When Madam Siew Yin Ling talks about her pet project, the GreenAcres, you can tell it is meant to be more than a retirement village.
She makes no bones about the project concept being born out of her practice of filial piety and the same being experienced by family and close friends.
As she continued to tell stories about how residents there came to stay at the GreenAcres, she related how she and her siblings struggled with broaching the subject of a retirement home with their mother.
“This is a taboo subject to discuss. Generally, the old folks home or nursing homes here are of poor quality and poorly run,” her son John Chong, Director of GreenAcres Retirement Village, explains that impression is etched on people’s minds. Parents who have been taken to visit such places wouldn’t want to stay there.
Madam Siew, 81, has eight brothers and after her father died one of her brothers who had migrated to Australia took her to stay with him. But as the years passed, his work and other commitments kept him busy and his mother was mostly left alone until the family came home at the end of the day.
“My brother was Chinese-educated and filial piety meant a lot to him (which made it harder to suggest going to a retirement home). He could never ask our mother to visit a retirement home as for many Asians this can be construed as being abandoned. The old folks may think my children are big now and no one wants me anymore.
“One day, in Melbourne, a friend asked my brother if my mother would like to visit a retirement village. My mother was ok and went along. When she returned my brother asked, How is it Ah Ma? She didn’t say a word but gave both thumbs-ups!
“My brother called to say the sky is clear (in Cantonese) meaning what a relief. He called me up to say that because then he could broach the subject. Finally, she went to live there at the age of 92 and died four years later.
“When she was staying with my brother she was left alone most of the time and would be bored without a community and companionship,” Madam Siew adds that companionship and a sense of belonging are the underlying objectives for the concept of GreenAcres.
Having seen how well retirement homes overseas have done Madam Siew was inspired to bring this to Malaysians.
“Many people asked us to refer to GreenAcres as a retirement resort because it has that feel but we kept it as a village because it sounds more intimate and like a village where everybody knows one another and the community spirit is stronger,” says John.
Katy, 91, is Madam Siew’s schoolmate and the oldest resident in the village.
“Her husband had passed away and she was alone. One day she came for a visit and liked it. She wanted to get a lease and contacted her daughter about it. Her daughter told her to hold on and not take further action.
“When her daughter came back from Sydney to check out the place, she too liked it and told her mum to sign up for the lease,” Madam Siew adds that Green Acres also gives children the peace of mind to know that their parents are living in a nice environment with proper facilities and support care.
John explains that the villas or chalets are leased out not for sale. Depending on the size of the villas, the amount to put as a deposit for the lease ranges from RM370k up to RM560k. Aside from that, a monthly maintenance fee from RM400 plus onwards is charged based on the property size.
“This is a lifetime lease; when you leave, we will calculate how much of that deposit will be refunded. If the resident passes away it will be given to the nominee and if the lease is paid for by a financier such as the children, then the resident will nominate them to receive the refund.
“Nearly 40 per cent of the residents are from Ipoh and the rest are from out of town like Penang, Kuala Lumpur, Malacca and even Brunei. Some of them are from overseas who came in under Malaysia My Second Home progamme.]
“GreenAcres is built on a 13-acre piece of land. Current built-up has used up a third of it and the plan is to use up the remaining land in the future which includes more villas and aged care which caters to seniors needing the next level of care and condominium units.
“If residents here want to move from villas to aged care, they can terminate this lease and get a refund to apply for aged care,” says John.
50 % of the villas currently being constructed have been taken up. Those who sign up before construction is completed will pay 10 per cent of the price as a down payment and will be billed progressively until completion.
There are several units in the early phase for people to experience staying in the village before deciding to sign up for the lease.
“Residents here will be ageing in grace. A sense of belonging is very critical. If they should move to aged care they would have friends here to visit them. When they came they knew no one but when they leave they will have a whole community as friends,” adds Madam Siew. – JE Tan
