The theme was "Celebrating Family" and the Scripture verse chosen was "and every … house divided against itself shall not stand" (Matthew 12: 25).
The thrust and emphasis was on the unity of the Methodist schools in Singapore and that we should support and uphold one another to the glory of God. Paya Lebar Methodist Girls' School (Primary) hosted the event.
Dinner is served, and good food comes with good conversation. - PLMGS (Primary) picture.
At the Thanksgiving Service, a total of 28 staff members were awarded Long Service Awards (20 years or more), and 15 received Retirement Awards, with special mention for four women who had each given 40 or more years of service to the Methodist schools. The four were Mdm Ong Thian Wah (40 years) from Fairfield Methodist Secondary, Miss Lau Woon Yoke (42 years) from Fairfield Methodist Secondary, Mrs Ong Swee Fong (44 years) from Methodist Girls' School (Primary) and Mrs Quek Hon Yan (44 years) also from Methodist Girls' School (Primary).
Musical talent abounds in the Methodist schools, as evidenced by the items of praise and worship from the Joint Handbell Ensemble comprising girls from Paya Lebar Methodist Girls' School (Primary and Secondary) and Methodist Girls' School, the Choral Tribute "Find Us Faithful" by MGS teachers, and the lovely Postlude Medley on the violin by brothers Christopher and Evan Chia from Anglo-Chinese School (Primary).
The school was transformed into a fairyland of lights and fluttering tulle as a giant marquee covered the whole canteen and parade square. Tealights and fresh flowers greeted all guests who were served with a six-course dinner. In between courses, more talents from ACS (Junior) and ACS (Independent) entertained an appreciative audience with music from the Junior String Ensemble and the Guitar Ensemble.
A video presentation on all Methodist schools was screened during dinner and this helped the Methodist school staff to get to know more about each other. A Family Quiz followed, which encouraged the staff to run around getting the answers and which got them chatting to colleagues from the different schools.
Catering to the 1,300 people was a mammoth task, but with God's help, the programme was planned and celebrated successfully. We would like to thank God for His goodness to us, and pray for His blessings in the years to come as we continue to serve Him faithfully.
We would also like to thank The Methodist Church in Singapore and the Council on Education for their generous support for all staff members. A special word of thanks goes to Paya Lebar Methodist Church for its love shown to the school in many concrete ways.