Here you are - our "The BIG 50" Reunion Party on 23 December 2009 in pictures ... (I may not have all the best photos, so I urge any of the attendees who have better or more interesting photos to send them to me for sharing on this posting. Let's capture the best moments of the night forever. BTW, my email is jslyong@hotmail.com )
We started at 7pm with a beautiful rendition from Christmas carollers from the St Joe Youth Group.
We then organised our group photo taking. Class after class, followed by everyone squeezed into one shot. Try to spot your teachers, classmates and buddies ...
Form 5Sc (1976) with (seated) teachers
Classmates (from left to right):
Chen Liang Fang, Wilson Chao, Bob Chew Pok Vun, Kuan Chee Kok, Julai Sharif, Lawrence Chin, Francis Lee, James Yong, Lawrence Kuek Thiam Chai, Rev Father Nicholas Ng Wei Kiang, Christopher Sim Kay Guan, Philip Chin, George Lo, Leong Kuek Fook, Harry Goh , Raymond Thong Ee Yu, Richard Lim Ngee Hong, Herbert Ting Thong Kong
Form 5Arts1 with (seated) teachers
Classmates (from left to right)
Bakrie Zaini, Michael Kong, Johnny Tan, Vincent Toh, Teo Soo Hock, Anthony Ung, Dato Anthony Macpherson, Jensen Ng Khoon Teck, Albert Sim Kee How, Law Cheng Seng, Curtis Teo, Ch'ng Seng Chai, Brendan Lee Sin Foh, Nicholas Lau
Form 5Arts2 with (seated) teachers
Classmates (from left to right):
Edward Chin, Suhiri Affendi, Robert Ong, Lim Cho Chua, Peter Foo, Robert Chin, Benjamin Wong, Batholomew Sinos, Ronald Kueh, Robert Chang Kuo Cheng, Mark Chin, Norman Tan, Jude Jong, Loh Siaw Boon, N. Subramanian, Stephen Yeo, Datuk Justin Jinggut, Tan Yok Hai
All attendees
[ All the photos above were taken by Chen Liang Fang, Form 5Sc (1976) ]
Everybody would agree that we had a most talented and funny Master of Ceremonies in the person of Edmund Lee Ah See. Thanks ELAS for a wonderful job!
We started our event proper by singing the school rally "Sons of St Joseph".
Just before dinner began, we invited Rev Fr Nicholas Ng (from Form 5 Sc, 1976) to lead us in saying grace and giving thanks.
Father Nicholas Ng
During and after dinner, we had musical entertainment provided by the talents of Felix Lim and Suhiri Affendi, of the Royal Vintage band, together with two guest singers (photos later).
Then we showed the video message from Rev Bro Columba, followed by other messages from buddies who could not attend the function. (These have been shared in Part 3)
Next was another surprise performance was a Bollywood style dance by a lovely Indian lass ...
... who turned out to be none other than Sangeetha, daughter of our form mate Subra.
Later a birthday cake was rolled in to mark our half century. We requested Fr Nicholas to represent the boys. Dec 23 also happened to be Herbert Ting's actual birthday and he was invited to join in the cake-cutting, as were all the teachers.
We even had a special awards ceremony, with medals presented to Datuk Justine Junggut and Dato' Anthony Firdius Bujang for their honorific titles, N. Subra for his P.K.T. honour for bravery, and - to my great surprise - to myself as Website Jaga for helping to reconnect the boys.
There was also a special presentation of "rottans" (ok, rottans with ribbons) to the teachers. Such as to Mr Nicholas Jee below.
And finally, the part of the programme most people were waiting for - the Lucky Draw prizes. We had many attractive prizes, with the top few being KL-London-KL airtickets, HD pocket camcorder, one-year newspaper subscriptions, free hotel stay, etc.
Congratulations to all the lucky winners:
1. Air Asia KL-London-KL ticket : Michael Kong
2. Air Asia KL-London-KL ticket : Tan Yok Hai
3. Cisco Flip MinoHD pocket camcorder : Nicholas Lau
4. Borneo Post/NST newspaper (one year) : Suhiri Affendi
5. Borneo Post/NST newspaper (one year) : Ben Wong
6. Borneo Post/NST newspaper (one year) : Albert Sim Khee How
7. Complimentary stay at Merdeka Palace : Loh Siaw Boon
8. Dinner voucher at Merdeka Palace : Robert Chang Kuo Cheng
9. DVD player : Cikgu Bujang Hadi
It was a wonderful night of combradeship, recognition and fun. We had almost seventy boys, who came from as far as USA and Canada. We had eight teachers as special guests of honour. We even had some current Form 6 girls of St Joe as helpers for the event.
I have tried to put up some of the pictures which reflect the key events of the day, but there are hundreds more photographs taken by the many cameras the attendees had. I urge you to share what photos YOU have taken on Flickr or other picture sharing site. For example, our buddy Lawrence Chin has uploaded his photos onto the following
Check them out. Thanks LC !
Posts
The teachers were incredibly lucky. i think every one of them got a lucky draw prize on the nite!
ReplyDeleteIf Subra retire from the force he can easily earn income from being a singer...even the VA singers salute him
ReplyDeleteP Ramlee all over again .... hehehe
ReplyDeletei like the overall class 1976 group photo. Very relax...who is the guy neither sit nor sleep posture (front row 1st left)
ReplyDeleteThat's the one and only Jensen Ng Koon Teck ... hehehe
ReplyDeleteMany, many thanks to Dato' Anhony and NSTP for the customised front pages from our day of birth. A priceless gift indeed.
ReplyDelete4D results are out. Who struck the JACKPOT???
ReplyDeleteHey Ronald !!! I didn't strike anything ... I thot we had a deal !!! LOL
ReplyDeleteIn the Form 5Sc class photo, who is standing 3rd from right?
ReplyDeleteI reckon that's Thong Ee Yu. I can't work out the fellas at leftmost, 5th and 6th from left. I think 7th from left is Francis Lee next to WJ.
ReplyDeleteAlso Puzzled> 5th from left is Julai Sharif, 6th is Lawrence Chin.
ReplyDelete"You have to be there to really experience the atmosphere during the evening of 23rd Dec " would aptly sum up the occasion itself.
ReplyDeleteFor those who couldn't make it to the function, WSJ has performed beyond par excellence to bring the "delayed telecast" - documenting the function (pre & post) and posting the great photos with the appropriate captions/descriptions. James - you thoroughly deserved your award !!!!
But not every moment of the night was indulged in merry-making, singing, dancing, lucky draws and drinking, though.
We also observed a minute's silence in memory of our late pals - Ang Swee Kheng, Lim Soon Huat, Andrew Kang, Bannister Drake, Julian Wee & Tan Chin Chai. It was a great credit to everyone present that complete silence was observed during that period - you could almost hear a pin drop !!!! It illustrated how much they felt for their departed pals !!!
Julian Wee, in particular, reminded us of life's fragilities. A live-wire of any function and a great guy to have around, he left us shell-shocked with his passing. A guy with a truely "big heart." It was only about 3 years ago that I attended the reunion at Holiday Inn ( Meisan Restaurant, I think ) and there he was...bustling around with seemingly endless energy....all that are now memories.
The 4 Group photographs will be much treasured in the years to come...as our numbers dwindle due to wear and tear....
And when we look back at the faces in the photographs ....the day will come when we will quietly reflect on them and whispher - "I'm glad that I was there.!!! "
Let's leverage on the good feelings of the Reunion to further reinforce the bridge of friendship among us regardless of our social or economic standing. That's what friends are for !!!
Cheers !!!
Edmund
Just to let you all know that I've replaced all the group photos with clearer, better resolution ones taken by our very own photographer Chen Liang Fang.
ReplyDeleteNicely said Edmund LAS. No other words can explain why I wanted to be at the Big 50 Reunion...just to be with friends. I regretted I was not able to attend the last reunion and missed Julian.
ReplyDeleteCheers to all our friends of '76! Here's to good health and friendship.
ALMOST 100,000 VISITS !!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteweb jaga...can you identify who hit the magical 100,000?
ReplyDeleteWOOOOOOOO !!!! We crossed 100,000. And I think the visitor that hit the big number came from Perth, Australia .... so I reckon it was likely to be a creative accountant or a shaolin monk. Any of you guys wanna own up?
ReplyDeleteSpecial thanks to Anthony Macpherson and his wonderful archive team at NSTP for the unique momentos of the front page from The Times (circa 1959)of the day each of us was born. How priceless is that!
ReplyDeleteSincere thanks to Subra and Sangeetha for their riveting performances and gratitude to their "manager" for their presence.
Guys, nearly hit the 1st prize 4D, not the jackpot though, my given number was 8962, 1st prize no. was 8982! Otherwise I would have RM2500 to shop.
ReplyDeleteSo very happy to see those friends turning up for the dinner even though they said they can't make it, esp. Robert Chang Kok Cheng.
Know what guys? I started to wait for the next grand reunion dinner already. Sob. sob.
The 100,000th hit must have come from panjang KC! Was that you Kevin?
ReplyDeleteYes , rightly said -Anthong Macpherson . The reunion night was indeed very special for old mates to meet up again after 33 years to give each other a warm handshake if not a bear hug for some. Wishing you all a Happy New year and stay healthky to slow down the "wear and tear "
Cheers
And not forgetting Liew Kuek Man (RIP).
ReplyDeleteYou ALL did a fantastic job! Just to be present at the grand reunion is itself a great achievement. You can NEVER get a 100% turn out.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to the next grand reunion.
Cheers
Was wandering, does anybody has the LATEST list of all our school friends who had already passed on?
ReplyDeleteToo bad you missed the big one Gerard, anyway, hope you will not miss the next one again. How about joining us for the trip to Macau next April, anybody else? Think there are about 10 going already.
"Life's not about waiting for the storm to pass...it's about learning to dance in the rain"....Vivian Greene
ReplyDeleteAny day I'm vertical is a good day. And I give thanks for my health.
If you ask me "How are You?"
I'll answer "Great !"
Because in saying so, I make it so.
And I give thanks I can choose my attitude.
When Life gives me dark clouds and rain,
I appreciate the moisture that brings a soft curl to my hair.
When Life gives me sunshine, I gratefully turn my face up to feel its warmth on my cheeks.
When Life brings fog, I hug my sweater around me and give thanks for the cool shroud of mystery that makes the familiar seem different and intriguing.
When Life brings snow, I dash outside to catch the first flakes on my tongue, relishing the miracle that is a snowflake.
Life's experiences are like the weather - they come and go, no matter what my preference.
So what the heck ?! I might as well decide to enjoy them.
For indeed, there IS a time for every purpose under Heaven.
Each season brings its own unique Blessings.
AND I GIVE THANKS. Praise be to God !!!
The 100,000th hit is defintely from the creative accountant. The shoalin monk was out bush battling dragons. :-)
ReplyDeleteWe should all be thankful that we would wake up to a very new day everyday, to see the sun rises.
ReplyDeleteLife is short, we are here in this world only on a temporary period, so make full use of each day!
I notice the 4 award recipients reflect such a good racial mix for Sarawak. Is this 1Malaysia or what?
ReplyDeleteThanks LC for giving us access to a whole lot of photos. You sure are one shutterbug.
ReplyDeletehow many from the Class of 76 have we link with since we start, WJ?
ReplyDeleteProfound gratitude to Ben Wong, Robert Chin, Jensen Ng Khoon Teck, Bob Chew, George Lo, Anthony Macpherson, James Yong and others who worked behind the scenes to bring us the very best reunion we have had so far.
ReplyDeleteAnybody disagree?
and we were indeed lucky to have Edmund as the MC for the nite. His jokes were just hilarious and clean too. We went home healthier too - after so much laughter ! Thanks Edmund. By the way, how did you become part of Class of '76 ? Thought you were Year '75 right ? Doesn't matter, just curious. What a catch !
ReplyDeleteappreciative & curious
who is H M No 1? can tell or not? event over already.
ReplyDeleteevent over already so point knowing now.
ReplyDeleteprobably did not turn up.
and who is Curious Cat? can tell or not?
AAARRRGGGGGGGGGGG !!!!!
ReplyDeleteI'm having Post-Reunion Withdrawal Symptom.
After such a greeeeeeaaaaaattttt reunion party, now life is so boring again.
HEEEEEEELLLLLLLLPPPPPPPP !!!!!
Keep your cool guys, we will organise a mini gathering every now and then in the future. It will be posted on our blog if there is one. It could be in KL, Sibu, Singapore, Miri or Sabah. So we will still be together every now and then, OK?
ReplyDeleteDearest Suffering
ReplyDeleteI am sorry to hear you are suffering from the post-reunion Withdrawal symptom. Let me give you some advice, looking back at the reunion you would have managed to make contact with so many of your "old" school mates and I am sure you have added new names and contact numbers on your mobile phone. At any time during the week or once every fortnight, organise to meet up with those who lived in your area - can be in KCH or KL and have many MINI REUNIONs!!!!. I am sure over the years you have made other friends but the friends from school are so different and special - you have common interest, subjects, sillyness, teachers, Bro Columba,etc.
So this is your tonic - organise mini reunions and from these reunions you will be surprised what will come out of them - more reunions, business, relationship, new contacts, travels, partnerships, health issues, sports (English football teams), gals from across the love bridge, etc
Enjoy and have fun - this can be one of your new year's resolutions.
All of the attendees also got a gift bag with a number of goodies inside. WJ, can post a picture of the giftbag and some of its contents?
ReplyDeleteIn a world where so-called friendship is more often than not, superficial and full of baloney,
ReplyDeleteit is, indeed, very refreshing to see the manifestation of true friendship in play among you guys during the recent Grand Reunion.
Apparently, the 33 long years that have passed us by, have jaded you all gracefully and further strengthened your bond of comradeship.
May 2010 be a good and productive year that will lead to many more years to come for all of us.
To Kaki 4-d: since 2010 is sold out, maybe you can buy 2014 ( the next Grand Reunion? ). U kena U belanja.
Hehehe...
Picture of gift bag and contents coming soon.
ReplyDeleteWas wondering what you fellows did with the contents of the bag.
ReplyDeleteFor me:
1. T-shirt : I have worn it, washed it and now keeping it as souvenir.
2. Personalized towel : still under wraps and likely to remain so as souvenir.
3. NST dated 20-04-19xx (my birthday) front page : framed it and going to hang it on the wall though the wifey says 'urgh' .
4. Souvenir pen : keeping it as souvenir.
Priceless items esp. the NST frontpage of the day I was born.
Hey, Anon 11:11
ReplyDeleteYour wifey needs educating!!!!!. It is pride and joy of being a Josephian, especially, a Fifth Former in 1976. Frame it and proudly display in the living room and there will be many wonderful stories to tell to your visitors and families.
Btw - Honorary Event Organisers/WJ and Committe Members: What happen to the proposed time capsule?
Have the two lucky boys gone to London yet?
ReplyDeleteAny photos to share?
Supposed to have gone, but the flights were retimed and then retimed and then retimed and then retimed and then retimed .........
ReplyDelete