This Retired Businessman Feeds Abandoned Elderly In Pudu Every Thursday. Here's His Story
Speaking to SAYS, Uncle Tony shared that his compassion for helping those in need was inherited from his mother.
By Yap Wan Xiang — 08 Apr 2025, 07:26 PM
Meet Tony Lian, the heart and soul behind Food4U, a charitable organisation dedicated to supporting Kuala Lumpur's most vulnerable
Since 2015, this 75-year-old former businessman, more affectionately known as Uncle Tony, has devoted his time to volunteering.
In his first year, he distributed 300 meals a week. After a decade, that number has risen to 3,000.
We discovered him and his enduring mission after reading a recent FMT article.
The article deeply resonated with Malaysians and went viral on social media. It gave readers an in-depth look into the issue of abandoned elderly people fighting for survival after being neglected by their children, with some resorting to collecting recyclables and depending on the generosity of strangers to get by.
"My elder brother passed away three years ago and I haven't gone home since then.
"We get to spend time and meet friends here. Some of my friends don't have family and children," Helen, a recyclables collector, told FMT.
Meanwhile, a 56-year-old man said, "My children are grown-ups, but they don't care about their father. They're busy with their jobs. I can't be begging them.
"I'd rather take food from the streets than beg from my children."
Deeply moved by these heart-wrenching stories and Uncle Tony's determination, we reached out to Uncle Tony to learn more about Food4U.
In our very first brief phone conversation, Uncle Tony's words struck a deep chord with us
He shared a tearful plea, saying more Malaysians need to stop neglecting their elderly parents and leaving them alone to fend for themselves.
"We need to get the message out: the younger generation needs to have more filial piety. These elderly people we are helping were abandoned by their children.
"How could they do that? They raised you up, only to be cast out onto the streets. It's truly heartbreaking. I want to speak to you about this... We need to spread awareness about this," said Uncle Tony.
On 20 March, we joined Uncle Tony in distributing free meals to those in need
Before retiring, Uncle Tony was a businessman. He believes he has achieved all he set out to do in life and now sees it as his duty to give back to the world.
"Funnily, when I was doing business, I had dinners with bankers and big corporate boys. But I never felt the joy as much as I am feeling today when I help the needy," he shared while driving to Pudu to distribute the 300 meals prepared at The Assembly Soup Kitchen (TASK) in Glenmarie.
He shared that the inspiration behind establishing Food4U came from his mother.
"I believe I inherited this from my mother. Despite being poor and my dad [not working] in his early 40s [due to his health], my mother provided shelter to four homeless ladies under her roof.
"With limited resources and income, she provided food and shelter for them. I think that displayed [generosity] and impressed me. It gave me an understanding that money is not everything in this world.
"I've grown up to understand that kindness doesn't require one to be rich," he recounted.
He said Food4U started as a family effort, with his family members supporting him in helping as many people as he could.
"I received my wife's full support, but she had one condition: I must remain in good health," Uncle Tony explained, acknowledging the physical demands of the job, which includes heavy lifting and driving.
Uncle Tony stressed that Food4U adheres to one basic principle: the charity organisation helps everyone regardless of race, religion, and politics
"Principally, I told everyone who came to help that I would do anything and help anybody. I want to put in place one important thing: I will not take race, religion, or politics into consideration.
"I don't want to be involved in any issues pertaining to these three. Whoever is on the street, irrespective of who they are, it does not matter. We are of one race. We are all of the human race."
He also refuses to register Food4U as an official NGO, as he values its informal structure and dislikes the bureaucratic constraints that come with formal registration.
The Food4U team now extends beyond Uncle Tony's family, and is in desperate need of volunteers from Monday to Saturday
"I cannot blame anybody for that matter simply because the time we feed is basically working hours and not many are able to come out [to help]," he said, acknowledging lack of manpower as Food4U's biggest challenge.
However, following the publication of the recent FMT article, Uncle Tony said more people, as well as corporations, have come forward to help.
He also thanked universities for the arrangement that allows students to volunteer, giving him an opportunity to tell them to take care of their parents when they get old.
In addition to helping the abandoned elderly in Pudu, Food4U also extends its support to vulnerable individuals in the Orang Asli community and those facing hunger in Selangor.
If you wish to volunteer, contact Uncle Tony at +017-8812666. To donate, you can transfer to his Public Bank account: 4826007307.
Follow Food4U on Facebook and Instagram.
