As years go by: Old Thomians celebrate at 55th reunion
LAST Friday evening, on Feb 23, almost 50 former classmates together with their spouses, children and other school-mates had celebrated a reunion at the residence of a former mate, Philip Yong, at Tabuan Road in Kuching.
They had all graduated from St Thomas’ Secondary School Kuching in 1969 – a rather memorable year for the world at large.
It was the year that the first man had landed on the moon via USA’s Apollo 11 Mission when Neil Armstrong and Edwin ‘Buzz’ Aldrin had stepped on the moon, and the famous words ‘that’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind’, were spoken.
It was also the year the Internet as we know it was born – via the ARPANET in the USA. Alas, it was also the year the Beatles made their last album together, ‘Abbey Road’.
In between the year they had left their alma mater and now, they have had two other similarly sizeable gatherings – a 40th in 2008, and a 50th in 2019.
There were the smaller ones being sporadically held whenever a long-lost classmate from some faraway land that he or she had decided to migrate to: from China to Canada, from the UK to the USA, and down under to Australia and New Zealand.
This time round, they had come from Australia, Kuala Lumpur, Miri and Singapore. The decision to hold it within the Chinese New Year period was a double-edged sword – although some had returned to celebrate family reunions, the inflated airfares were prohibitive for others wanting to join the reunion!
Joining us this time for the 55th reunion were many family members – spouses, children, as well as some from classes a few years our junior.
We also faced the reality of numbers reducing due to mobility, age and health issues and had a handful of lastminute cancellations due to unfortunate mishaps or family matters.
Our ‘Class of 1969’ was a rather unique group of students. We were among the early pioneers of the co-ed experiment in 1967. In Form 5, we had female students of St Mary’s School from across the MacDougall Road attending classes with us, and although it was less than 10 of them, they had continued onto Upper Form 6 and were streamed into Arts and Science classes.
It was also one of the last years when English was still the main medium of instruction – from 1970 onwards, the Bahasa Malaysia medium was gradually being integrated into our school system.
Most significant of all, and in my opinion, the main reason for which our alma mater was widely recognised as being Sarawak’s premier school was that besides having students of all races in all classes, we also had teachers who had been recruited from all over the Commonwealth countries – they had originated from England, Australia, Canada, India, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), New Zealand and Peninsular Malaysia; we even had the odd Swede from Scandinavia!
The teaching standards were high, extracurricular activities were encouraged, and students took advantage of being in the sports field, at debates indoors and took part in performing arts.
Religious study was also interactive besides just being part of the curriculum – ‘Scripture’ was a compulsory subject and the entire student population would attend both school opening and closing ‘ceremonial prayers’ at St Thomas’ Cathedral at the start and end of each school year.
St Thomas’ Class of 1969, for the record, had also produced many outstanding students who continued on to gain respect and honour for their school in their public and private careers.
Many became outstanding public figures and successful entrepreneurs, professionals and businessmen. Others had fared well in literary and other fields of endeavours.
Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg, our present Premier of Sarawak, had been in our class from 1963 till 1967; his father Tun Openg, who was appointed Sarawak’s first Governor (TYT) after Malaysia Day in 1963, was himself a Thomian.
Abang Johari’s older brother, Datuk Abang Abdul Karim, was a Thomian too.
The Premier had, in 1968, transferred to another school, St Joseph’s, for his Cambridge A-Levels.
Tan Sri Datuk Amar Wilson Baya Dandot was Sarawak’s State Secretary from 2006 to 2009, after which he became the chief executive officer and headed Regional Corridor Development Authority (Recoda) from 2009 to 2017, and chairman of the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching in 2017 and now, as its executive director.
He studied at the worldfamous Harvard University in the USA (1994-95), University of Queensland (1993), University of Sussex (1984-85), University of Western Australia (1970-72).
Among his many portfolios were chairman of the Complaints Committee of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (2015-2018); Malaysia Export Council (2014-2017) and a member of the Malaysian Institute of Economic Researchers.
He was also director of the Sarawak State Planning Unit.
Today, he sits on the board of directors of various organisations and hold directorship in several publiclisted companies.
At one point in time between 2011 and 2019, Kuching had both its mayors, for the north and south, from our ‘Class of 1969’: Kuching North Datuk Bandar Datuk Abang Abdul Wahap Abang Julai (2011-2019) and Kuching South Mayor Datuk James Chan (2008-2019). Both had performed their duties with great success and during their terms, they had elevated the status of their respective Kuching North City Commission (DBKU) and Kuching South City Council (MBKS) to greater heights.
Datuk James Chan was indisposed and unable to attend our 55th reunion.
During our 50th reunion in 2019 and marking their final year in office, we were all treated to a lunch and tea sessions at their respective offices in Kuching – the Dewan MBKS at Jalan Padungan, and at Dewan DBKU at Petra Jaya.
The Kuching South Mayor then had even entertained us with his expert guitar craftsmanship on site after lunch!
Dato Winsel Ahtos rose to the height of his career as director of a government department, Drainage and Irrigation. Today, he is active in his role at the Anglican Diocese and also sits on the board of management for both St Thomas’ and St Mary’s schools.
He was away during our 55th reunion.
Dato Abang Affandi Anuar worked for many years in a senior position at the Housing Board Commission, and was the Deputy Kuching North Datuk Bandar until his recent retirement. He had served with a high degree of professionalism.
Dato Goh Leng Chua, by profession a lawyer, is a highly successful entrepreneur and businessman. Behind the scene he was a special advisor to a political party during its heyday.
He also pioneered the present system of the modernisation of car-parking operations in both the MBKS and DBKU areas.
Goh had also served on the board of one of Malaysia’s biggest educational institutions. Today he maintains his connection to the current inner corridors of power within Putrajaya.
Datin Ang Bee Lian is a scion of a notable and wealthy family whose father, Ang Cheng Hoe, was a much-respected and admired goldsmith and stonequarry owner; her brother Datuk Seri Ang Lai Soon, a prominent philanthropist and a close friend of Malaysia’s royal families is also the chair, commander and founder of St John’s Ambulance Sarawak Branch, as well as president and founder of Cheshire Home, and a member of the Order of St John.
Bee Lian had graduated as a pharmacist and was, at one time, owner of one of Malaysia’s largest pharmaceutical firms before she had sold it off. She resides in Kuala Lumpur.
Vashdev A Khialani graduated as a civil engineer from the National University of Singapore in 1974 and established his own C&V Engineering Pte Ltd in 1982 after having worked at Singapore’s HDB from 1975 to 1980.
‘Vashi’ is a past president of Singapore’s Sindhi Association (2020-2022). He has been instrumental and an essential executive committee of all our past (and future) class reunions and have always been actively involved and participated in all activities.
He has also hosted a subsidiary special vegetarian luncheon on the second day of all our past reunions, for which we are most grateful.
Mohd Tuah Jais, during his tenure at the Sarawak Tourism Board (STB), was hugely responsible for the highly successful and now globally renowned Rainforest World Music Festival, among other projects. After greenlighting it by Datu Aloysius Dris during the days of Robert Basuik with the guiding hand of Randy Raine-Reusch, it was Tuah who had been hands-on with ensuring its success in its early years of implementation, aided by Yeoh Jun Lin and Yu Puay.
His legacy in STB will be remembered.
Douglas Telajan serves on the management of the Sarawak Lawn Tennis Association as the vice-president, also the Anglican Diocese and the board of management of St Thomas’ School for many terms. His field of expertise has been on education, he is very well-versed and his services much sought after.
Ahmad Shamsuddin was born in Simanggang and had been a very successful entrepreneur in Peninsular Malaysia for some time. During the school days, he was so talented in his ‘cartoons and caricatures’ that we had nicknamed him our very own ‘Lat!’
He too has been a devoted supporter and a regular attendee of our past reunion, and we look forward to seeing him at many more.
If ever there was a ‘Joker’
– and I use that word with much endearment and respect – it has to be Yusup Sobeng.
He breaks all our records by having 21 grandchildren within his family – we take our hats off to him on that feat!
‘Sup’, as we call him, was formerly a director at Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (Mardi) and he has in-depth experience in all matters agriculture and further afield.
Of course our host, our dear Philip Yong; whose residence was our reunion’s venue: food was catered for by Telang Usan’s ‘The Lamin Restaurant’ (superb carvery and local ethnic halal dishes); a special spread of Kuih Pie-Ti from Annie Tan’s (Mrs George Pang)’s Kitchen – authentic and oh so scrumptious!
Plus those Chinese New Year ‘kuih-muihs’ (cakes and treats) too! Our thanks to Lawrence Boon for coordinating everything.
Bee Lian, Andrew Wong and Ahmad Shamsuddin had sponsored the drinks, and barkeeping was by Richard and Dorothy from the Club.
Philip Yong needs no introduction – he is the managing partner of Borneo Adventure and past president of the Sarawak Federation of Tourism Agencies, among many other organisations, charities and religious boards.
He is actively updating an edition of an autobiography on his father, Tan Sri Datuk Amar Stephen Yong – keep a look-out for it!
I must apologise in advance for not writing more in detail about everyone who had attended our 55th reunion, or on those who had wanted to come but as fate intervened could not or did not make it.
However, I must take note here of their attendance as well as those who were willing but unable – here they are:
l Attended: George Pang; John Najod, Doreen Voon, Sim Lui Kheng, Diana Wong, Elizabeth Wong, Edric Ong, Ramsay Ong, Ahmad Medani, Arthur Goh Nyak Hong, Peter Lo, Jackson Chan, James Ritchie, and Judy Hung. l Absent, but with us in spirit: Ruping Ratep, Philip Mejin, Dolly Crocker, David Ting, Andrew Wong Chee Kong, Sim Poh Beng, Yeo Kee Liang, Joshua Voon, John Ko Wai Seng, Kho Kwang Chee, Patrick Voon Ewe Leng, Woon Tai Tan, Kho Kwang Lee, Jabu Entinggie, Peter Salang, Chang Yah San, Richard Poh Tze Eng, and Bujang Dahlan Abon.
We are truly blessed and are grateful to Almighty God for bringing us once again together, 55 years after we left our alma mater, and we look forward to more class reunions in the near future.
We have decided that at this juncture of our lives, five years are too long a period, so maybe once every two years.
And certainly we must also regulate our time – perhaps from 6pm to 10pm in the future as we did notice that 10pm had become our midnight and ‘witching hour’!
Hey guys, don’t forget our average age is now somewhere in between 72 and 76!
Stay healthy, stay alert and keep on walking!
‘AIM HIGHER’!