The Jockey Club Tuen Mun Home is the fourth home for the aged blind under the Residential Service Division of The Hong Kong Society for the Blind. It is a non-governmental organization dedicated to the well-being of the visually impaired in the territory.

According to Miss Kitty Chung, superintendent of the Kowloon Home for the Aged Blind — another home under The Hong Kong Society for the Blind — the number of blind people above 60 years old in 1995 was 10,427. She said, "This really posed a need to extend our service."

Being subsidized by the Social Welfare Department, the Tuen Mun home was opened in January 1996.

At present, there are 252 aged people living in the home.

Elderly people above 60, being certificated visually impaired or blind and without infectious disease, are qualified to apply as residents.

The residents are divided into three categories according to their health condition, namely the Old People Home Section, the Care and Attention Unit and the Infirmary Unit.

Mr. Tang Ming Pun, superintendent of the home, said, "People in the Infirmary Section need the most intensive nursing and personal care because of their poorer health condition."

Without commitment to any government hospitals, medical service is provided by two voluntary doctors at the home every Tuesday and Thursday.

Mr. Tsang said, "Concerning their needs, all facilities and furniture in the home are specially designed for the blind."

Spoken "door bells", for example, are installed at each door. They are indispensable to ensure the residents entering the right room, since they announce the room number when pressed.

Besides, there are six beds and two washrooms for each room. The washrooms are designed for wheelchair users.

Besides, the home is equipped with handrails, acoustic cont- rols, rounded corners, and textured walls and floors. All these features cater to the special needs of the residents.

Though living in darkness, residents' daily lives at the home are not as colourless as most people may think.

Miss Gloria Wong, a nurse at the home, revealed that the residents are very active. She said, "They have every day a DJ time during which they broadcast over the microphone the activity menu and news to all members."

Miss Wong said that the residents there do not regeard themselves as useless.

Said she: "They help us not only to tidy the clothes but also distribute spoons and chopsticks during meals. Besides, every day at lunch time, some act as guards at the reception while others help the needy to walk along. "This boosts their self-confidence and gives them a sense of dignity and achievement," she added.

Together with Miss Gloria Wong, Miss Winnie Wong Lai Chun, a personal-care worker at the home, share a similar feeling that the home is filled with liveliness, care, love and patience.

Admitting that beginning is always difficult, she said, "At first, the residents might not trust or be considerate towards us. However, as time goes by, we build a mutual trust.

"Sometimes we lack of helping hands. When we explain to them about the situation, they are very considerate," she added.

Miss Winnie Wong revealed that, although the residents cannot see, they know others very well by recognizing their voices, accents or simply by touching their hands.

Miss Gloria Wong and Miss Winnie Wong find different meanings in serving the elderly blind.

For Miss Winnie Wong, the job has been a turning point.

She said, "I can know more about the elderly through my job.

"Now, I am no longer afraid of getting old, and I have become more confident to face the years to come," she added.

Compared with her former jobs working in hospitals and clinics, Miss Gloria Wong found the current one nurtures a more in-depth relationship with clients.

She explained, "I chose to work here because serving the blind is challenging.

"I've developed immense patience because I need to take care of them concerning trivial and important daily necessities," she added.

Both said the blind elderly can live happily if they are under care.

Miss Winnie Wong said, "If we please the elderly blind occcasionally and offer them tenderness and trust, they become accustomed to the new enviroment more easily, thus cause less trouble."

By Wong Yuen Kwan

Though she does not look like a person with eye disease, she has been staying in the Jockey Club Tuen Mun Home for the Aged Blind since March.

Ms Lo Mei, 84, is a tidy resident with well-trimmed hair.

She was worried when she learned that she was qualified to move in this hostel 10 months ago.

She said, "I do not have any children and lost my husband many years ago. I only have a nephew to take care of me.

"Of course I felt worried at that time because I had to leave him suddenly and live with other blind elderly," she added.

However, Ms Lo adapted to the new environment quickly.

She said, "The staff and residents here are all very nice and helpful, my anxiety quickly faded.

"I used to be quiet and passive. I did not have many friends," she said. "However, after coming here, I have become more talkative and optimistic. I have made a lot of friends here.

Although I cannot see, I think I am already very lucky."

Mr. Tang Ming Pun, superintendent of the Jockey Club Tuen Mun Home for the Aged Blind, said, "Mei is healthy and active. She is always helpful." Ms Lo usually works as a volunteer at the reception counter in the home, asking visitors to sign their names in a record book.

She said, "Although the work is simple, it offers me a sense of satisfaction."

She lives harmoniously with five other female roommates. They are all suffering from eye diseases.

When they have their meals, Ms Lo voluntarily helps others to arrange the table. "Since I can still see a little, I am very willing to help them," she said. "We are all in the same boat."

Besides, Ms Lo enjoys participating in the outdoor activities organized by the hostel. "I once joined a visit to a temple in Yuen Long. I enjoyed the vegetarian food there," she said.

Looking back, when she realized that her eyes would gradually lose their function, Ms Lo sighed, "I have been suffering from diabetes for 20 years. I kept taking medicine, but the conditions did not improve. Finally, I needed to have an operation on my infected eyes."

Though the operation restored part of her eyesight, she could see only poorly. She felt quite desperate at that time. "Luckily, my doctor wrote a letter to the Social Welfare Department, and they transferred me to this hostel. I am now well looked after and I feel very happy," she said.

In the hostel, Ms Lo is categorized as one of the "healthy" ones. She can take care of herself and is able to talk to others.

There are about 200 residents who need intensive care and assistance in the hostel. Some are blind and handicapped and need wheelchairs. Some need the help of a nurse to take a meal. Others are even too weak to talk.

While enjoying her life in the Home for the Aged Blind, Ms Lo reckoned that there are many elderly blind people who are still waiting for help.

"I am very satisfied with my present life, but I still hope that the government can provide more help for the elderly in need," she said.