#trending: Bride flies childhood nanny to Malaysia for wedding after losing contact for a decade and reconnecting through internet

SINGAPORE / KUALA LUMPUR — When Ms Angeline Low-Hamling went on a search for her nanny of 10 years in 2021, the internet did its magic and reconnected them within a few days.

The newlywed recently flew her former nanny over to Malaysia to attend her wedding, despite going through cumbersome red tape to do so.

THE REUNION 

In 2021, Ms Low-Hamling enlisted the help of the internet for a mammoth task — finding her childhood helper, Ms Siti Halimah, whom she had lost contact with for almost a decade. 

Addressing her as “kakak” — Malay for older sister — Ms Low-Hamling said in a Facebook post that she initially stayed in contact with Ms Siti after her helper left Malaysia to return to Indonesia in 2012.

However they lost contact subsequently and Ms Low-Hamling did not hear from Ms Siti for nearly 10 years. 

"It’s a bit of a long shot. I am trying to reconnect with her after all these years with little information to go by. I’m hoping that the internet can do it’s magic and help us reconnect," Ms Low-Hamling wrote. 

“She was a significant part of my childhood…it always seems like such a huge shame how someone who cared for me and watched me grow up disappeared from my life completely,” she added. 

Armed with just a few clues of where Ms Siti was residing in Central Java, Indonesia and a photo taken 20 years ago, Ms Low-Hamling set up a call for help online.

And the internet delivered.

Within a few days, Ms Low-Hamling managed to make contact with her ex-nanny and the pair had a tearful reunion over a video call. 

When Ms Low-Hamling reached out to Ms Siti, her ex-nanny did not even own a phone, reported Malaysian social news website Says. 

Ms Siti, who was working at a local supermarket as a cashier and salesperson, subsequently stayed in contact with Ms Low-Hamling with a phone Ms Low-Hamling bought for her. 

FLEW HELPER TO MALAYSIA FOR WEDDING

In February this year, Ms Low-Hamling invited Ms Siti to attend her wedding in Malaysia. 

The family managed to fly Ms Siti over from Indonesia to Malaysia, despite facing bureaucratic roadblocks as Ms Siti did not have a passport and did not know how to apply for one herself.

Ms Low-Hamling's mother in Malaysia personally visited the Indonesian embassy in Kuala Lumpur to help Ms Siti to get a passport.

Ms Siti was finally able to witness Ms Low-Hamling’s big day in February 2023 at a Peranakan restaurant called Little Heritage House. 

"I was fortunate enough to have my childhood nanny at my wedding in Malaysia...(Over two decades ago), she had left her life behind in Indonesia and joined my family when I was three years old," Ms Low-Hamling shared in another Facebook post on Feb 28. 

Ms Low-Hamling intends to visit Ms Siti in Indonesia in the near future. "We will always remain in touch," she said.