About Us

Beginning as a Chalet in the 1930s, Valley of Hope grew to become a Leprosy settlement that held over 2400 patients at its peak. Now, run by Care & Share Society, an NGO fully run by a group of volunteers, they are committed to preserving the history of leprosy.

We believe that the leprosy community is entitled to live with dignity and self-worth.

What We've Achieved

Reunite leprosy sufferers and their families

Searching through documentations, we have managed to locate the missing children of the leprosy survivors. We have also assisted the descendants in their search for their own roots, e.g. finding their living families or their parents’ grave stone, locating old records containing information about themselves and their parents.

We believe that the personal experiences of the families affected by leprosy should be recognised as a valuable asset in our society’s quest to enhance equality, family rights and social justice.

Book Publication

We have published books about the lives of early leprosy patients, who had been forcibly isolated from mainstream society. The books also tell of the lives of their children who were sent away to charity institutions and how some return years later in search of their roots. We hope to reveal to the world stories of their life in the settlement, so that future generations may have a correct understanding of the disease, and know of the ordeal that some former leprosy patients and their families have undergone.

Documentary Production

Documentaries were also produced to capture the emotions of the leprosy survivors and their descendants. These documentaries depict the hardship that the leprosy survivors have undergone and their contributions to the Valley of Hope. We believe that their life experiences and testimonies are a kind of intangible heritage, which makes up the collective memory of the leprosy community. We hope that by these documentaries, we can help enhance the public’s understanding of leprosy and help advocate the rights of the leprosy survivors.

Preserving the legacy of the Valley of Hope

The Sungai Buloh Oral History team was formed to collect and record the stories recounted by leprosy survivors. Stories often focus on the positive spirit of leprosy survivors in order to reframe the common perspective that people may have about leprosy. We also bring to live the history of the Valley of Hope by digitalizing old records, photos and important documents; collecting and preserving old artefacts, handcrafts and garments made by the leprosy survivors. We hope that these materials can be a reference for future generations, especially in a time when leprosy has been consigned to the dusty pages of history books.

Establishment of the Valley of Hope Online Museum

We have set up an online museum (www.thewayhome.my) so that the world may learn about the history of the Valley of Hope and the people behind them, because they are great souls who had faced challenges in life with great resilience and endurance. The website features artefacts, important documents, garments, handicrafts and old research equipment used in the settlement, besides recordings of oral histories. Their stories will inspire society with the true meaning of love, hope, family, equality and justice. 

Initiate a Crowdfunding Project to Establish the Valley of Hope Story Gallery

A crowdfunding project dubbed, “You Are the Hero”, has been launched on 14 August 2016 to establish a story gallery that would commemorate the contribution of former leprosy patients. To date, we have managed to generate RM500,000 to kick-start the project and begin construction of the first phase, which is expected to be complete by end of 2017. We hope that by preserving the oral history of leprosy survivors, our future generations would have a chance to appreciate the legacy of this settlement, thereby ensuring that the stories of the residents would live on in our hearts.