10th KL Air Scouts Group

Our past Group Scoutmaster and current chairman of the group committee went home at about 5.30 a.m. on 20th January 2010.

The group den is named after him. His last outing is here.

Rest in peace, Kwai Choong. We will miss you.

10th Group’s flag is flown at half mast at the Kwai Choong Den till afer the funeral.

Funeral

Brother scouts of Kwai Choong’s era

Kwai Choong’s younger brother scouts

Troop Leader Kuan Jhun heads the column of boys on Kwai Choong’s final journey

The group flag draped on the casket at the crematorium

Taps

The legend that you should know

You have touched and made a difference to many men. Much more than you know

Fortunate men, who shared their formative years with you, want you to know

A role model, a motivator and a mentor to the boys with absentee dads

A legend, a hero, a friend, an inspirational leader and much more than that

Thumb prints you left plenty on generations of little boys you grow

The thumb prints, that were much bigger than those little hearts and souls

Those rare, immeasurable and priceless qualities make you by far the greater man

Not the Datuks, Tan Sris and “successful” men who don’t come close. You are a heaven sent

KCFoong January 2010

Messages from MBS Alumni and Brother Scouts

Weinan says his farewell here.

Min Hao reminisces Kwai Choong here.

Kah Foo (Malaysia)

Hard to believe Kwai Choong is gone.
I can still see this party animal so jovial and full of life in my mind’s eye.

Evelyn Ho (Malaysia)

I don’t know Kwai Choong that long but in the short time, have realised he embraced life to the fullest, giving back to society/school without tiring and still had time to sing and dance.

Kah Foo, that would be a great way to remember Kwai Choong.

Etched in my memory would be his feat, of conquering SKyTrex (with his Mrs) …..the most senior person to do that….in that year…maybe he still holds the record.

He has left a legacy and he will definitely be missed.

Teck Keong (Malaysia)

Kwai Choong and some fellow Loopers.

Robert Chan (New Zealand)

Am sad to hear of Kwai Choong’s passing.

I only met up with him on my visit mid-2009 after 50 years. He was fit, jovial and with an obvious zest for life. I will always remember him as he was then.

Phua Wei Keat (Canada)

Its death again. Taking us one at a time.

If any of Kwai Choong’s family and relatives are on the loop, I offer my condolences.

Kwai Choong, IS one of the more prominent scout masters I have been ‘spanked’ by. His jovial smile, cheerful singing, overly-youthful dancing, campfire yarns are only some of the memories he engraved in me, as well as many of us young scouts of 10th KL.

He will definitely be missed by us 10th KL young-lings.

May i please invite everybody upon reading the news to give him 1 minute of silence, and pray/remember our dear Kwai Choong in his/her own way.

For Kwai Choong, the legend!

Albert Rajaratnam (Malaysia)

He is in a better place than we will ever know, eternal happiness and bliss for ever and ever.
Albert
KL 49-57 age 68

Foong Kwok Chuen (New Zealand/Indonesia)

I am happy that Kwai Choong did not have to suffer too long. When I was told of his conditions, I sent him a little poem privately which I like to share with you all now.

The legend that you should know.

You have touched and made a difference to many men. Much more than you know.

Fortunate men, who shared their formative years with you, want you to know

A role model, a motivator and a mentor to the boys with absentee dads
A legend, a hero, a friend, an inspirational leader and much more than that
Thumb prints you left plenty on generations of little boys you grow
The thumb prints, that were much bigger than those little hearts and souls

Those rare, immeasurable and priceless qualities make you by far the greater man
Not the Datuks, Tan Sris and “successful” men who don’t come close. You are a heaven sent.

Jeffrey Yue (Malaysia)

Kwai Choong has been a good friend and mentor to me during my days with the OBA.

We gonna miss him.

Ken (Malaysia)

A very sad day for all indeed. The late Kwai Choong may be gone, but his good name will live forever.

Jayanath Appudurai (Malaysia)

To me Kwai Choong was the quintessential MBSian.

Working with him on several Alumni projects was a blessing. His indomitable spirit lives on in all of us who were fortunate to have shared his passion for our Alma Mater.

Rest in Peace My Friend

Anthony Foong (Japan)

Beloved jovial and yet stern Kwai Choong the ledendary scoutmaster

Miss you is such a simple word
Yet miss you deep in our hearts
Can be so heavy and reminiscent
of the glory days and youthful hours
where you give, give and give your best

Rest in peace and thanks for the good time.
Many will definitely miss you.

Wong Yoon Fatt (Malaysia/Dili Timor Leste)

Farewell my friend. You will be sadly missed. A true fighter to the end.

Chin Su Kheong (Hong Kong)

Elder Brother Kwai Choong,
He taught me this song when I was a young boy.
I shall not forget it and it aptly describe him.

For he is a JOLLY good fellow
For he is a jolly GOOD fellow
For he is a jolly good FELLLLOW…
And so say ALL of us!!!”

Chang Family (Australia)

Our deepest condolences to the family of the late Mr. Liu Kwai Choong.

Regards
Chang Ngan Seong   46-56 (London/KL)
Chang Hock Seong   48-58 (Melbourne)
Chang Ngock Seong 55-65 (Perth)

Michael Fu (New Zealand)

My Deepest Condolences to Kwai Choong’s Family .
May He Rest in Peace and we will remember him in our prayers .

Robert Chan (New Zealand)

No words can express our loss. At this time I think of a poem that Victor Hugo wrote on the 4th anniversary of his daughter’s passing as he was walking to the place where she was buried.

TOMORROW AT DAWN

Tomorrow, at dawn, at the hour when the countryside whitens,
I will set out.  You see, I know that you wait for me.
I will go by the forest, I will go by the mountain.
I can no longer remain far from you.

I will walk with my eyes fixed on my thoughts,
Seeing nothing of outdoors, hearing no noise
Alone, unknown, my back curved, my hands crossed,
Sorrowed, and the day for me will be as the night.

I will not look at the gold of evening which falls,
Nor the distant sails going down towards Harfleur,
And when I arrive, I will place on your tomb
A bouquet of green holly and of flowering heather.

This English translation loses some of the beauty of the original French version.

Derek Goh (Malaysia)

My deepest condolences to Mrs Liu & family on the passing of my dear friend Kwai Choong.

May he rest in peace. Good bye my friend.

God Bless

Chan Mo Lin (Malaysia)

I did not know Kwai Choong personally but remember him to be cheerful and friendly on the several occasions I had the opportunity of seeing him at Loop gatherings.

I attempted to invite him out to lunch sometime early last month and though the invitation was accepted, he had to cancel last minute as his condition took a bad turn. I regret very much not having been able to be up close and personal one last time with this great MBS Legend.

May he rest in peace and my condolences to his family.

Yaw Ming (Australia)

Gone home, but will not be forgotten.  Kwai Choong will be sadly missed.

My condolences to the family.

Lee Yoke Meng (Malaysia)

My sincere and heart felt condolence to the family of the late Mr. Liu Kwai Choong. The family has lost a good patriarch, the scouts a dedicated scoutmaster cum adviser, the Alumnus a great contributor, motivator, adviser and life member and all of us a good friend, beer contributor, story/yarn teller.

A life well lived shall shine forever in many peoples heart and memories.

Phang Wai Hoong (Malaysia)

Only got to know him personally in 2007, when I came back to the OBA.
He was a jovial, positive leader with his trademark of ” Just Do It ”

He had demonstrated to us that one need not be rich or famous, to be a great man. I will always remember him as that great man.

My deepest condolences to his family.

Tan Lee Lee (New Zealand)

Good bye my friend.  You were a Legend.

You have left a set of very big foot prints in MBS.  Your legacy will live on in the hearts of the alumni.

Cherished memories of Sky Track 20 April 2008 will remain in a special place in my heart.

Mock Kar Wai (Malaysia)

Sadly I lost the memory of my first meeting with him. Since everyone tell good things about him, let me tell you what not-so-good things he taught me.

He’s bad. He smokes in front of youngsters, and takes out another cigarette when you tell him not to. (See the attached picture)

He’s bad. He scared the heck out of me with his ghost stories during Karak Observation Camp in 2005. I did not dare to pee alone on that raining night.

He’s bad. He made me carry heavy stuff and carry out heavy duties all the time. His favourite:” AH Mock Kar Wai ah, lei hui bong ngor (You Go Help Me) …” made me hard to refuse to help.

He’s bad. He made me stand in front of everyone and talk even though I don’t want it. It’s so embarassing standing in front of everyone with my broken language. Worse, he asked me to sing and teach people how to sing!

He’s bad. He call for a campfire and made me and my gang frustrate about it. He scolded me badly when I did not do my job well.

He’s bad. He raise the den named after him and I have to clean it everyday when I was a senior.

He’s bad. He made me so strong so that I can stand to continue what he left for us to do.

He’s bad. Bad enough that it made who I am today. I miss him smoking (even though I don’t like it), I miss his ghost stories, I miss his voice, I miss the way he sings, I miss the way he calls my name, gentle yet firm.. His bad allows me to enjoy scouting more conveniently. His bad made me good.

To Kwai Choong, thank you. Have a safe journey ahead. If God allows, we shall meet again and together we shall sing the 10th KL song!

Phillip Tan (Singapore, New York, London)

Bye Bye my teacher and friend.

I still remember the night we met again after 30 years having dinner with Fook Sang and drinking at the bar in Concorde hotel. I  glad that we have a last chat over the phone in late November with you still being full of spirit and agreeing that you must fight till the end.

You are a hero. I hope you did enjoy my Christmas get well hamper a small token of my love  respect of  our beloved scoutmaster and leader.

Regret I can’t attend the wake and funeral as I am still on a business trip in UK.

My deepest condolence to  the family

With deepest sympathy
Phillip Tan

Tan Foi Yong (Malaysia)

I do not know the late Kwai Choong personally and I offer my condolences to his widow.

However, I vaguely remember seeing someone like him during the Loopers’ CNY dinner at Jaya33 in 2008.

Can someone dig up the archives of the videos taken and provide the link.

Yap Hoy Hoong (Malaysia)

LIVE LIFE,  BE HONEST, WORK HARD,  PARTY EVEN HARDER,  TOMORROW MAY NEVER COME …

we are going to miss you…

Tan Foi Yong (Malaysia)

Although I did not know Kwai Choong personally, I actually watched the video clip 059 a few times and it brought back memories of that wonderful night in early 2008. Those Loopers who WERE there must recall those fleeting moments in time of which we were part of and especially now on hindsight remember our alumni member, Kwai Choong, who has passed on.

Suggestion: Maybe, (maybe), if it were to be appropriate, someone burn a video of this clip and play it at his wake. This might just let those attending to remember him as he was; full of energy, zest and most important of all, leaving a legacy of good done to a lot of those scouts he led and influenced. I am sure that in his life-time, he must have blessed many people, amongst them his family members and friends, with that personality which he apparently has from just watching this video 059.

I thought it appropriate to summarise the following “things said of him” by gleaning the
various postings on this thread. He MUST have been quite a guy.

Wan Heng Yuen
“my friend, sifu, scoutmaster and mentor.”

Kah Foo
“this party animal so jovial and full of life”

Evelyn Ho
“realised he embraced life to the fullest, giving back to society/school
without tiring and still had time to sing and dance”

Robert
“He was fit, jovial and with an obvious zest for life.”

Wei Keat Phua
“more prominent scout master I have been ‘spanked’ by.
His jovial smile, cheerful singing, overly-youthful dancing,”

“…the legend! ”

Jayanath Appudurai
“Kwai Choong was the quintessential MBSian.”
“His indomitable spirit lives on in all of us..”

Anthony Foong
“..where you give, give and give your best”

Wong Yoon Fatt
“A true fighter to the end.”

Su Kheong Chen
“..For he is a jolly good FELLLLOW…
And so say ALL of us!!!”"

Lee Yoke Meng
“..(to) the scouts a dedicated scoutmaster cum adviser,”
“(to) the Alumnus a great contributor, motivator, adviser and
life member and all of us a good friend, beer contributor,
story/yarn teller. ”

Phang Wai Hoong
“He was a jovial, positive leader with his trademark of ” Just Do It ”

Joash KWMock
“He’s bad. Bad enough that it made who I am today.
I miss him smoking (even though I don’t like it),
I miss his ghost stories, I miss his voice,
I miss the way he sings, I miss the way he calls my name,
gentle yet firm.. His bad allows me to enjoy scouting more conveniently.
His bad made me good.”

The above is my little contribution to remembering this friend who has departed.

Allana Yap (Malaysia)

I will miss Kwai Choong. My deepest condolences to his family.

Lim Sze Tin (Australia)

I knew Kwai Choong as a pupil in MBPSKL from a distance, as he never taught. My impression of him then certainly accords with the things people are saying about him now.

Met him a few times in the past couple of years, courtesy of Pete’s dinner organisational capabilities and am glad I managed to see him from a different perspective.

From the things people said about him, his dedication to scouting and scouts would make Lord Baden Powell really proud of him. “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matt 25:21 & 23).

Farewell, sir.

My condolences to the family.

Alex Wong (Malaysia)

My memories of Kwai Choong goes back a few years ago to my first appearance/performance at a Loopers’ Dinner in Maju Junction.

I had a mixture of emotions, not knowing what to expect as I hardly knew anyone there. Kwai Choong was one of the jolly Loopers who made me feel at ease, giving me lots of encouragement & support. He has been a regular attendee to subsequent Loopers’ gatherings, and we would get together and chat.

To Kwai Choong, thank you for your friendship and inspiration to many of us, with great appreciation for your priceless contribution to MBS.

We truly miss you….May the fond memories of you and cheerfulness be with us always.

Wong Chee Hoong (United States)

Kwai Choong is one of those rare breed, dedication to scouting especially to 10th KL & his mentoring has elevated many of us socially and  economically.

Thank you and his memory will always be with me & many others.

My sincere condolences to his family.

Cho Kok Sim (Malaysia)

We all have lost a true friend today – more so to all MBSians especially those taught by Kwai Choong during our Primary School days and the scouts.

One of the wonderful things that I have the privilege to do -  is to sing the MBS school song together with him even as recently as during our “class of 1967″ reunion and other gatherings last year – NO ONE sings the MBS school song as vibrantly as Kwai Choong does – We all will miss him.

My deepest condolences to his family.

Loh Kai Woh (Singapore)

To My late Scouter Kwai Choong,

The lyrics below came from the very popular 1967 movie “To Sir With Love”.

I and many of the other scouts are forever thankful to you for changing us “From Crayons to Perfumes”.

Without your guidance and love, we would still be crayons.

Bill Tan Seng Lee (Malaysia)

We really “suffered” as scouts under Kwai Choong.

We were fed to the mosquitoes and leeches during hikes and camping  trips, made to eat half cooked rice with baked beans and some sardine if we are lucky, used as child labour during football matches, Job Week (do we still have this?), fun fairs and other events, manhandled and thrown into the air during scout games such as “British Bulldog” (remember this?) etc etc.

But we remember all of this with fondness because we became tougher and better men. Through our determination to earn proficiency badges we acquired skills we might otherwise never have. Swimming, first aid, jungle survival, river rafting, you name it, we learnt it!

In fact, the MBS Cycling Club was born through a group of scouts wanting to sit for the cycling proficiency badge. MBS Scouts on racing bicycles rode to all corners of Malaysia.

Yes, we have Kwai Choong to thank for all this. May his soul rest in peace.

Mikall Chong Shee Chung (Australia)

Hail to Kwai Choong,

I am sure for those of us are fortunate to have him as our teacher, mentor or friend.

He will be sadly missed. He is “a man for all seasons” and never fail to liven up the gathering whatever the circumstances.

Teng Kuen Cheong (Australia)

Sincere condolences to Mr. Liu Kwai Choong’s family.

The poem by Foong Kwok Chuen truly distills the character of Kwai Choong, an appropriate tribute to the great man. From my experience, every word rang so true.

Whoever had come across this man, whether in scouting, business, or charity work would’ve been impressed by his dedication to the task and his embrace of life to the fullest.

I was fortunate to have spent my formative years with him, from scouts to seniors in 10th KL and been friends since. No doubt, he has influenced my outlook and given me a truly enjoyable time that will be treasured always.

Like they say “Thanks for the Memories”. Some may have taken hard knocks from him but the intention was to do good in his subtle ways. He encouraged one to work hard and play hard and led by example. His passing away is a very sad day, a great loss to the
MBSKL community and scouting in particular. He will be missed by all the people he had touched, but will not be forgotten.

May he continue in his Happy Hunting Grounds.