Eleven individuals ranging from students to retirees received Good Neighbour Awards on Saturday at a ceremony held by the Housing Board as part of HDB Community Week 2013.

The award recognises and honours residents who have gone the extra mile for their neighbours, and the recipients were selected from a pool of 2,500 nomination entries.

Among them was 79-year-old cancer survivor Mr Chiu Chee from Toa Payoh, who hs been helping to distribute food and other provisions to needy residents who are house-bound or disabled.

A former plumber, Mr Chiu is also quick to offer to fix his neighbours' faulty taps. Mr Chiu says his age is no barrier to helping others, which he says is in fact his way of staying active and healthy.

On the other end of the spectrum was youngest recipient Emily Tan, 11, who frequently helps her neighbours carry their groceries and looks after their pets and plants in their absence.

Senior Minister of State for National Development, Lee Yi Shyan, who graced yesterday's event, encouraged Singaporeans to "build a more gracious community".

In a blog post Saturday night (1 June), Minister of National Development Khaw Boon Wan said "good neighbours across the island will once again show us how they walk the extra mile in their daily lives to be good neighbours", and that "young or old - it doesn't matter when it comes to kindness".

"Everyone can do their part in community bonding," he wrote. "Start by getting to know your neighbour, and together, discover the rest of your community - the place we call home."