http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/international/singapore-child-grows-up-after-surviving-maids-acid-attack/551519
But unlike other teenagers, Samuel has never tasted food. For almost his entire life, he has been breathing and feeding through tubes inserted into his body.
He was three months old when his family’s then 17-year-old Indonesian maid Sumiyem poured sulfuric acid down his throat. She was sentenced to eight years in prison in 2000.
The horrific attack left the infant with terrible scars, and also severely damaged his tongue, throat and vocal chords. His upper airway was completely blocked.
“Nobody expected him to live,” recalled his father, Lim Boon Keong, 41. “The surgeons said they would try their best. The rest would depend on him.”
Amazingly, baby Samuel pulled through.
“It’s a miracle that he survived. Doctors later told me that he is a very special child. The pain that my wife and I went through was indescribable,” said Lim.
But ask Samuel today and he describes his life as if everything is pretty normal.
“I have passed my Grade Three practical piano exams and Grade Five for theory,” said Samuel softly. “I don’t like to speak, I like to play the piano. Now I play the piano daily and the guzheng twice a week.”
His passion for music and opportunities to perform on stage helped to develop his self-esteem and he has grown to be a cheerful boy, said his parents.
The couple, former engineers, work in Lim’s family hardware business, which gives them the flexibility they need to care for Samuel and their younger children, son You Jun, 10, and daughter Yong Zhen, seven.
But she and her husband wanted their special son to have as normal a childhood as possible and did not believe that he should be kept at home, away from stares.
“We took him to swim at public pools and we taught him to take care of himself and not let water get into his tracheotomy tube. We would find a quiet corner in public to feed him.”
Lim said: “Now that he is older, he has no problems feeding himself in public when he goes out with his friends.”
Samuel’s school principal, Saraspathy Menon, told The Sunday Times, “In class, he is just like everyone else and he has been participating in most activities. Samuel is a pleasant and friendly boy who interacts with classmates and teachers actively through non-verbal communication such as gesturing, writing and Facebook posts.”
She added: “Samuel is a remarkable child. He has a smile for everyone and he has never complained about the challenges that he is grappling with. He exemplifies resilience and courage and all of us in Yuan Ching Secondary School have much to learn from him.”
Associate Professor Daniel Goh, head of the pediatric department at the National University Hospital, has been seeing Samuel since the day of the acid attack and monitoring his progress.
He said that later this year a team of pediatric surgeons will attempt to reconstruct Samuel’s gullet, and another team will re-evaluate his upper airway for possible reconstructive surgery later.
“It is hoped that he may ultimately be able to breathe and eat without the tubes. The reconstruction will likely be complicated and may require many staged operations,” he said
Describing Samuel’s condition as unique, he said: “The circumstances under which the injury occurred as well as the extent and severity of the damage are certainly not something we have seen before.
“What’s also special is Samuel himself, and his parents. Samuel has been a very brave young man who has overcome the odds and not only survived the initial ordeal but also lived to lead a good and fruitful life.
“His parents are also fantastic in supporting him through the years and have loved and cared for him very well. Despite his injuries, Samuel has grown up to be a well-adjusted, polite and delightful young man.”
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