A memorable Father's Day

What a great day we had! At 8.00 a.m. Lieut. Colonel Tan Thean Seng was here at the Praisehaven compound waiting to take us to his Corps - Bishan Chinese Corps for Father's Day meeting. When we arrived at the Corps, a number of ladies were there busy seeing to the food.

We had a good meeting, led by Joyce Ng, a Salvationist in uniform. She is a nurse by profession. Well, we like her enthusiasm and efficiency. There were about 90 people in the congregation and how well they sang in Chinese. All the songs written in Chinese and han yin pin yin (Romanised Chinese) were flashed on the screen.

All the fathers were invited to the front and given gifts and Lieut.Colonel Patricia Tan prayed for the group.

As usual I had an excellent interpreter in the person of Esther Lee.

After the meeting, we had a lovely lunch provided by the ladies of the Corps. We really enjoyed the lunch and the fellowship.

Lieut. Colonel Tan was very thoughtful and caring and insisted on taken us home. And he did. We were quite prepared to take a taxi back.

We first came to know Lieut. Colonel Tan when he was just a Junior Soldier at Penang Corps when we were appointed as the Corps Officers (1959-62) We watched him grow and progressed. In 1965 when we were appointed to the Penang Boys' Home, he was in secondary school and I was one of these who backed him into training.

Then in 1966, he came to us as a Probationary Lieutenant. He worked very hard in helping to pioneer the work in Kuala Lumpur. In 1970 he succeed us as the superintendent of the Ipoh Boys' Home. We worked together in Headquarters in Singapore, when I was the General Secretary. He became the Public Relations Secretary.

Mrs. Tan, as Pat Loo was one of the Girl Guides when we were Corps Officers in Penang. Then she became a salvationist. When we were stationed at the Penang Boys' Home (1965-66) they were among the group of enthusiastic youth of Penang Corps. What a joy to see them enter training and later got married. Yes, we have had very long association with the couple through the years.

They are doing a wonderful work at the Chinese Corps. We thank God for them and continue to pray for them and their ministry as chaplain to social services and Corps Officer (pastor) of the Chinese Corps.