Time for a reunion

> The writer hopes that his fellow Westlanders will join him at the Westlands Secondary School’s 60th anniversary celebration

Westlanders became seafarers when they joined the merchant navy.

A great many climbed the corporate ladder, or expanded their family businesses.

Two brothers enhanced their engineering skills and got their family business listed on Bursa Malaysia.

Two others set up a components factory with more than 3,000 employees in Prai to supply to multinationals, and even bought over a Bursa Malaysia-listed company.

Countless enterprising WSS boys became entrepreneurs, some even held top positions in their respective chambers of commerce.

Many more carved out careers as engineers, technicians and managers at the Bayan Lepas Free Trade Zone.

Over the years, many outstanding Westlanders were in the honours’ list of the Yang Dipertua Negeri.

These are just a tiny fraction of stories about successful Westlanders.

In facet, many others unknown to me may have made an even bigger impact in other fields.

Puan Yon Zanariah Osman, the present principal, is not letting such achievements and milestones go unnoticed, for she believes that successful Westlanders can become good role models.

As a former Senior Assistant at Convent Green Lane (CGL), she understands the power of inspiration, as squash queen Datuk Nichol David came from CGL.

While Puan Yon has many ideas to further improve the school, what’s uppermost on her mind now, is to make her WSS students become more dynamic and useful citizens.

As part of the WSS’s 60th anniversary celebrations this year, she hopes that many Westlanders and former teachers will attend a charity dinner being planned for Sept 29 at 7.30pm at Kompleks Masyarakat Penyayang (opposite Penang’s infamous Polo Ground).

Coming as gentlemen, Old Westlanders?

Jeff Yong, after making his mark in the twisty maze of mainstream journalism, has finally decided to enjoy what he does best – observing the unusual and recounting the gleeful. He can be contacted at lifestyle.borak@ gmail.com. Reports,