S’pore Woman Bids Helper Farewell With Homemade Quilt Containing Heartfelt Messages From Family Members

Singaporean Woman Makes Memory Quilt To Bid Farewell To Helper Of 34 Years

Some bonds are almost thicker than blood, and that is certainly the case for domestic helpers who have worked with their families for a long time.

One helper from the Philippines recently retired after 34 years of working for a Singaporean family.

As a result, one of the children who grew up under her care decided to give her a surprise farewell gift.

The woman, a professional quilt maker, weaved a memory quilt containing heartfelt messages from family members as a token of appreciation to the helper.

She filmed her helper’s emotional reaction to the handmade gift, which moved many viewers and has since gone viral.

Helper took care of woman & her two sisters for the past 34 years

Last Saturday (1 Jul), Derlyn, known as @quiltedbyderlyn on TikTok, shared a video of how she surprised her helper Alie with a memory quilt she had handmade just for her.

@quiltedbyderlyn I finally gave my Yaya her quilt. She leaves in the middle of June, and buying her flight ticket was unexpectedly heavy and difficult to do 💔 Goodbyes are tough. So I’m already checking out tickets to fly her to Singapore soon! 🇸🇬🇵🇭 #memoryquilt #partinggift #keepsake #farewell #goodbyes ♬ Menyentuh Hati – Yuda pratama

In her caption, Derlyn said that her Yaya (a Tagalog term for nurse or governess according to Tagalong Dictionary) was leaving in the middle of June.

For context, she posted the video to her Instagram profile earlier this year on 23 May. Hence, Alie has already returned to her hometown at this time.

Derlyn also revealed in the clip that Alie, affectionately called ‘Auntie’, has been with them for 34 years.

During that time, she helped care for Derlyn and her two sisters. As such, she is now a “permanent fixture” in their home.

To ease the separation, Derlyn said she is already looking into flying Alie back to Singapore for a visit.

Woman makes memory quilt for helper using nieces’ & nephews’ old clothes

After discovering that Alie wanted to retire and return home for good, Derlyn set out to create a memory quilt made from her nieces’ and nephews’ old clothes.

In the video, she could be seen measuring and cutting out squares of fabric from T-shirts and onesies.

Subsequently, she showed off all the squares she had cut out arranged into a rectangular shape, ready for sewing.

To lend the gift an extra personal touch, Derlyn also sewed dedicated messages from various family members onto the quilt.

Elaborating on the intent behind the quilt, OP said it would be meaningful for Yaya to bring a part of her family home to the Philippines.

Helper breaks down in tears and reminisces over memories sewn into quilt

Although Alie’s departure was sometime away when the video was filmed, Derlyn decided to gift her the quilt earlier to save her from crying at the airport.

Upon receiving the gift, the helper appeared visibly taken aback as she gasped in surprise.

The waterworks followed soon after as Alie held up the quilt in front of Derlyn to keep her from seeing her crying.

The two of them then started reminiscing on memories attached to the various pieces of clothing in the quilt.

Alie was also seen wrapping herself in the quilt, and Derlyn shared that they had a “little bit of a cry” together in private afterwards.

Finally, she ended the video with a parting message from her and her sisters, in which she expressed how grateful her family is to have Alie in their lives.

“This is not goodbye, but see you soon,” Derlyn said in a voiceover as pictures of Alie in the present and from the past played out onscreen.

Viewers thank woman & her family for treating helper as one of their own

The moving gesture left viewers deeply touched. Many of them praised Derlyn and her family for loving Alie as one of their own.

One viewer spoke on behalf of all children whose mothers had to go abroad to work as domestic helpers and thanked Derlyn for treating Alie like family.

Another TikTok user pointed out that not all Filipinos are lucky enough to find a family while working abroad.

Derlyn responded by saying that Yayas should not be treated differently from any other employee. If anything, they should be treated well if they do an excellent job of caring for their families.

One other commenter called the quilt a “meaningful gift”, to which Derlyn responded that Alie still sleeps with it every night.

In reply to another viewer, Derlyn revealed another reason for Alie’s departure: she had reached the cut-off age for helpers to work in Singapore.

According to the Ministry of Manpower, domestic helpers are not permitted to work past 60.

Meanwhile, on Instagram, Derlyn shared that her family has Alie’s address in the Philippines and will visit her once she has settled in.

Hope Alie, Derlyn & the rest of her family can reunite soon

Despite starting out as a helper, Alie’s relationship with Derlyn and her family has blossomed into something much greater.

We hope they can reunite soon, whether by returning to Singapore or a trip to the Philippines.

In the meantime, we wish Alie a happy and healthy retirement.

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Featured image adapted from TikTok.