SINGAPORE – Even when she was on a holiday in Melaka with her husband earlier in 2023, Madam Sarimah Sarip did not have much time to take in the sights. She was busy on her phone.

She was not idly scrolling through social media or chat apps, though, but helping those in need.

An elderly woman in Singapore urgently needed adult diapers and had reached out to Madam Sarimah, 52, for help. The woman has no children to care for her, and felt like she had no one else to turn to.

Said Madam Sarimah, a former nurse: “Just because I am on holiday does not mean that I can turn away people who come to me for help.”

She contacted her family members in Singapore to arrange for diaper delivery to the elderly woman.

Madam Sarimah, who gets such messages throughout the day and night, has spent the last seven years fulfilling requests from underprivileged families, many of them headed by single mothers.

The requests range from groceries to diapers to used clothing and furniture. Some who find it difficult to make ends meet ask for small cash loans for necessities.

When she receives a request for help, she uploads a post with the details on her Facebook page, under the nickname “Mira Anggun”. Friends and community donors who follow her page then come together to help the beneficiary.

Madam Sarimah does her own checks on the many requests she receives to make sure they are genuine. She tries to understand each family’s situation by chatting with them, asking about other aid they may be receiving, and sometimes visiting their homes to see how they live.

If she finds that the request is not genuine, she sometimes donates a token $100 as a gesture of goodwill, but will not post about the request to make sure her followers are not taken advantage of by those with ill intentions.

Madam Sarimah decided to use her social media page for a good cause after coming across a family in 2016 who needed some help to buy groceries. While delivering the household items to the family of eight, she could not help but notice that the house was in a poor state.

She took to Facebook and put out a call for used furniture donations. To her relief, many stepped up and got the family better furniture.

Madam Sarimah gets about four requests for help a week. She has about 15 people who are regular donors. Some others who offer help have been beneficiaries in the past.

One woman who used to receive help has now become a donor after getting a stable job.

Madam Sarimah, a mother of five, said running the page is stressful sometimes, especially when deals fall through. In some instances, she would arrange for furniture to be delivered to a beneficiary, only for the beneficiary to become uncontactable on that day.

Despite these occasional hurdles, her desire to make a difference keeps her going.

“Whenever there is an unfulfilled request for help on my page, I can’t sleep peacefully knowing that someone out there is struggling.

“There is a great sense of satisfaction in seeing others benefit through my small help and effort. It is fulfilling when I can make things better for those who are less fortunate.”