understanding of them and was not interested to engage with them

further than simple pleasantries. Mr Jimmy shared how he likes to go to the hawker centre to

engage with other elderly eating there but did not share the same sentiments about interacting

with his neighbours. He spoke about how he would only keep conversations to no more than

casual greetings, elaborating that he had past conversations with neighbours that ended poorly,

with them asking for lunch money or being upset during simple exchanges.

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 Moreover, the seniors seem to be very comfortable and happy with their community and

do not seem to feel a strong need to outreach and engage with more people. It does not feel

necessary for them to step out of their comfort zone to connect with their direct neighbours. For

some seniors like Mr Jimmy, this could stem from past bad experiences, while other seniors such

as Mrs Tan, prefer to stay within their comfort zone.

External Environment Creates a Disempowering Experience

We interviewed seniors residing in rental flats, and this comes with the connotation that

they are people who “need help”. There is a saturation of services in the area, with THK SAC

and SSO nearby, which seniors know that they can approach for aid. Additionally, in the past,

there was frequent outreach in the form of unsolicited “volunteers”, presumably due to them

staying in rental units, such as the Food Bank which would deliver fresh produce to Mr Jimmy

occasionally, and “volunteers” who would visit Mr Sam to check in with him although he was

unaware of who they are or whom they are affiliated with. This profusion of “services” even

without residents seeking them, strengthens the labels put on the residents as “people who need

help”, internalising the narrative that they are victims who need the help of a paternalistic higher

authority. They also subject them to a passive experience that reinforces dependency and the

dynamic of a provider and service-user relationship between the government or social services

and the residents, which Mr Sam and Mr Jimmy have shown in their contentment and

expectation of the government to be sources of aid through the SSO. Hence, there may be a need

to motivate these seniors to help themselves by identifying their passions and areas of concern

and then utilising their strengths to address those concerns.

Overall, despite the multiple challenges that will make for a long and tedious journey, it

remains that there is potential for community organising.

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 Recommendations

As mentioned, the seniors have different conceptions of community, hence engagements

to reinforce community may target groups they view as a community. For instance, Mrs Tan may

consider friends whom she cooks with as part of her community as she feels a sense of belonging

when they come together to cook their favourite dishes. Unfortunately, the new THK

management has discontinued this activity due to health and safety protocols during the

pandemic. Hence, as part of community organising efforts, KK could explore collaborating with

THK SAC to revive this beloved community activity.

Next, to target the issue of the lack of volunteers, we propose to tap on existing personnel

within the community such as seniors who are active and willing to contribute like Mr Lim. Mrs

Tan, who is a good cook, can also cook for other residents who may find it challenging to go out

and buy food for themselves. Giving seniors the opportunity to lead their community initiative in

their own estate may promote agency, contributing to community development.

However, during a short interview with the THK SAC manager, he mentioned that

senior-led volunteering groups are often short-lived as they report being tired due to their age

and physical health. Hence, we propose tapping on youths living in the community. A potential

organisation that KK can collaborate with is the Youth Executive Committee under Boon Lay

CC (Boon Lay CC Youth Executive Committee, n.d.). Forming an intergenerational volunteer

group that includes both the seniors and youths allows seniors like Mr Jimmy and Mr Sam, who

are eager and open to share and advise, to serve as mentor figures to guide youths who possess

the energy and potential to sustain the initiative or even propose new possibilities to community

organising. This process empowers seniors to provide their insights and wisdom to nurture the

new generation of community leaders, thus increasing the sustainability of volunteer groups.

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 Group Reflection

Method of Community Organising

In terms of Community Organising, KK adopts an asset-based community development

approach. KK recruits mostly working adults as volunteers to befriend the seniors living in the

rental flats. They also provide training for their volunteers.

Comforts or Discomforts about the Method Used

We appreciated that in using ABCD, KK adopted a strengths-based approach instead of a

deficit lens that is aligned with the social work value of dignity and worth of people. Focusing

within the locality enhances convenience for volunteers, paving the way for sustainability. The

potential bonds being formed by interacting with each other as community members may also

reinforce the intrinsic motivation of volunteers.

However, we were slightly uncomfortable with KK’s use of technology to work with the

older adult demographic as it seemed incongruous with the age group due to the tendency of

older adults to struggle with using digital devices.

Findings that were Surprising or Unsurprising

Across all interviews with the seniors, we were unsurprised to find out that seniors were

not interested in community organising events. This is because almost everyone lives behind

closed doors these days and it is difficult to build meaningful relationships with one another.

This might affect the willingness of residents to get out of their homes and work together in

addressing issues they may be passionate about.

Furthermore, we were surprised to find that a considerable number of the seniors do not

currently have any pressing needs. Perhaps, we felt this way as we approached the project with a

problem-solving and problem-seeking mindset with the preconceived idea that the seniors are in

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need of help. That notion may be reinforced by some of the questions in our interview guide that

probe for their challenges, concerns or issues, influencing us to take on a problem-solving lens.

Another factor that may influence us to see seniors in need of assistance is the fact that they are

living in a rental flat estate, which suggests that many of them experience financial difficulties.

However, that may not be the case, since some seniors have admitted that they chose to live in

rental flats as a practical financial strategy after selling their purchased flats in order to make

some money and retire comfortably.

Moreover, we were initially taken aback by the presence of many social service agencies

under the rental blocks. However, as we reflect, it only seems logical to do so as residents living

in rental flats may require more support financially or in other aspects. However, this perpetuates

the mindset that residents living in rental flats need help from external agencies, hence

reinforcing the thinking that individuals cannot help themselves and encouraging dependency on

social service agencies.

When working on this project, we also realise that we were imposing our expectations of

“community” onto them when, from a social worker’s lens of trying to do community work, we

perceived that their neighbourhood is lacking in engagement with each other as neighbours. In

reality, perhaps many or most of them already have their communities in the form of their

families or existing friends who may not be their neighbours. As everyone’s conception of

community is different, it is then important to constantly remind ourselves to ask individuals

what community means to them and what they want community development to look like.

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 References

Arnstein, S. R. (1969). A ladder of citizen participation. Journal of the American Institute of

Planners, 35(4), 216-224. https://doi.org/10.1080/01944366908977225

Bhattacharyya, J. (2004). Theorizing community development. Journal of the Community

Development Society, 34(2), 5–34. https://doi.org/10.1080/15575330409490110

Boon Lay CC Youth Executive Committee. (n.d.). Boon Lay CC Youth Executive Committee.

Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/blyec/

KampungKakis. (2020). How #KampungKakis works. https://kampungkakis.org/

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 Appendix A

Social Service Organisations Under the Rental Blocks

Figure A1. Ministry of Social and Family Development Social Service Offices @ Boon Lay

Figure A2. Thye Hua Kwan Senior Activity Centre @ Boon Lay

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 Appendix B

Bumping Spaces

Figure B1. Community fridges at Block 190

Figure B2. Tables and chairs at Block 190 void deck adjacent to community fridges

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Figure B3. Space at the edge of Boon Lay Market and Food Village where hawkers often load

their trolleys and sit to rest or chat with other hawkers

Figure B4. Outdoor bench area between Block 190 and the road leading to the market

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Figure B5. Sheltered area with benches on a path leading from Block 190 to the market

Figure B6. Open space adjacent to Boon Lay Market and Food Village where hawkers often load

their trolleys and sit to rest or chat with other hawkers

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