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Man Doubled His Weight from 130kg to 240kg After Losing Job During Circuit Breaker

2022-12-25 , 6:54 am

What were you doing during the 2020 circuit breaker? Making dalgona coffee? Perhaps following a Chloe Ting workout? Sulking about your life even though you probably already have it better than others?

Well, during the circuit breaker, a man doubled his weight from 130kg to 240kg after losing his job. Before losing his job, he had just lost both his parents as well.

As a result of his weight, he became immobile, and his house gradually started to be filled with garbage. There was a period when he even had to sleep on the floor.

Here’s how he managed to get out of his predicament.

Man Doubled His Weight from 130kg to 240kg In Two Months During Circuit Breaker

Before the circuit breaker, 44-year-old Saini had been working at a cruise terminal. He was self-sufficient and had been living in a rental flat in Jalan Besar since 2016.

However, everything changed once COVID-19 hit our little red dot. Cruises were no longer coming to Singapore, and many cruise terminal staff lost their jobs.

Saini was one of them.

Later, Saini apparently tried to apply for a job as a security guard. However, he was unable to get the job.

The reason? His weight.

If his story had surfaced on a social media platform like TikTok earlier, it definitely would have triggered an online uproar.

Unable to Dispose of Rubbish, House Starts Filling Up With Garbage

During the circuit breaker period, Saini’s weight doubled from 130kg to 240kg.

During those two months, he was also diagnosed with gout, a type of inflammatory arthritis, which further impeded his movement.

Soon after, his house started to fill up with garbage as he could not walk out to the rubbish chute at the lift lobby to dispose of his rubbish. Instead, he began to leave his trash in his flat.

Over time, the garbage accumulated and took up an entire corner of his home. There were all sorts of rubbish, from food leftovers to pots and pans.

With that much rubbish, you know what that means. Your not-so-friendly neighbourhood pests are going to pay you a visit. And that’s precisely what happened—cockroaches started to make themselves at home in Saini’s home.

The unhygienic environment further worsened Saini’s health to the point where he had to visit the hospital frequently.

Reaching Out to Habitat for Humanity Singapore

All bad things, however, will come to an end.

Fortunately, he managed to get out of his predicament after social workers referred him to Habitat for Humanity. This housing charity seeks to rehabilitate flats in Singapore for the vulnerable.

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Volunteers spent approximately five hours clearing his flat of the mountains of garbage and cockroaches.

After what seemed like forever, Saini finally had a clean flat.

He also finally got a bed to sleep on after sleeping on the ground for the longest time. The housing charity also gifted a blanket hand-sewn by volunteers to Saini under the “Sew Much Love” campaign.

Habitat for Humanity Singapore’s “Sew Much Love” Campaign

Over the past two years, the “Sew Much Love” campaign by Habitat for Humanity Singapore has raised more than $68,000 and has given out more than 20 hand-sewn Agape blankets to the vulnerable.

The campaign has been running since 2020 and aims to bring warmth and comfort into the homes of the vulnerable by gifting Agape blankets to low-income families and vulnerable seniors.

Well, all we can say is that this initiative doesn’t just bring warmth to the vulnerable but also to our hearts.

Want to contribute to this initiative? Make a $20 donation towards funding the charity’s “Project HomeWorks”, and you’ll be able to contribute a quilt patch design for a quilt in the “Sew Much Love” campaign.

Each Agape blanket consists of more than 130 quilt patches, which are all contributed by the public.

Other Initiatives by Habitat for Humanity Singapore

Aside from “Project Homeworks” and “Sew Much Love”, Habitat for Humanity Singapore also has multiple other initiatives.

You can join the organisation as a volunteer under the “UnLitter Red Dot” campaign, which aims to clean up residential estates. More emphasis is placed on rental flat neighbourhoods, which tend to be more vulnerable.

Other initiatives include the “Global Village” campaign, which gives Singapore volunteers a chance to help low-income communities overseas. You’ll be able to help build safe and affordable houses for low-income families across the Asia-Pacific to live in.

The housing charity also boasts several student-initiated organisations in tertiary institutions, known as “Campus Chapters”. These allow youths from the schools involved to gain insight into Habitat for Humanity Singapore’s work. You can click here for more details if you’re looking to start a Campus Chapter in your school.

These are just some of the many initiatives being organised by Habitat for Humanity Singapore. In the hustle and bustle of everyday life, many of us tend to forget about giving back to society and supporting the vulnerable in our communities. Habitat for Humanity Singapore, however, provides plenty of opportunities for us to give back to the community.

So this Christmas, why not do a little giving to causes that matter rather than just giving your heart away every Christmas? You can donate here if you’d like to show your support for Habitat for Humanity Singapore’s #HomeThisChristmas 2022 initiative. Other initiatives can be found on the charity’s website as well.