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The Founding of the Blue Cross Charitable Institution
During the Japanese occupation 1942-1945 there was a high incidence of death from malaria, beri-beri and other diseases related to malnutrition. It was during these chaotic conditions that saw the founding of a Singaporean Voluntary Organisation which remained influential in relief work long after the war. The Blue Cross Charitable Institution (BCCI) was established in 1942. Five Blue Cross temple organizations got together and formed BCCI to help provide shelter, food and care for people in need and burial services for unclaimed bodies. These temple organisations were:
- Poh Kiu Siang Tng
- Seu Teck Sean Tong Yiang Sin Sia
- Thong Keng Charitable Institution
- Nanyang Thong Hong Siang Tng and
- Nam Ann Siang Theon
The initial service provided by the Blue Cross was the removal and burial of dead bodies of homeless men, left to rot in the streets. Many of these had been labourers conscripted from Java for service in Singapore and later abandoned and left to fend for themselves. Without kin or work, their plight was desperate.
The Blue Cross soon established the role for which it is remembered, - the provision of free mass feeding centres for the starving and destitute. Fund raising was conducted among the well-to-do. Impressed by this good work of the Blue Cross, small-scale shopkeepers also offered their support. Chinese traditional herbal physicians offered free medical services at these free meal centres.
Even after the war, in the mid-1950s, the service of the Blue Cross was still called upon by the colonial government for its efficiency in coping with emergencies. Monsoon floods in villages or fire left masses of homeless people requiring meals at short notice. The Blue Cross was geared for emergencies and was quickly on the spot with the equipment and stores to provide meals on a large-scale basis. While the problems of the post war years were different, the priority of meeting basic needs was no different even with peaceful times.
Over the years, BCCI membership grew as more temple organizations joined the BCCI:
- Thong Teck Sian Tong Lian Sin Sia
- Singapore Poh Teck Siang Tng
- Nam Hong SiangTheon
- Cheng Hong Charitable Organisation and
- Singapore Chung Hong Siang Tng
