Dad’s inspiring: Meet three fathers who are everyday heroes to their kids
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When adversity strikes, they rise to the challenge because their children mean the world to them. Read their inspiring stories this Father’s Day.
PHOTOS: TARYN NG, LIANHE ZAOBAO, LIM YAOHUI
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SINGAPORE – If love is in the details, these three fathers love deeply.
Cancer survivor and single dad Ben Phua, 69, learnt to cook by trial and error so he could feed his 14-year-old son, who has special needs, nutritious meals.
Mr Steven Eng, 59, has been carrying his 37-year-old son, William, for decades as the younger man has muscular dystrophy, a condition that causes muscles to weaken over time.
Mr Muhammad Dian Khudhairi Mohamed Ali, 52, once drove to Kuala Lumpur to see his daughter, national taekwondo athlete Diyanah Aqidah Muhammad Dian Khudhairi, 26, in her first SEA Games in 2017, even though he was not sure if he could secure tickets to the match. Diyanah’s mother had died two years earlier.
When adversity strikes, they rise to the challenge because their children mean the world to them. Read their inspiring stories this Father’s Day.
Cancer survivor is full-time caregiver to teenage son with special needs
Divorced retiree Ben Phua is the sole caregiver of his only child, Zai Quan.
ST PHOTO: TARYN NG
When Mr Ben Phua, 69, takes a bus with Zai Quan, 14, strangers sometimes compliment the boy’s striking eyes and thick lashes.
“They say Zai Quan is so handsome and they ask, ‘Is this your grandson?’ I say, ‘No, this is my son,’” he says.
The divorced retiree is the sole caregiver of his only child, who was born with an extra chromosome, resulting in multiple disabilities. While Zai Quan can walk, he is non-verbal and relies on his father for everyday activities.
He quit his career to care for his son, who has muscular dystrophy
Mr Steven Eng (left), a full-time caregiver to his son William, helps him with daily activities such as going to the bathroom and giving him medicine.
PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO
Childhood falls were an ordeal for Mr William Eng.
Unlike other children, he could not brush off a routine tumble. While he remembers running in primary school, he tiptoed as he walked. Unbeknown to him, his unusual gait was a symptom of muscular dystrophy, a condition in which muscles weaken over time.
Mr Eng, now 37, recalls: “I fell easily and frequently. I wasn’t afraid of falling down, but getting back up was tiring. Initially, I could get up on my own. But by secondary school, my friends had to pull me up from behind.”
He found out, through medical checks ahead of registering for national service, about his muscular dystrophy at the age of 15.
Father’s emotional support after her mum’s death helps taekwondo champ fly high
National taekwondo athlete Diyanah Aqidah Muhammad Dian Khudhairi, 26, with her father, Mr Muhammad Dian Khudhairi Mohamed Ali, 52.
ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
National taekwondo athlete Diyanah Aqidah Muhammad Dian Khudhairi, 26, aims a series of flying kicks just in front of her father’s face as the camera clicks.
Caught in mid-air, she seems to defy gravity.
Mr Muhammad Dian Khudhairi Mohamed Ali, 52, stands still, not flinching at all as she runs and leaps at him in another pose.
The football and silat player gamely poses as Diyanah choreographs yet another angle for the photo shoot.
“You need to teach me,” he coaxes, as she tries to explain how she wants him to place his hands.
