Meaningful experience

Lee Kwan, a 96-year-old living in the same building as Law, is also grateful for help she has received from the BESA.

Born in 1914, Lee spent her youth on a farm in Guangdong province but a visit to Hong Kong in the 1940s changed her life forever. A rich family hired her as a live-in housemaid, a job she performed for four families until her back pains prevented her from working in her mid-60s.

One of the traditions of live-in maids back then was to remain single, said Lee, explaining why she never married. She also has no family in Hong Kong, although her niece from the mainland sometimes visits for three-month periods.

Asked if she felt regretted sacrificing the chance of marriage for her job, she replied with a firm "no" before adding: "All my employers treated me well. I was happy working for them.

"One of my employers gave me six tickets for Ocean Park (a popular marine wildlife attraction) and persuaded me to go for a visit," she recalled. "But I gave the tickets to some poor families whose kids were more willing to go. I've still never visited the Ocean Park yet."

Law and Lee are just two of the hundreds of pensioners who have benefited from the relationships they have built with volunteers from the BESA.

Ruby Yeong Pui-shan has worked part time for the group for more than a decade. Among the clients she visits is an elderly cancer patient who is receiving treatment in hospital.

"He told me that he has no family and that he is not sure what his life would be like without us," said Yeong. "I just tell him he has nothing to worry about. All the BESA volunteers are his family now."

For volunteers who also hold down full-time employment, the greatest challenge is preventing fatigue from affecting their performance.

"After a whole day of work, I am very tired, so the angel of good has to fight hard against the devil of laziness," said Yeong with a smile.

However, the sympathy she feels for her clients always wins out. "If I didn't go (to see them), who else will?" she said.

"Helping to arrange funerals is undoubtedly important but looking after lonely elderly people is far more meaningful," she added. "It's not about the moment of saying goodbye. It's about their trust in us before their last breath."

BESA is now expanding its services from covering Wong Tai Sin district to the entire city in an effort to serve more elderly people.

"Now my funeral has been taken well care of by the BESA volunteers, I have nothing to worry about," said Lee.