Speeches
Speech by Ms Grace Fu, Senior Minister of State for National Development and Education at the Official Launch of the Singapore HeritageFest 2008 Festival Hub on Wednesday, 16th July at 11.00am at Suntec City’s Tropics Atrium
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen
Boys and Girls
Good morning.
Recently a friend related an incident during his teaching experience to me. A P5 child asked him what is a hero? While he struggled to describe the characteristics of a hero to this child, another child chipped in to help—A hero is person who goes out of his way to help someone. It struck him that this was not a bad answer for a P5 child—A hero is someone who goes out of his way to help someone. Indeed, in the eyes of a child, to be a hero, one need not move mountain and earth, or, die for the country or a cause. If you go out of your way to help a person, you ARE a hero to this person.
I am glad that the National Heritage Board is initiating the celebration of heroes among us through the Singapore HeritageFest. Who are these heroes? They are the ordinary men and women who go beyond the call of duty to save lives, the trailblazers who, against all odds, pave the way for the rest of us, the role models who have guided us like a beacon in the dark. Their courage and compassion inspired us.
This year, the Singapore HeritageFest focuses on the ordinary man or woman with extraordinary spirit. There are islandwide activities to promote the message that anyone can be a hero to someone else. I encourage our schools to participate in the activities organised in conjunction with the festival. Use this opportunity to get your students to think about who are our next Singapore’s heroes, and to read about those local heroes that have been before us. I hope the free comic books distributed today of three such heroes, Mohammad Eunos Abdullah, G Sarangapany and Lim Nee Soon will inspire many children to read and research on local heroes. Students can post their own stories on-line on the MyStory portal. I am pleased to also announce that from today a “My Hero Story-Writing Competition” will also be launched with attractive prizes for the top three inspiring stories.
Another way to remember our heroes is for schools to establish heritage rooms, corners or galleries to showcase heroes of their own—they could be the founder of the school; or a philanthropist who donated generously; students who have done the school proud either through academic and sporting achievements, or displayed bravery. Often, we overlook the heroes closest to us—the teacher or Principal who helped build the school and showed great passion and commitment in nurturing their students. We should honour these heroic people so as to remember them.
The exhibition that we have today will highlight many heroes—some from the distant past and some in recent memory; some helped build our nation while others displayed heroic acts when disasters struck Singapore or the region. This celebration of our heroes is only the beginning. I hope more can be done to publicise our heroes and make such heroism part of the Singapore Spirit. For without their sacrifice, tenacity and generosity, Singapore will be a different place today.
This exhibition showcases two of our heroes, Dr Lim Boon Keng, and war hero, General Lim Bo Seng and the thoughts of their descendants about their illustrious and heroic forefathers.
BG Lim Teck Yin, grandson of Lim Bo Seng, said this of his grandfather “As a young boy, it was always a thrill to know that my grandfather was a war hero. I got to read about him in the school history book in Primary Four. I see the same sense of awe in my children as they go through the same realisation that Lim Bo Seng was their great grandfather. What stood out for me was his willingness to do the right thing in spite of the great sacrifices he was required to make. He acted on his convictions and that made a difference.”
Ms Lim Sing Yuen, a descendant of Dr. Lim Boon Keng, has this to say—“I thought it was cool to tell my classmates that my great grandfather’s picture was hanging in the school hallway. Of course, none of my ten-year old friends were impressed. It was not until many, many years later that all of us appreciated the difference that Dr Lim Boon Keng and his friends made to our lives by championing education for girls at that time.“
The two gentlemen indeed possessed extraordinary spirit. The courage of their convictions till today still makes great impact on their descendents and the people who come after them. Their selflessness and sacrifice may not be easy to emulate but they are worth celebrating.
We should all start now to celebrate and remember the heroes amongst us. In the past, heroes were remembered through word of mouth and story-telling. But it is very different today and we have many interesting ways to document heroic deeds and educate our young about our heroes. These stories will fuel the hopes and dreams of our younger generation and influence their lives in meaningful ways. We hope that they, too, will draw inspiration to help their fellowmen, for as that child wisely said, a hero is someone who goes out of his way to help another.
It gives me great pleasure now to officially launch the Singapore Heritage Fest 2008 Festival Hub.