YLCO (Yeoh, Lim,Chew & Oh) Families: Second ‘Brother Paul Memorial Lectures’ Together With YLCO

(l/r) Mr Liew Boon Ket, Mr Ravindran, Oliver Oh, Dr Edmund Oh, Linda Oh, Oh Teik Soo, Yeoh Lam Swee, Professor Gary Lit, Pauline Chew, Ignatius Chew

I thought early Monday morning assembly was a memory but then today was ‘Brother Paul's Memorial Lecture’ at St Michaels. It was the second lecture with members of YLCO and was a very enlightening morning.

There were only 2 speakers today and both were exMichaelians. This year’s guest of honour was Dr Edmund Oh Joo Vin — 1992 Head Prefect, 02 Kinta scout, school play music director, and currently Associate Professor at HELP University. His father and late mother, incidentally, were also Michaelians, having graduated from Form Six in 1967.

The other speaker was Professor Gary Lit the avid war historian who wrote “If the Sky Were To Fall’. Both speakers provided their very interesting presentations that were enlightening to the guests and Lower Six students.

Edmund Oh speaks about Brother Paul (inset photo)..'Duty's Sweet Call'

Edmund spoke of Brother Paul’s “unfailing willingness to bend towards his life’s higher purpose,” or what may be called “responding to his duty’s sweet call” — a line from the school rally sung by Michaelian students every Monday.

Drawing a parallel between Brother Paul’s bold decision to begin a life of service as a teacher and La Salle Brother at the age of 18 with the Sixth Form students’ own impending crossroads where they would soon be deciding what to do with their adult lives, Edmund urged his audience make the most of their time in Sixth Form, especially given all that SMI had to offer.

Recalling a piece he wrote for the school magazine 33 years ago, he argued that while some schools teach us to make a living, and others teach us how to live, St Michael’s Institution teaches us to be alive. This magical yet hard to describe ‘Michaelian Spirit,’ he felt, was what made life at SMI so rewarding. Edmund expressed his wish that the Lower Six students will likewise remember their SMI days fondly and that, like Brother Paul, they will muster the courage to respond in their own way and time to their duty’s sweet call.

Professor Gary Lit spoke about war history during the Japanese occupation. His history was not what one would read in history books rather a ‘ground-up’ approach which he had researched and shared with graphics. The graphics made the topic more interesting. When Lit asked the six form students if he was boring them they answered with a convincing ‘no’

..the use of graphics made the topics more interesting

..the most fiercest battle in Malaya..'The Battle of Kampar'

He told the students of the ‘fiercest battle fought in Malaya was at the Battle of Kampar. From Kampar Hill the British could see the meandering Kinta River and the surrounding Kinta Plains. It's strategic advantage helped the British hold the Japanese advance for 4 days.

'Sook Cheng ....'this victim was a boy (above) stabbed multiple times with a bayonet but survived ..'

He explained what was the tragedy of Sook Cheng…"British personnel, civil servants or Chinese secret societies or anybody suspected of being anti-Japanese sympathisers.........

..............would be paraded in the town padang and brutally exterminated".

Michaelian ... Captain (Winkie) Ho Weng Toh

He also hilited a St Michaels schoolboy called Captain Ho Weng Toh who became a pilot for the Flying Tigers during the war.

students receiving awards and assistance....

..guests receiving their certificates .....

the special guests ..Ignatius and Pauline Chew, Oh Teik Soo and Linda, Yeoh Lam Swee

Several students approached Lit after the event and asked him to take them to the site of The Battle of Kampar while another student admitted she was felt the suffering of the people then.