2026 Singapore Silent Heroes Winner: Yong Kwon Seng – Outstanding Adult

For 16 continuous years (2010–2026), 40-year-old Yong Kwon Seng has dedicated his weekends and public holidays to Singapore’s most marginalized communities, clocking over 1,000 hours annually while maintaining a teaching career. He conceptualized and implemented the No One Dies Alone (NODA) programme at the Institute of Mental Health in 2018, providing end-of-life companionship to terminally ill patients and personally arranging dignified final rites.

His innovative initiatives include the PHAngel snack distribution, the “Boss for the Day” income-generation program, wheelchair-accessible community outings, and professional haircutting teams. Under his visionary leadership, his volunteer group “The Achievers” has expanded from 20 to nearly 400 dedicated individuals.

Growing up as a caregiver to his severely disabled and blind brother, Kwon Seng
experienced social ostracism firsthand, which cultivated his profound empathy.
Demonstrating remarkable resilience, he returned to supporting long-stay patients within
two weeks of the devastating loss of his mother in late 2022. He empowers patients as
active givers rather than passive recipients, transforming traditional models of charity into
mutual empowerment.

Kwon Seng’s work represents a systematic transformation of how society’s most vulnerable populations experience care, dignity, and connection. Working behind the scenes without recent formal accolades, his sustained dedication proves that one person’s compassion can profoundly change thousands of lives.