There will be a Heritage Trail by Bus and a Heritage Fair
THE METHODIST HERITAGE DAY, to be held at the Old School (former Methodist Girls’ School site at Mt Sophia) on Oct 31, will have two main events – an Opening Ceremony incorporating a main Heritage Exhibition and a Heritage Fair, and a Heritage Trail by Bus.
The Methodist Heritage Day is to round off a year-long series of events to celebrate the 125th Anniversary of The Methodist Church in Singapore (MCS) this year.
The theme for the celebration is “Together in God’s Mission”.
The Heritage Day aims:
• TO UNITE the Methodist family and to remind them to gather together in God’s mission (the theme of the 125th Anniversary);
• TO REKINDLE our Wesleyan passion to serve the community and remind us of our rich history and heritage in this work through the Heritage Fair and a series of exhibitions;
• TO UPDATE our key Anniversary Community Outreach Project and marshal the efforts of our Befrienders in bringing cheer and aid to the chronically poor in Singapore; and
• TO GALVANISE our effort in helping the poor and the destitute.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will be the Guest -of-Honour at the Opening Ceremony. Among the guests will be some 200 community leaders, leaders of the various faiths, and our own Methodist leaders from the churches, agencies and schools.
In addition, more than 3,000 of our church members and school students will gather for a time of fellowship and bonding at the Heritage Fair at which there will be games and food stalls. The Prime Minister will unveil a Methodist Heritage Plaque at 4 pm after delivering his address. The plaque will be placed at the Methodist Centre.
The Prime Minister and the guests, to be accompanied by Bishop Dr Robert Solomon and the three Annual Conference Presidents – the Rev Dr Chong Chin Chung (Chinese Annual Conference), the Rev James Nagulan (Emmanuel Tamil Annual Conference), and the Rev Dr Wee Boon Hup (Trinity Annual Conference) – will then view the Heritage Exhibition displaying the work and mission of the MCS from the days of the earliest missionaries in the 1880s to the present.
The 3,000 church members and students will also be given a chance to view the Heritage Exhibition, which will open from noon to 6 pm. They will be guided through the Exhibition in groups at regular intervals.
The Exhibition, which has as its theme “Social Outreach: Then and Now”, will be held at the Art Studio, adjacent to where the Opening Ceremony will take place in the basement of the Old School.
The Exhibition is being put together by the Archives and History Library of the MCS and Methodist Message with materials from the Archives, churches, agencies and schools.
The second part of the day’s programme is for the participants to go on the Heritage Trail. They will go on bus tours, which will pass by historic Methodist landmarks such as the old Baba Church at the corner of Middle Road and the former MPH Building at the corner of Stamford Road, en route to three of our earliest churches – Wesley Methodist Church, Tamil Methodist Church and Telok Ayer Chinese Methodist Church – where there will be exhibitions displaying their respective works and heritage. “Tour guides” will be on board the coaches to give commentaries.
The organising committee welcomes volunteers from churches and schools to serve as tour guides. Training will be provided. Those interested may call 6478-4807 or 6478-4801.
There will be various routes and loop services for the Heritage Trail.
The buses will leave at regular intervals at the appointed times. Church members and students are reminded to gather at the Old School on time and meet as a group under their respective organisations. Bus tickets indicating boarding time will be issued, and participants will be guided to the right bus.
Participants are advised not to drive to Mt Sophia as parking is limited. Besides, the roads leading to the Old School are very narrow, with some stretches being a one-way street, and there will be congestion on those roads.
Guests are also advised to avoid driving there. They will be issued labels to park their cars at Anglo-Chinese School (Junior) where a shuttle bus service will be provided to ferry them to the Old School and back after the event.