On the evening of Friday, 28 Sep, the Methodist Schools’ Foundation (MSF) filled the Concorde Hotel ballroom with music, laughter and the irresistible aroma of Peranakan cuisine, all in the name of fund-raising for our Methodist schools.
The night began with a short thanksgiving worship time led by Peter Sim and Andrew Lim from Barker Road Methodist Church. The guests were treated to two lovely performances by Fairfield Methodist School (Primary): a skit portraying the beginnings of the school with eight little Peranakan girls, and a choral ensemble item featuring Peranakan favourites “Rasa Sayang” and “Lenggang Kangkong”. Fairfield students Andrea Ralls and Elijah Yam were delightful as emcees.
The surprise of the night was Bishop Dr Chong Chin Chung taking to the stage with his accordion and six-piece band! Bishop Dr Chong has been a MSF Board member since his days as President of the Chinese Annual Conference. Bishop’s Baba Band (BBB) regaled the audience with more classics like “Burung Kakatua” and “Chan Mali Chan”.
Peranakan Sayang, a home-grown professional singing group, rounded off the evening’s entertainment. They got the audience on their feet, dancing and singing along to mashups of Malay folk songs with contemporary pop tunes.
It was truly heartwarming to spend an evening in the good company of more than 350 guests, for a cause as important as the education of our future generations of Christians.
On top of the ticket sales, a silent auction of Peranakan ware and donations collected during the evening saw MSF raise almost $250,000 in total. These funds will be invested, with the income derived to be distributed among the 16 Methodist schools to support building projects, equipment purchases, and financial assistance for needy students.
If you would like to contribute to MSF’s work, do look out for our upcoming Envelope Project in December 2018. Every donation counts, and we are grateful for each and every gift.
Marcia Vanderstraaten is general pen-pusher at both the Methodist Schools’ Foundation (MSF) and the MCS Education Secretariat. She sometimes writes plays.
Photos courtesy of Mr Gan Eng Khoon and the Methodist Schools’ Foundation