SFX
Class of 63
50th
Anniversary Newsletter 3, 14 May 2013
It
is now the middle of May, about six months away from our get together on
Friday, 8 November 2014. We are happy to report progress on a number of fronts.
Your
Classmates: 50 years on
Leung
Hok-Lin and John Ying were interviewed by Jerry Chung in March. Jerry wote:
Leung Hok-Lin
It
was not exactly the kind of interview you watch on TV. It was more like a chat
between friends. It must be the most unprofessional interviewee you have ever come
across.
I
first met Hok-Lin in 1958 in SFX Form 1E but our friendship only started in
Form 4A when our Form master, Bro. Leo asked us to join the Student Press of
the English Catholic Sunday Examiner. Travelling by ferry to Hong Kong Island
together once a month gave us an opportunity to cement our friendship.
When
both of us went scouting around the Shamshuipo district searching for caterers
and comparing prices for our graduation dinner in the summer of 1963, I
realized then that Hok-Lin was more mature, all-rounded and street-smarter than many of
our classmates.
Nothing
he said in the interview was news to me cause after leaving school we were in
constant contact. Even in England and later in Canada, we were able to see each
other from time to time.
Quite
a number of us participated in Bro. Gregory’s play the Absent-minded Professor with Hok-Lin assuming the leading role.
In real life, he turned into a professor and none of us expected anything less
cause he was always been the top of the class. What I admire about him is his
continuous and consistent strive to achieve his ideals. In his early years
working as an architect, he said a lot of his contemporaries had ideals but
most of them wanted to make their fortune first and fulfill their dreams later.
But he told me that following this road would distract him and might cause him
to wander off into other directions. So, Hok-Lin chose to be an academic and
raised four sons in Kingston, Canada with neither a TV set nor a motor vehicle
for the family but none of the family member felt deprived. Not difficult to
understand why one of Hok-Lin’s favourite songs is The Impossible Dream.
I
wish to add that Hok-Lin is also very perceptive and here are two examples:
1.
In 1972, when he was working in an architectural firm and I was working in the
Lands Dept., it so happened that I had to prepare some documents relating to a
piece of property which his firm was handling for a company. I told him about
it and in passing he mentioned that in future, I should give some attention to
the CEO of this company. He said this CEO was an extraordinary person. Since
then I followed the news of this company, how it went public and the various
deals that CEO made. According to Forbes, the CEO is now the richest Chinese on
earth.
2.
Hok-Lin and I have a mutual acquaintance/friend and many years ago he said this
friend of ours would be like the main character in a Greek tragedy.
Unfortunately, it turns out to be the case. Despite his wealth and
intelligence, this ‘friend’ of ours has been suffering a lot in the last 20
years.
Hok-Lin
mentioned last year to me that he feels I am a man of faith. I forgot to ask
him to elaborate. It could mean that I’m an optimist or a person who believes
everything or better still, one who will go to heaven one day. Hope his
perceptive track record stays with the last meaning.
Those
of you who are curious and want to know more about Hok-Lin and the title of the
books he had written, you can ‘google’ him.
In
the interview, Hok-Lin mentioned that his eldest son has a kind of sickness
called Tourette’s syndrome. I knew it a long time ago but I had no idea how
difficult and painful it was for the parents until my own grandchild was
suspected to be inflicted with the same. Hok-Lin and his wife Lora have been
praying for us since. For those of us who pray, please keep Hok-Lin’s family in
your prayer too.
 |
| Hok-Lin, Lora and their four sons (left to right) Fok-Shuen (3rd), Fok-Jee (4th), Fok-Yan (eldest), Fok-Han (2nd) |
 |
| Hok-Lin, Lora and their nine grandchildren |
 |
| Hok-Lin’s BIG family: sons, daughters-in-law and grandchildren |
John
Ying
I first met John when we
studied in Primary 6 of Tak Sun Anglo Chinese School. SFX admitted quite a
number of boys from this school. Among them were Peter Tsu, George Chang, John
Lam, Anthony Luk, Edwin So and Dicky Yip. John Ying Kai Sun had little in common
with me. He played football and sang in the Church choir and I didn’t. That’s
why our friendship didn’t start till we were in Form 5A when both of us joined
John Lam to attend daily morning mass at the Rosary Church, Chatham Road.
After graduation, a number of
us including John Ying volunteered to teach SFX Sunday school. The volunteers
were later rewarded with a weekend camp at the Clear Water Bay Church. It was
specifically there that I noticed that John always believed every word I said
even when everyone else knew I was joking. Of course, John is no fool but he
has a heart of gold. He always shakes his head in disbelief when he is not
happy with a situation but in the end he breaks into a nice and happy smile.
John is good with numbers
especially bookkeeping. No wonder he chose accountancy as his career.
He is also an optimist and
loves games of chance. Before immigrating to the States, he always made himself
available when called upon to play mahjong or bridge.
After leaving Hong Kong for
more than 30 years, John is still a lovable character and smiles a lot. He told
me that at this point in his life, he hopes to spend a lot of quality time with
his wife. I wish him and his wife the best of luck and good health in the years
to come.
Many
thanks to Hok-Lin and John. Next up: Dicky Yip
Watching or listening to the
interview. Most of you have experience with YouTube, so click the appropriate
link below to watch it. The video was recorded in High Definition but you can
switch to lower definition if required. Each of the video clips is over twenty
minutes long. If you rather listen to the interview instead, you can do so if
you have Flash installed in your browser (normally present). The audio track
links generally do not work with smartphones or tablets because Flash is
required.
Hok-lin video interview Part1
To play the audio track of the
video interview with Flash
Hok-lin video interview Part2
To play the audio track of the
video interview with Flash
John Ying video interview
To play the audio track of the
video interview with Flash
Donation
On the donation front, we have
an additional HK$20,000 from NK Tsien. A copy of the bank statement dated 20
April 2013 is attached for your reference. So come on don’t be shy, let the
account be flooded with your donations.
Dinner
at the American Club on Friday 8 November
We have a confirmed booking
for the Coffee Shop (on 49th Floor) of the American Club at Exchange
Square II for a western style buffet dinner. Such an arrangement will
facilitate people moving around and to interact with others while we eat. We
will have the venue to ourselves. We expect some to come with their spouses,
please let Jason know if you plan to do so.
Class
Album
The class album was replicated
in printed form and distributed when we had our 40th Anniversary. An
Adobe Acrobat or pdf version has now been produced from the scanning ten years
ago. You can download from this link.
Email contacts:
Jason Siu jpalsiu@hotmail.com
Charles Wong charles@wongz.com
Dicky Yip dickypyip@yahoo.com
Jerry Chung cwsjerry@gmail.com
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