An elderly mother from Penang who had turned to social media in a desperate bid to find her son who has been missing from home for the past 15 years, has passed away with her final wish of seeing her long-lost child one last time left heartbreakingly unfulfilled.
Her family hopes that Lee Ming Wang will come forward before her funeral on Friday (Jan 16) to send his mother off on her final journey.
Ye Bao Xin (叶宝心), an 86-year-old from Balik Pulau, passed away at Balik Pulau Hospital on Jan 12. Her funeral will be held at Balik Pulau Funeral Parlour at 11am on Jan 16 (Friday), after which her funeral cortege will depart for Balik Pulau Cemetery for the burial.
According to China Press, Ye’s granddaughter, Eleen Lee, 40, said that before her grandmother took her final breath yesterday afternoon, she continued waiting in vain for her youngest son, Lee Ming Wang, to appear.
“Please come home to send mum off”
“Before my grandmother was seriously ill, when she could still speak and walk, she always said that she wanted to find her youngest son and that she really wanted to meet and reunite with her
him,” she told China Press.
She said that although her grandmother has since passed on, the family still hopes that Lee Ming Wang will see the missing-person appeal and return to Penang to accompany his mother on her final journey, to bring comfort to her spirit.
Lee added that since the appeal was posted on social media and in newspapers, they have received several tips from members of the public, but none have led to Lee Ming Wang’s whereabouts.
“One of my uncle’s friends contacted me and said he had managed to get in touch with him two years ago. At the time, he only knew that my uncle’s life was unstable and that he had no fixed place to stay.”
Left home after a family conflict
Lee Ming Wang, a 48-year-old Chinese man from Balik Pulau, Penang, left home after a family conflict when he was younger and has been out of contact for more than 15 years.
Approximately a week ago, his elderly mother fell critically ill and expressed longing to reunite with the son she had missed for so many years.
In hopes of fulfilling the elderly woman’s final wish, her family had posted appeals on social media, calling on the public to help share the search for Lee Ming Wang. Unfortunately, Ye Bao Xin could not hold on any longer and heartbreakingly passed without meeting her son one last time.
Follow Wah Piang for more.
