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S'pore woman, 101, who raised 10 children after losing husband to cancer at 45, passes away

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December 09, 2024, 06:50 PM

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Being a single mom is hard enough.

For one woman in Singapore, she managed to raise her 10 children for decades after losing her husband at the age of 45.

The woman, Lin Jiao (transliteration), passed away at the ripe old age of 101, at Ren Ci Nursing Home, on Dec. 3.

Lin's passing was announced in a Facebook post by her grandson the next day.

Her cause of death was organ failure from old age, he wrote.

Raised 10 children single-handedly

One of Lin's four daughters, surnamed Cai, told Shin Min Daily News that her mother, who was born in Fujian, China, came to Singapore when she got married at the age of 16.

In earlier years, their family was not well-to-do and would borrow food from neighbours, Cai said.

Yet, after her husband passed away from liver cancer, Lin, a housewife, chose not to rely on her in-laws for financial support.

Instead, Lin made a living by growing vegetables and raising chickens, and also took on part-time jobs to raise her children.

Lin would also sell pomegranate stumps, rambutans and clothes samples from factories to supplement the family income.

Cai added that her four older siblings started working from a young age, while her younger siblings dropped out of secondary school due to the family's finances.

A strong-willed and kind person: Daughter

Cai described her mother as a strong-willed and kind person.

"She raised us all by herself for decades and experienced a lot of suffering. She never remarried, but only wished to give us a good life. We all admire her," Cai said.

By the 1980s, with Lin's children having all started work, the family's finances improved and they were able to move into a flat.

Cai said her mother had few hobbies in life, but always dreamt of returning to her hometown to reunite with her relatives.

So, Lin's children started bringing her back to her hometown in Fujian once a year.

Cai said her mother had a light diet and would eat sweet potato porridge, sweet potato leaves and pickles.

She did not like fish or meat.

Passed away at 101

Eventually, Lin's health deteriorated and the family, after discussing with doctors, arranged for Lin to stay at Ren Ci Nursing Home.

She passed away at 4:45pm on Dec. 3.

"Prior to her passing, the nursing home notified us (of her condition) so we rushed there to be at her side," Cai said.

Cai also thanked Ren Ci's caregivers for meticulously caring for her mother.

Top image from Kenneth Chua/Facebook & Shin Min Daily News

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