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Meet the remarkable woman who dedicated the last sixty years to philanthropy

Mrs Wong-Mah Jia Lan, affectionately known as Mama Wong, is a well-respected philanthropist who was named one of Asia-Pacific's top philanthropists by Forbes in 2013. In late 2023, Mama Wong established the Wong-Mah Jia Lan Bursary at Duke-NUS to help financially needy students fulfil their dream of becoming competent clinicians.

“I choose bursary over scholarship because I want to help students who truly need the financial assistance,” she explained. “This makes the money more meaningful.”

Mama Wong receiving a token of appreciation from Cham Gee Len, Associate Director of Development, Duke-NUS

Growing up in an era where most women were deprived of education, Mama Wong did not have the opportunity to attend university even though she had wanted to.

“I didn’t have the opportunity back then, so now I want to help students fulfil their university dreams. Seeing them graduate makes me feel like I have graduated too,” said Mama Wong

Born in Ipoh, Malaysia, and now a Singapore citizen, Mama Wong's philanthropic spirit is deeply rooted in her mother's ethos of helping those in need.

“During the Japanese Occupation, our house was plundered and had barely anything left. Yet my mother never rejected anyone who came to borrow food items,” explained Mama Wong

“My mother is a very generous woman. She told me never say no to those who seek help. She said that if a person were to come to you for help, it is likely because he is in a worse predicament than you. This is why I hardly reject people who reach out to me. I always do my best. This is my principle,” said Mama Wong.

Mama Wong and her late husband Mr Wong Kwok Leong amassed their wealth from various business ventures. The compassionate and generous couple shared their good fortune by making numerous donations to temples, hospitals and schools in Singapore and beyond. All this began with their arranged marriage when Mama Wong was only 19, and Mr Wong 41, then a draughtsman who lost his left arm in an accident.

Despite her initial reservations, their partnership flourished and led to a profitable business empire, starting with a tin-mining business in Ipoh, thanks to the 35 acres of land which was part of her dowry. This was followed by a ship supplies business in Singapore, which expanded to include ship repair services. Subsequently, they ventured into the hotel industry in Hong Kong in the late 1960s.

Apart from being a successful businesswoman and active philanthropist, Mama Wong is also an avid artist, dabbling in a variety of styles such calligraphy, finger painting and ink painting. She is particularly known for her finger painting of pine trees and lotus flowers.

One of Mama Wong’s finger paintings of pine trees. Image credit: Art Infinity

Here’s another fun fact about Mama Wong: she was part of the Singapore national bowling team and won many international championships between 1975 and 1976.
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投身慈善事业60余载的大德善女黄马家兰

黄马家兰女士，众人敬称“黄妈妈”，是一位备受尊敬的本地慈善家，在2013年被《福布斯》杂志评为亚太地区慈善英雄之一。2023年底，黄妈妈于杜克-国大医学院设立了黄马家兰助学金，旨在帮助贫困学生成为优秀的医生。

“我选择助学金而不是奖学金，因为我想帮助那些真正需要资助的学生。这样比较有意义。”她说道。

杜克－国大医学院发展副主任Cham Gee Len献花给黄妈妈。

黄妈妈生长在一个“女子无才便是德”的年代，多数女性都没什么机会受教育。未读大学也成了她的遗憾，因此她决心帮助学子们求学。

“那时候我没有机会，所以现在我想帮助学生实现他们上大学的梦想。看到他们戴方帽让我感觉自己也毕业了。成就人才，就是成就我自己。”

黄妈妈出生于马来西亚怡保，现为新加坡公民，她的慈善精神深受母亲的影响。她说：“在二战时期，我们家非常贫困。但即使我们自己都没得吃，妈妈仍然借给那些来求助的人。”

“我的母亲是一个非常大气的女人。她告诉我，如果一个人有求于我们，他一定比我们更需要帮助，我们应该尽力去帮他。这就是为什么我很少说不，人家来找我帮忙，我能帮就尽量帮，这是我的原则。”

黄妈妈和已故丈夫黄国量先生通过各种商业投资积累了财富却也不忘广施天下，对新加坡国内外的多家医院、学府、寺庙等慷慨解囊。

他们两结缘于父母之命媒妁之言，当时黄妈妈只有19岁，而黄先生则41岁，是一名失去左臂的绘图员。尽管黄妈妈当初有些犹豫，他们的合作无间成功打造了商业帝国。黄妈妈嫁妆中的三十五英亩地让他们开启了锡矿业务，随后在新加坡创办了一家船舶供应公司，业务扩展至船舶修理服务等。1960年末更是进军香港的酒店业。

除了是一位成功的女商人和活跃的慈善家，黄妈妈也是一名艺术家，擅长书法、指画、水墨画等，其中以指画松荷闻名。

黄妈妈的指画松树。图片来源：亚洲艺术无限

除了艺术才华，黄妈妈也有极高的运动天赋：她曾是新加坡国家保龄球队的国手，在1975年和1976年之间赢得了许多国际保龄球锦标赛。