S'porean man, 63, takes family on 11-hour trip to visit former domestic helper in The Philippines, celebrates her birthday

Thankful for his domestic helper's 12 years of service to his family and care for his three daughters, a 63-year-old Singaporean man brought his family to his domestic helper's hometown in the Philippines to visit her in June 2026.

Five years ago, the family's helper, 54-year-old Marilou Serrano Galindo, had returned to her hometown in Maddela, located in the Philippines' Quirino province, Shin Min Daily News reported.

Tan Teck Lee then brought his wife, three daughters and son-in-law to visit Marilou from Jun. 8 to Jun. 16, 2026.

They travelled for about 11 hours to visit her hometown, including a flight to Manila, another domestic flight, and a two-hour car ride before reaching their destination.

With family for 12 years

Speaking to Shin Min, Tan said Marilou had been with the family from 2009 to 2021, when his youngest daughter was only eight years old, and his eldest daughter was 16.

He credited Marilou with helping take great care of his three daughters. They have remained close.

"Although she returned to the Philippines in 2021, she has maintained contact with our family, especially my three daughters."

Philippines hometown

Tan added that he had previously brought his wife and two young daughters to visit Marilou's hometown in 2019 and made many fond memories there.

At the time, Marilou had invited Tan's family to go with her when she went home to visit her family.

"...[Her] family was very welcoming and took good care of us," Tan told Shin Min, adding that they "even came back to Singapore together later".

Shin Min reported that Marilou has a son and a daughter in the Philippines.

Tan said: "Marilou's daughter is very filial and hoped that her mother could come home to reunite with her family, take care of her grandchildren and enjoy her retirement.

"So she chose to return to her hometown in 2021."

Meaningful trip

He added that this trip in June 2026 was especially meaningful as his eldest daughter and son-in-law had accompanied him, Shin Min reported.

It was like a big family outing, Tan said, adding that Marilou's family took his family sightseeing every day, which they enjoyed.

"We went boating, enjoyed the scenery, ate local food, celebrated Marilou's birthday together, and took many photos, creating happy memories," he said.

On top of that, Shin Min reported that out of gratitude for the respect her employer had shown her, she allocated the only room in her house with air-conditioning for Tan's family to stay in.

Thankful that she had been treated like family while working for her employer, Marilou wanted to make their stay comfortable.

She specially installed a water heater, Shin Min reported, adding that she also prepared pillows,  cleaned the house, planned the itinerary and bought fresh ingredients as she wanted Tan's family to try her cooking.

Attended daughter's wedding

Shin Min reported that when Tan's eldest daughter got married in June 2025, Marilou flew to Singapore with her sister and brother-in-law to attend the wedding and spend a week on holiday.

At the time, Tan applied for leave to bring them around, according to Shin Min.

Following this, Marilou invited Tan and his family to visit her hometown and arrangements were made for the trip.

Favourite memory

Having known Marilou for over a decade, Tan told Mothership that his favourite memory of her is "how deeply connected she is to her family".

"After completing her daily chores, she would often sit down and video call her family on WhatsApp to catch up with them," he said.

Tan added: "Over time, I also got to know some of her family members and would occasionally join in to say hello.

"It is heartwarming to see the love and commitment she has for her family despite being far away from them."