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Twelve years ago, a victim of domestic abuse was chased out of her marital home.
Her son was just 6 years old, and what followed was over a decade of grinding it out in a room renting for RM350 a month in Taman Permai, Seremban, flipping noodles at her char kway teow stall for a net profit of RM700 monthly.
Do the math: RM350 for rent, RM350 for living expenses – that’s survival-level budgeting with zero margin for error.
“Mom is poor,” she told her son during those lean years.
If you do not obtain good results in school, you will be unable to pursue university. Mom does not have the money to let you further your studies.
The pressure was real – the kid had no safety net, no Plan B, no wealthy relatives to bail him out – just his mother’s char kway teow stall and his own determination.
The Son Speaks Up
The young man reached out to social activist Kuan Chee Heng, popularly known as Uncle Kentang, with a heartbreaking plea.
I am a teacher trainee. I need a laptop. But I do not have money. My father divorced my mum when I was six. Please help me.
Uncle Kentang posted the request on social media, and within 24 hours, strangers had not only stepped up to help but also upgraded the request from a used laptop to a brand-new one.
People coordinated donations through the CIMB bank account 8010624732 and WhatsApp 018-2683999, while others asked for the mother’s stall location so they could support her business directly.
The Best of Humanity Shines Through
After 12 years of grinding, sacrificing, and telling her son they couldn’t afford university, this woman finally got to see her investment pay off—not just in her son’s success, but in strangers caring enough to help them over the finish line.
The mother did the impossible—raised a high-achieving son on char kway teow profits while living in a room that costs less than some people’s phone bills.
The son also did his part—turned pressure into performance, earned his way into teacher training, and had the courage to ask for help when he needed it.
In a world where social media usually amplifies the worst in people, sometimes it takes a story like this to remind us that the best is still out there, too.
READ MORE: Uncle Kentang Spends RM30K Paying Stranger’s Rent For Five Years, Now Needs Help
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