At last the night that we all
have been waiting for finally arrived - the climax to the 2004 Reunion
celebrations! The ACS Class of 1971 Reunion Dinner at Allson Klana
organized by Angie Yen as the Chief Reunion Organiser (CRO) and
supported by Wing Kwong & Hock Lye was well attended by more than 100
people - an all time record since its inception in 1992. So large was
the number that we could not get everyone into a group photo. As seen
below, the attendees were broken the various year levels or classes to
have their photos taken. Attendees
included some of the Seniors and Juniors to the Class of '71 who
have been keeping in touch and have long-lasting friendships with many
of the members of the '71 batch. Also in attendance were our beloved
teachers who kindly gave up their free time to celebrate the occasion
with us. They were Mr. Chang Wai Foo, Mr. Chiang Heng Jin, Mr Mahadevan,
Mr. Yeo Teng San, Mr. Lee Chee Peng and Mrs. Gunaratnam who was a
teacher to some when they were in Standard One.
There were old classmates/schoolmates who came from
far and wide like Michael Lee (Canada), Wong Lai Cheng & family and Tham
Sing Khow (UK), Peter Khoo Chin Tiam & Khaw Hock Lye (Australia), Ng Yin
Chan (HK), Chia Lee Min, Cecelia Ong, Ng Paul Kit, Bernadette Siow
(Singapore), Hermann Lee Chee Kin (Austria), Lim Tau Boon & wife
(Guangzhou), Chee Pheng (China) just to mention a few. Most of these people
are schoolmates whom I have not seen since they left school back in the
seventies. There were so much excitement and joy in the air as friends
greeted each other warmly and with open arms! So much to talk about
within such a short span of time! Luckily for me, I was not alone as a
Junior. Michael Lim Kah Sian & wife together with Chan Toong Yau
were in attendance and kept me accompanied.
The event kicked off with pre-dinner drinks and
registration of attendees with lots of mingling around in the foyer.
Official proceedings started when Angie (MC for the night) gave a short
welcome speech. Hock Lye, our official Webmaster was asked to say a few
words about the website which he did plus more! He sprang a surprise for
Angie when he asked Tham Sing Khow to come forward to say a few words of
appreciation and to present Angie with a gift on behalf of the group. It
is now a fact that Angie is the cornerstone to the success of
keeping the group together through well-organised reunions and little
get-togethers during festive seasons or when overseas guests return for
a holiday. It has taken a year for Angie and her team to plan and put this
event together. Little did she know about this gesture that was
organised by Hock Lye, Sing Khow and Thai Sing a few days before the
Reunion. This was followed by another gift from Thanabalan & Raymond Tan
with a framed words of heart-warming tribute to Angie and was read out by
her personally at the urging of the presenters. Beaming with joy, Angie gave both men a kiss saying it is the
prerogative of a 50 yr old lady to kiss men in public!
Dinner followed soon. People were more interested
in the fellowship with one another more than the food. The intention of
not having a crowded programme was to allow people to mingle with each
other and to catch up with untold stories. Many, as I have said earlier
have not met since the schooldays back in the seventies. One can sense
the the joy of meeting again and the rekindling of old friendships with
lots of laughter and excitement in the conversations. It was indeed a
good time - a time that many of us will treasure for the rest of our
lives. Throughout the evening, there was a running PowerPoint
presentation that depicted the lives of many back in the good old school
days that took many of the conversations and discussions down
memory lane.
The other highlight of the evening was the golden
celebration of people who turned fifty in 2004. Many of them were
from the 1970 batch and a number from the 1971 group. With a birthday
cake and a birthday song from the audience, the webmaster led the group
in blowing off the candles and the cutting of the cake.
There was also a light quiz competition based on
old photos taken in the 70's and school events to try and jolt the
contestants' memory about the happenings then. A hamper of chocolates
was presented to the table that scored the most points.
After the morning visit to our dear alma mater, many agreed that the
school is in a very depilated state and a hat was passed around to
appeal for donations which would go towards the building and maintenance
fund. A total of 2000 ringgit was collected and was later presented to
the current principal of the school. Thank you to all who have
contributed generously and it was a fitting gesture to our celebrations.
For me, I
know that all the beautiful memories and fellowship will always be
etched firmly in my mind. I am happy and proud to be included in the
ACS tradition.
Felicia Liew
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