Remembering Mr Chua Cheng Chye - words from your editor

I first met Mr Chua when I was taken to register to ACS Primary School in December of 1974 , I entered Standard One in 1975 , Mr Chua was then our Headmaster . I have some memories of his kindness and being a soft spoken gentlemen and he’d always store some school uniforms in spare for the students who soiled their pants , few of my classmates did. He retired in 1977 when I was in Standard 3 , replaced by the fierce looking , no nonsense Mr Kua Beng Choon.

I had the chance of meeting Mr Chua again in 1982 , when my older brother of Macsian 77 / ex BB , had forced me ( due to my mischief’s ) to get enlisted in the Boys Brigade. Mr Chua taught us discipline , obedience , humility , tolerance and sharing good Christian values to all of us . He has no reservations over the rich or the poor , race and religions. Though a Buddhist , I am proud to say that I was brought up basically in a Christian way , thanks to Mr Chua for his endless dedication working with young people in shaping them to be a better person. He builds our character and developed our talent.

In the Boys Brigade (BB), I was made the Company’s bugler as Mr Chua deliberately assigned me due to my asthma, he would keep on saying that being a bugler would build up my lungs. In many of the BB outdoor activities I’ve learnt to swim and now I am a certified scuba diver. Like my seniors before me , I’ve also had the privilege of having great ,meals at Mr Chua’s White House. His maid Bibiek would prepare us pohpiah , mee rebus , the famous chicken pie etc and always hot tea with milk. The Bibiek was a true maestro in Nyonya dishes These occasion only happened on Sunday afternoons , we would go to there to do some gardening and repairing work on the White House. In those days , there were some rumours of some interesting magazines kept in the White House , I would sneak to look out for it but never been successful , I’m still wondering where those magazines were kept. I also had a very rare chance of encountering a furiously angry Mr Chua , it happened once when the Boys got out of hand , it was a frightening sight , it made our little manhood shrunk !

Mr Chua was a Great Educator and father figure to us all . Appreciation to his work and dedication is limitless. He will always be remembered in our hearts .

Bert T