Fion Phua has been volunteering for so long, she is nicknamed Robin Hood for her efforts helping the poor. Singapore's partial lockdown as the coronavirus was spreading in April left her fretting over how the blind, bedridden and elderly living alone would cope.
She had to stop her volunteer activities for a month, but Phua decided to keep going in May with visits every two weeks. Her core team of volunteers met urgent needs — plumbers, handymen and people who could dispense medicine or tap on government resources.“We support social distancing, not social isolation,” Phua said.The informal network she founded, Keeping Hope Alive, has toiled tirelessly for over two decades to reach Singapore’s less fortunate in different neighborhoods.