Inside the Singapore shophouse where assisted living comes with a social club

Camino House is an assisted-living facility in one of Singapore's iconic conservation shophouses.

Rebecca Toh for Business Insider.

This is the story of seven older adults who live together in a shophouse in Singapore.

Uncle Chee is usually the first up.

Aunty Lydia begins her day with oats and blueberries.

Uncle Cheong often heads to a nearby hawker center, sometimes returning with snacks from the 7-Eleven next door.

Some days, the space fills with people beyond its residents.

On the Tuesday morning I visited in September, Camino House, their assisted-living home , was a flurry of activity.

Preschoolers had come for a painting session, filling the shophouse with chatter and laughter.

It is also home to Joo Chiat Social Club, which hosts art, cooking, and other activities that bring residents together with children, volunteers, and other community members.

Rebecca Toh for Business Insider.

This was exactly the kind of interaction Mariel Chee and Bennett Lee, both 32, hoped to foster when they founded Camino House.

Rather than build a traditional care facility, they wanted to create a space where people from all walks of life could interact.

"One that's beautiful and welcoming, not clinical or institutional.