Community 
Home for Adrin Loi in the 1950s was at Cross Street, literally a stone’s throw away from his father’s coffee stall in the Telok Ayer Basin. Here Adrin, the youngest of eight, played, studied, and worked alongside his siblings while growing up.
Adrin, 57, is the son of the late Mr Loi Ah Koon who at 15 years of age in 1926, set sail from Hainan Island on a Chinese Junk to seek out a living in Singapore. Adrin’s father was hardworking and frugal. He worked as an assistant in a coffee stall and eventually saved enough money to start up his own in 1944.
15 years later, that humble stall came to be known as Ya Kun (the Pinyin translation of 'Ah Koon') when it moved into Lau Pat Sat Food Centre. There are now over thirty Ya Kun outlets in Singapore. Nonetheless, even before the coffee stall became widely known across the island, it was making a name for itself because of the owner’s hardworking and compassionate nature.
Stability and Reliability
“My father enjoyed his work,” says Adrin, who began helping out at the stall from a young age. He saw up close and first-hand, how passionate his father was when preparing breakfast for the customers, whether it was in roasting coffee beans or toasting bread using a charcoal fire.
“He had to wake up early and stand for long hours,” Adrin describes the man who would sleep overnight at the stall so as to be in time to serve the first customers at 5am.
Perhaps the best word to describe what Adrin learnt from his father was: Consistency. “He was stable and reliable,” says Adrin, who is now Executive Chairman of Ya Kun International Pte Ltd.
Independence and Camaraderie
“If the table was dirty, someone would pick up the cloth to wipe it clean,” says Adrin. He and his siblings –five brothers and two sisters- would take “the initiative to do whatever was needed around the shop.” Besides serving customers, they took care of each other’s needs in various ways.
Words and Actions
Perhaps, a major theme running through the Loi family story would be how love is expressed through acts of service.
“Like my father, I am quiet and soft spoken. We show how we care through actions,” says Adrin who has meals together with his wife Jennifer and son, Jesher, 27, at least three times a week, despite their busy schedules.
Bringing up Jesher, Adrin asked of himself to set a good example for his son. “A person’s actions reveal his inner self,” says Adrin who knew Jesher would be observing his reactions in everyday interactions. “I had to be sincere and behave the same way when he was around and when he was not.”
As father and son now work together, there are also opportunities to have time together as part of their daily schedule, whether it is in the car, settling office matters, or chatting over a 30 to 40-minute lunch.
Kinship and Hospitality
Families in the Hainanese community are known for their strong family bonds and excellent cooking. Adrin describes with gladness the extended family gatherings that continue to take place at his late father’s home, “On special occasions, over thirty of us come together.” The womenfolk would prepare traditional Hainanese dishes such as pig trotters, or vegetables with vermicelli and cuttlefish.
The values of kinship and hospitality have been expressed so consistently in the Loi household that those values have woven an indelible thread in their family and work life. For years to come, Ya Kun outlets will remain wholesome places for friends and families to gather regularly, just as it was at the beginning -because of one man’s loving and lasting legacy.
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Each generation stands on the shoulders of the one before. Discover a dad's power to shape and influence future generations through the simple everyday interactions and steady investment in your child's life! It's an invaluable legacy you leave behind. Quick Reads As a dad, you have the “Father Power” to positively influence future generations. This is achieved through making steady investments in your child’s life, using your everyday interactions. Take stock of your father’s legacy to you and pass them on to your children. Celebrate your child’s life at every opportunity, with regular meals, and marking anniversaries. Bringing up kids is not easy in today’s world. There are many challenges and distractions. And while there are many books and courses that aim to help us, it is perhaps true that most of our parenting skills are often learnt from our parents. Father of three, Cheong Wing Kiat writes. Here is a snapshot of fathers in Singapore from the 1910s to present day. What has affected them through the decades? What was life as a father like in the past? Take these snippets and share your memories with your children, or ask your own dad or granddad about the days of old. Chronicling the birth and life of your child is a worthwhile endeavour. The returns to your child and to you will surprise you. Find tips on how to make this an easy and rewarding activity. Very much like running a marathon, fathering is a journey that requires commitment, discipline and preparedness. Even when you “hit the wall”, stay in the race by reminding yourself of the motivation for fathering: unconditional love, that is expressed in a willingness to persevere. Thereafter, you will run past “the wall”, find your “second wind” and a new joy in fathering.
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About the Author: The Dads for Life Resource Team comprises local content writers and experts, including psychologists, counsellors, educators and social service professionals, dedicated to developing useful resources for dads.
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