MKI Ramblings Unlimited: Keeping Family Tradition Alive

It was the third day of Eidul-Fitri, traditionally a day when all 10 of my siblings and their family members gather together to renew family ties and commitments under the family grouping of WTCC . This was the 27th annual gathering and four generations, starting from Mum, were involved. Mum, the 'le pedron', the Patron of WTCC must be the happiest person in the family that day. It was a day that started off with some family members invading the hotel swimming pool very early in the morning, then breakfast, then a meeting of elders (AGM)to review and renew WTCC activities, look at its finances and attend to other normal business of an AGM, while the younger ones,

went through their own activities including drawings and paintings, games galore for the little ones, the tiny tots of the family; all these were followed by buffet lunch in the hotel restaurant and the day culminated with a gala night held in the main ballroom. The gala night was not the end though as the younger ones gathered for a game of futsal the next day.

Everyone was dressed in the WTCC red and black T's for the 'day' activities and on that day one can see this red and black T-shirts everywhere in the hotel. The whole day activities were planned and executed by a team led by my sister, the second sibling, and assisted by another brother, the eighth sibling, and the COO of WTCC, and his committee members.

A serious session started off at 9.00am in the meeting room where the elders, with Mum overseeing, sat in an Annual General Meeting of WTCC, chaired by yours sincerely being the chairman 'by default'.

(Mum, at 87, apparently was only interested in the finances of WTCC as she was on copies of the balance sheets, P&L and other finance data the whole meeting period!!) This was the 27th annual meeting. The meeting started off very well, the

finances and investments reviewed and were in order, activities for the year reviewed and for the coming year charted, other initiatives were proposed to enhance WTCC's position in terms of member opportunities and benefits for which a working group was assigned to take an in-depth look at the proposals and their implementation if deemed viable, a SWOT analysis.

There are more work to be done but it will be worth the effort. The AGM ended at about 12.30pm and all gathered in the restaurant for the buffet lunch. The kids and bigger children were already there having their lunch. As we entered the restaurant we could see, almost half of the restaurant, all in red already started enjoying their lunch.

After lunch the younger members of WTCC then prepared the hall for the Gala night, putting up the backdrop, pictures, children drawings and other preparatory activities with the help of the hotel staff. By 5.00pm everything was ready. Ram and I was invited to have a once through lookover in the hall and I obliged with a thumbs up for a preparatory job well done. It has to be, after 27 years it has become a routine now, especially so when the members in the preparatory team were led by a few members who are professionals and already familiar with event management at their respective places of work.

The Gala Night started at about 7.30 pm with the arrival of family members and children. We had our uncles and aunties and a few cousins as invited guests. Mum made an entry into the hall at about 7.45pm with four school-going martial arts exponents performing a welcome. This was followed by a photography session and by 8.05pm the gala show began starting with the tiny-tots, 4 to 10 years old, performing a traditional folklore dance. They had been practising for about a month and it was fun watching them perform. (Watch it on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miSo-81nKQM&feature=player_embedded. Also watch http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsvh-h7LAig&feature=related). Dinner was after two short speeches by the Chairman, organising committee and by me as WTCC Chairman. There were several performances by talented family members during dinner. Then there were study and special achievements awards to family members given out by Mum as Patron of WTCC, raffles and draws, an auction to generate funds for WTCC, quiz and other fun activities drawn up by the organising committee. The night ended at close to midnight with everyone leaving the hall with something in their hands and a memory to last for at least another year. I think everybody had fun that night. It will be a great challenge for the organising committee next year whoever they will be........