Fellow alumni of Ipoh ACS and Ipoh MGS, Our fellow stakeholders including – Members of The Board of Governors & The PTA, Present as well as retired Heads & Teachers of Ipoh ACS & Ipoh MGS, Representatives of the present students, And of course, our few very special personal guests, A very warm welcome to every one to our Joint ACS-MGS Alumni Dinner 2012.
This year’s Reunion Dinner is driven by a very powerful theme. Friends we were in the past in school and friends forever we remain. FRIENDS FOREVER is therefore the poignant theme for tonight.
Together we have made this gathering a huge success – an all time record high turnout of 110 tables with 1105 diners. We wish we can accommodate more but the space constraint is real.
There is a huge upsurge of interest this year in meeting up again with our friends, many of whom we have not seen since we left school some 30, 40 or even 50 odd years ago.There is in the air some kind of NOW OR NEVER syndrome.
For tonight, what we are, what we have achieved after leaving school are not important at all. Our present individual status does not matter. We are here to time travel back to the past, to those genuine and simple days. This is the time to re-connect; to swap stories of escapades and happy time spent together; and to relish the experiences and values we share.
The programme is drawn up to allow more time to bond with old friends and to make new friends. So let us be young tonight. May our energy and zest for life fail us not.
Even as we celebrate tonight with friends and teachers, our Alma Mater and the present students are not far from our mind. That is the primary reason why the surplus from this year’s Reunion Dinner is fully dedicated to Ipoh ACS and Ipoh MGS in equal proportions. Within each school, the secondary and the primary sections will receive an allocation proportionate to their student population.
To mark the occasion of this year’s Dinner, the Ipoh ACS Class of 1970 (Form 5), spearheaded by Capt. Eddie Foo and Paul Oei (together with 12 other classmates), have raised RM4,500 to provide bursary assistance for poor students in Ipoh ACS. They are seated at Tables No. 36 and 61. Thank you for your generosity.
Various other ex-students have earlier made contributions to the school as well as the present students. The details are reported in our Alumni Website.
Following this Dinner event, our Alumni Association will focus on developing a substantive GIVING BACK TO SCHOOL programme. We will communicate and engage with you to make this initiative a success.
Office-bearers and volunteers of our Alumni Association will be coming around to recruit life members. Please give them your support.
In 3 years time, in 2015, Ipoh ACS and Ipoh MGS will celebrate their 120th and 118th Anniversaries respectively. Let us make the celebration more inclusive, doubling the number of tables we have tonight to make it 200+. We can do it.
Finally, a few “thank you”are in order. The Joint Organising Committee have worked very hard and well to put together such a big dinner party. They came together as relative strangers but since then many strong friendships have been forged. The Committee have made it a point that refreshment and incidental expenses are funded out of individual pockets without touching the Dinner Fund.
Thank you to the Heads, Teachers and student helpers of Ipoh ACS and Ipoh MGS. They have done a wonderful job on the logistics side.
Our thanks also go to the many generous donors.
And a very special thank you is reserved for all of you, especially those who have come back from afar. Without you, we will not have such an awesome reunion.
Please enjoy the evening. Thank you.
