{
  "id": 19021846,
  "title": "Singaporean of the Year finalists: SG Assist founders’ struggles led them to support other caregivers",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/08/singaporean-of-the-year-finalists-sg-assist-founders-struggles-led",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-11-08T21:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Straits Times",
    "slug": "straits-times",
    "url": "https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/singaporean-of-the-year-finalists-sg-assist-founders-struggles-led-them-to-support-other-caregivers"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "SG Assist founders Adrian Tan and Greg Tan were preparing for a crossroads in 2024, seven years after launching their organization to support caregivers in 2017. While unloading items from a car after National Day celebrations at work, Adrian, then 38, suffered a stroke that temporarily paralyzed his right side. Greg, now 44, was driving behind the ambulance taking Adrian to the hospital, grappling with whether to continue SG Assist. \"It felt like a slap to the face. We do so many things for the community and something like this happens to him – it made me wonder if it was all worth it,\" Greg said. A day after Adrian's stroke, he asked his brother if they should keep the organization running. Adrian, feeling motivated by the staff's dedication, said, \"They are the people that we have met along the way while building up the organization.\" SG Assist has helped over 1,600 caregivers and supported 1,500 households through its call-centre home-monitoring programme, which checks on the well-being of seniors living alone. The team has grown to 14 full-time staff members. The founders have been shortlisted for The Straits Times Singaporean of the Year award in 2026. After the stroke, Greg and Adrian restructured SG Assist, creating a for-profit arm called the Care Innovation Institute (CII) to fund the organization's work. The CII provides consultancy and training services for social service organizations and its volunteers. The pair started SG Assist in 2017 after bonding during national service, realizing many others share their experiences of caregiving struggles. The organization supports caregivers by linking them to resources, providing consultancy services, and running a call centre connecting seniors to tech companies and telemedicine providers. A Caregiver Resource Centre in Khatib was opened in 2023, featuring talks, learning journeys, and a simulated domestic setting for testing assistive devices. Despite Adrian's mobility challenges due to his stroke, both founders have made personal sacrifices to keep SG Assist afloat, not drawing salaries until 2018 and paying themselves minimal amounts.",
  "summary": "The two men did not draw a salary until SG Assist became a social enterprise in 2018.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}