I have known Uncle Ong for 18 months.
I got acquainted with him after I kept seeing him feed the cats in the Kallang industrial area every single day.
So I spoke to him and found out he drives a bus to do it.
Rain or shine, weekdays and weekends, the 71-year-old would appear like clockwork.
He would be hunched over putting food and bowls of clean water down, before cleaning up after the felines that are smacking their lips and licking their paws to wipe their faces post-meal.
Feeds more than 30 cats a day
In total, he feeds more than 30 cats in Kallang and Hougang, where he lives.
After sharing his story with the public about him paying more than S$400 a month for cat food using his S$1,000-plus salary, donations began trickling in to lend him a hand.
He has been grateful to the strangers who have stepped up.
Currently, he is into his 17th year of feeding cats daily.
Which is insane.
In the interest of transparency and accountability, regular updates about this one-man cat-feeding mission have been provided.
Here are three things I learnt about him.
1. He is irreplaceable.
All the cats that Uncle Ong feeds rely solely on him.
In the event he stops feeding them one fine day because he can't do it anymore, the felines will probably starve.
The fact is that there is no successor.
Uncle Ong is irreplaceable.
The biggest hurdle to getting more help is that the Kallang area the cats reside in is at least 800m away from the nearest residential estate.
There are no community cat feeders who would venture to this godforsaken part of Kallang daily to do what Uncle Ong does.
A system of volunteers to help him out might work.
But getting that system up and running and seeing that it works every single day?
That's a completely new and different ballgame altogether.
Uncle Ong told me he does not think that far ahead and he will keep doing what he does until he can't.
But I know he doesn't want to think about it because he knows that day will eventually come.
And it makes him sad.
2. It takes a village to feed so many cats.
I am not sure how much runway Uncle Ong has left to keep up with his cat-feeding ways.
He talks about retiring from his bus-driving job and relying solely on public transport to get to Kallang daily to feed the cats.
He would have to do so by lugging cans of food and bottles of kibbles with him in a trolley.
Even though he is a typical blue-collar worker with iron in him, I can see him deteriorating in front of me.
He has injured his back, hips and knees over the past several months and has sought out acupuncture and medical treatment multiple times.
And doing what he does means he has not taken a holiday for a very long time.
But the public has lightened his load by taking the financial burden off Uncle Ong.
Steven Chan, the owner of S&S Pet's Shop at Block 462 Tampines Street 44, where public donations are funnelled, has been arranging for cat food to be distributed to Uncle Ong as and when he needs it.
Despite global inflation pushing the cost of cat food up, Chan has kept a lid on prices.
via Serene Low
And the informal network of support has ensured Uncle Ong has people to turn to.
People in the Kallang and Hougang areas have occasionally offered Uncle Ong cat food and money.
Those working in Kallang have been providing food and treats to the cats hanging around, but not exactly on a fixed schedule.
A few months ago, Uncle Ong had to seek out the services of a veterinarian in Toa Payoh after a cat became ill.
He had to negotiate to have the cost of the bill lowered.
Not only that, a fosterer then stepped in to take in the cat that could not be returned to the community while it was still recovering.
In other words, feeding community cats is no longer a one-person effort.
Because increasingly, it cannot be as Uncle Ong is advancing in age.
3. He never asked for credit.
One of the most common responses to stories about community cats is that people who love cats should bring them all home.
In an ideal world, that would be done.
But in reality, it's easier said than done.
For those who have dealt with free-roaming community cats before, herding one cat is sometimes already near impossible.
The cats in the Kallang industrial area do not trust anyone except for Uncle Ong.
They are skittish and generally do not approach any other person than the friendly old man they have come to know and anticipate every single evening.
For the longest time, until Uncle Ong's story was made public, the only appreciation he got was from the cats that run up to him to show their affection by rubbing up against his legs.
He has never sought credit for what he has done, although he said people do come up to him more often now.
And he is not seeking any credit now, as all he wants is to be able to continue to do what he is doing.
Until he can't.
How to donate
Those who wish to help Uncle Ong can purchase cat food for him via this link.
Donors who are keen to help by contributing smaller sums can contact S&S Pet's Shop at snspetsshop@gmail.com.
Top photos via Mothership