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Team MDI: The Retirees Who’ve Given Thousands Of Free Haircuts To Those in Need

  • Legacy
  • 2 months ago
  • SilverStreak Editorial Team

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Team MDI: The Retirees Who’ve Given Thousands Of Free Haircuts To Those in Need
Image Courtesy of Team MDI
The buzz of electric trimmers echoes through Jalan Klinik, breaking the stupor of the sleepy Beo Crescent neighbourhood. No, a hairdresser hasn’t left their door open – instead, it’s a bunch of volunteers from Team MDI, shears snipping and hands a-flurry as they give out free haircuts to seniors and the needy at the void deck of Block 26.
Among them is the group’s founder, Mark Yuen, a 69-year-old who’s dedicated his retirement years to doing good with the power of a simple haircut (while squeezing in time for a gamut of physically demanding sports, though that’s a different story altogether).
You can’t miss him – just look for a lanky, silver-haired senior with a red beret, a look that’s earned Mark the nickname “the little red hat” in the national broadsheet.
The tale of how Team MDI goes back in 2016, in what sounds uncannily like a case study for the national upskilling programme, SkillsFuture.
It goes like this: Man stumbles across a signboard in Chinatown, selling courses at a beauty school; man decides to sign up, figuring that he’d foot some of the fees using his SkillsFuture credits; man goes for hairdressing, ‘cos makeup and manicures don’t quite work for giving back; and finally, man starts his own volunteering outfit, dishing out pro bono haircuts for anyone who needs them.
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When I was close to graduation, I asked the beauty school I was at – if I want to volunteer and give free haircuts, will you support it? They did, and so I'm very grateful for them,
says Mark.

"And so when I was asked to give it a name, I thought, keep it simple: Team MDI, because the school is called Mirror D' International."

Team MDI’s free haircuts give hope
It’s been a good eight years since that fateful day and the Team MDI crew has grown to a haircutting force of over 100 volunteers from all walks of life.
There are people who’re as young as their 20s, and as senior as 83. There are doctors, nurses, lawyers, accountants and salon owners among the volunteer troupe – some retired, some still working, but all united in spending their time and effort on trimming the hair of those in need.
Working together, Team MDI has given out tens of thousands of haircuts across its eight-year existence, both during regular monthly sessions around the island’s network of residents’ corners and ageing centres, as well as at special visits to nursing homes and the flats of bedbound elderly.
Of course, the team’s impact extends to more than just the numbers of haircuts they give.
For some retirees and the needy, there’s that obvious benefit of not having to spend on a haircut. That $10 can be quite a big sum, and it’s enough to deter some people from going for haircuts regularly,
explains Mark.
But there’s also the profound effect of a haircut where someone takes care of you, physically touches your hair, and has some chitchat with you. For some, especially those who are living alone or with just their helpers like many seniors are, they might crave that physical touch and they can’t just go out and get it,
he adds.

"There's something in the human touch that can just make a person’s day."

Anyone can join Team MDI
The benefits of Team MDI’s work often extends both ways, as volunteers, too, find meaning in giving back through haircuts.
Team MDI: The Retirees Who’ve Given Thousands Of Free Haircuts To Those in Need - Derek Tan
Derek Tan
Derek Tan, a 58-year-old semi-retired business owner, has been a volunteer with Team MDI “since the very beginning”, as an alumnus of the same beauty school that Mark attended.
He commits to attending at least one to two sessions a week, in between other volunteer work he does with his church.
I can’t really describe the feeling in words. It just makes me happy to do this. It feels like I'm helping people to shine,
Derek says.
Team MDI: The Retirees Who’ve Given Thousands Of Free Haircuts To Those in Need - Lim Siew Gim
Lim Siew Gim
The senior’s sentiments are echoed by 63-year-old Lim Siew Gim, a retiree who only recently joined Team MDI. In fact, the session at Beo Crescent on Tuesday (2 July 2024) was her very first time cutting hair for the team – though not her first time volunteering, as she’s been actively giving back since she retired “back before the pandemic”.
My mission now is to help people who need it,
she says simply.

"I prefer to help fellow seniors, as I know that many of them are facing their own difficulties. For some, going to haircuts are very expensive. So I want to cut their hair well, make them look beautiful, and then I'll be happy too."

While Siew Gim, too, has attended a hairdressing course, Mark says that he encourages anyone to join, even if they haven’t had formal training.

"We'll ease them into it and teach them basics. Anyone, even complete beginners, can handle seniors that go for the "botak" (Malay for bald) style of haircut."

As long as you've got the heart to serve, you can be taught,
Mark adds.

"If you need more time to build up your confidence, you can always help in other ways."

As if to prove his point, Siew Gim’s soft-spoken husband shuffles over, broom and dustpan in hand as he helps his fellow volunteers to clean up the void deck.
If you’re nervous, that’s okay. We were all nervous during our first haircuts. Like with anything, you have to practise to get better. As long as you’ve got your heart in the right place, the hands will follow.
Derek advises,
Team MDI "an institution, not a person"
Team MDI: The Retirees Who’ve Given Thousands Of Free Haircuts To Those in Need - Mark Yuen
Mark Yuen
Last year, Mark made the news when he selected for the President’s Volunteerism and Philanthropy Awards in the People of Good (Senior Category).
But he says that the group is “an institution, not a person”.

"It’s a platform for us to do good. It's not meant as a vehicle to earn me recognition. My ultimate hope is that, when the time comes in eight to 10 years for me to put down my shears, there’ll be someone who can take over and carry on our mission."

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