In 1976, Dr S. Vasoo was part of the team that pioneered and set up a social service centre in Ang Mo Kio in order to bring social aid closer to vulnerable residents living in the heartland.
At the time, these services were centrally located.
Today, the project has evolved into what most people know as Family Service Centres, which can be found in almost every town in Singapore as an integral part of social service delivery.
Dr Vasoo, who spent 16 years as an MP, said he was labelled the "poor man's MP" as he would often promote issues faced by lower-income communities and explore how makers of social policies could tackle the problem.
For his contributions to the social service sector over the past five decades, the 82-year-old was given the Outstanding Lifetime Volunteer Award by the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) on Feb 2.
Dr Vasoo told The Straits Times: "What keeps me going all these years is the hope that people can change and become better. Increasingly, I see great hopes in people taking interest in helping others. If we can get more people interested and involved in community service, we will be able to strengthen the support network in the community.
"I trust and see that there is capacity in Singapore for more people to be involved in volunteer work."
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