The Gift of Love from a Foster Mother

Mdm Saharah, Juraimi's foster mother, opened her home and heart without hesitation to a child with cerebral palsy 19 years ago. Read more of their story here.

“Sometimes people ask me why I care so much. They say he’s not my own and that it’s extra work. What they don’t understand is that, from the beginning, I never saw myself as just his babysitter. I saw myself as his parent, and he, my son,”

Mdm Saharah, Juraimi’s foster mother.

Meet Mdm Saharah. She has three daughters of her own and fostered four children over 20 years, including Juraimi, who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy since young.

Juraimi’s birth name is Jeremy Quek. As his teenage parents had been unable to care for him, Mdm Saharah fostered Jurami when he was just 4 months old, opening her home and heart to him without hesitation.

With unclear speech, restricted control of limbs and the inability to move around on his own, Juraimi required round-the-clock care and is entirely dependent on others for his daily activities, such as feeding and toileting.

A birthday celebration with Juraimi’s foster parents during his childhood days
A birthday celebration with Juraimi’s foster parents during his childhood days

At only 19 years of age, Juraimi has already undergone five surgical operations to correct his hips, knees and arm. Each time he cried in pain after surgeries, Mdm Saharah was there to comfort and cry with him. Each time his stiff muscles ached, she was there to massage and sooth his pain. Throughout the challenges, Mdm Saharah has never once thought of giving up on Juraimi.

When Juraimi joined SPD’s Day Activity Centre (DAC) after graduating from a special school, it provided Mdm Saharah with some respite from her 24/7 caregiving duties. The DAC’s training officers now work on his activities of daily living skills such as cleaning his lap table after a meal so that he can be more independent.

Juraimi takes part in activities to enhance his motor skills at Day Activity Centre
Juraimi takes part in activities to enhance his motor skills at Day Activity Centre

Juraimi is interested in technology and his wish is to be able to work and help alleviate the financial burden at home. Our assistive technology (AT) specialist is now training Juraimi to access the computer with the help of AT devices, thus bringing him a step closer to fulfilling his dreams.

Mdm Saharah and Juraimi show that the gift of love can come from anyone and in many forms. With the support of our donors, we were able to improve the lives of over 10,000 persons with disabilities last year, including Juraimi and his foster family. Your donation will enable us to help more people with disabilities to be independent and self-reliant.

All donations to SPD enjoy 2.5 times tax deduction and those received before 31 December 2019 will be included in the tax assessment for 2019.

We look forward to your support this festive season.

Make a donation at https://www.giving.sg/spd/the_gift_of_love today.