Villagers band together to send hearty meals to Covid-19 patients

WHEN Jasvinder Singh, or ‘Anu’ as he is known in his village community, started up a conversation with his friend and his nephew about Covid-19, little did he imagine that it would blossom into a full-blown initiative. One of delivering tasty meals, free of charge, to Sungai Buloh hospital’s Covid patients.

“My nephew, my friend and I were sitting in our village, discussing that paracetamol is given in the hospital for Covid. And that you need to eat first before taking it.  We started thinking about how people need good food to fight the virus, food that will help give them the strength to recover quickly.” 

However, for their community in Kalumpang, 80km from KL, getting food to family members in the hospital was a virtually impossible task. As the specialist Covid hospital, Sungai Buloh has been taking in patients from far and wide. 

Most of the patients' family members that Jesvinder knew were elderly. Travelling daily to deliver meals was beyond their means, leaving them to worry about their loved ones, isolated and struggling to pull through.

That’s when an idea came to the three. Taking their own money from the bank, they organised sending their first batch of dinners to the Covid patients in Sungai Buloh one week ago. Restoran Jai Hind in Masjid India, owned by Jasvinder’s friend, Bhoopender Singh, prepares and packs the meals. From there, taxi driver Delbir Singh takes them to the hospital.

Originally conceived to help people they knew in their community, the project quickly escalated. They received requests from more and more people – from other areas and villages, of all races and backgrounds. Jesvinder was not deterred.

“I said: ‘Anyone who wants food, we give.’ That is our belief.”

By word of mouth, news of the food project spread, and others in the village began volunteering and contributing to the efforts. Social media took the message further, until supporters were coming forward not only as far as KL, but internationally, from the UK and USA. 

The operation has been able to expand, now providing both lunch and dinner, with a varied menu to cater for both vegetarian and non-vegetarian patients. Each meal comes with rice or chappati, fresh vegetables and a protein source, plus tea, coffee or juice, and a dessert at dinner time.

Jesvinder is working full-tilt dealing with the logistics. On top of his nine-to-five job, he coordinates menu choices and transportation. And he works hard to get the right meals delivered to the correct building, floor and ward for each patient. On most nights, he is in bed after 3am.

“Other volunteers are also working hard," Jasvinder confirmed, “and when you receive a message saying, ‘Carry on, Anu! What you are doing is very good,’ then it spurs you on.”

Jesvinder has received many messages of support, some including offers to contribute or volunteer. But there were a few calls that had him questioning himself. 

“They made me doubt whether I could do this, made me feel you can only do this thing if you are a big NGO with funding, but we are doing something from the heart.”

Jesvinder’s family, his wife, daughter and two sons, are fully behind the project. 

“When I was feeling uncertain, my wife just said, ‘You can do this!’ and gave me moral support. I am simply trying to do a good thing, so I shouldn’t be discouraged.”

Tejwin, one of the volunteers, is in no way disheartened. 

“We would like to continue doing it every day, and for it to grow with the help of more volunteers and supporters,” he confided. “I hope it will grow further so that we can prepare four meals a day, including breakfast and tea time!”

The numbers vary each day, but some days this week the project has delivered more than 30 meals to the hospital.  On Wednesday, Jesvinder was happy to hear that five orders were cancelled, as the patients had recovered and been discharged.

However, as the number of Covid cases is still increasing, demands for the meals may also rise. Some families are struggling so much, that they have even asked the volunteers to send other supplies to the hospital. Alongside the food, they've requested for slippers, soap and tissues.

Jesvinder can’t say how long they will be able to continue with this initiative. But he takes each day one at a time, doing whatever he can for the food to reach as many patients as possible.  For the patients, quarantined and facing an uncertain future, each meal must be a beacon of hope on their road to recovery. 

Knowing that there are people outside thinking of them and caring about them will surely lift their spirits. Nutritional food is a force for healing, and feeding someone is an act of love – both of which the Sungai Buloh patients need right now. Our thoughts are with them all. – The Vibes, January 15, 2021