Selangor Scotsman September 2013

SELANGOR SCOTSMAN Newsletter of the Selangor St. Andrew’s Society September 2013

www.ssas-online.com

The 2013-2014 Committee Chieftain

Chuck Jeffery Vice-Chieftain and Hon. Secretary

Hon. Treasurer

Immediate Past-Chieftain

Alice Smith School Trustee Governor

Alan Bernard

Hector Ingram

Ali King

Yvanka Jeffery

Bernie Williams

Donna Miller

Elaine Cameron

Jeff Ross

Kathleen Whyte

Lee Smalley

Lorna Mair

Pauline Geddes

Committee Chieftain Chuck Jefferey chieftain@ssas.com.my Vice-Chieftain & Hon. Secretary Alan Bernard secretary@ssas.com.my Hon Treasurer Hector Ingram treasurer@ssas.com.my Committee Members Bernie Williams Donna Millar Elaine Cameron Jeff Ross Kathleen Whyte Lee Smalley Lorna Mair Pauline Geddes Yvanka Jefferey Resident Past-Chieftains Ali King (2012) Johan Murison (2011) Richard Thompson (2010) Paul Henderson (2009) Alistair Paterson (2008) Hector Ingram (2007) John Thomson (2006) Roger McGowan (2005) Patrick Russell (1997 & 2004) Tristan Russell (1989) Stewart Forbes (1987) Newsletter Editor Lee Smalley newsletter@ssas.com.my Membership Secretary membership@ssas.com.my Charities Kathleen Whyte Dance Convenor Richard Thompson Alice Smith School Governor Yvanka Jefferey Web-Master John Thomson

Welcome back to KL for those of you who were away for some of the summer period. My family and I are just returning from a few weeks in Europe including visits to Holland, Germany and a great week on and around the hallowed ground of St. Andrews.

I’m sure St. Andrews is well known to most of you. To those who have yet to visit the town I can recommend it whether you are a golfer or not. The town is renowned as a seat of learning with Scotland's first university and the third oldest in the English-speaking world, founded in 1413.

Over six centuries it has established a reputation as one of Europe's leading and most distinctive centres for teaching and research.

The town boasts many beautifully preserved historic buildings, a ruined cathedral, a little known harbour, long white beach and many great restaurants and pubs. The golf courses (7 form part of the “links trust”) are spectacular ranging from the “old course” which dates back to the early 1400s to the latest addition “ the Castle” which opened in 2008.

I had the pleasure of playing the Castle, the Jubilee and the Himalayas this summer. If you are visiting and your group includes non-golfers I can recommend the “Himalayas” a spectacular 18 hole putting course dating back to 1867 making it the world’s first mini-golf course.

Having just returned I see a full calendar of events before us including the Welcome Back Nicht – 28 Sep 2013, the Great British Ball – 19 Oct 2013, our annual Whisky Tasting – 9 Nov 2013, the St. Andrew’s Ball – 23 Nov 2013, Hogmanay Party – 31 December 2013 and the Burns’ Supper – 25 Jan 2014. Don’t forget that Scottish Country Dancing resumes after the summer break on Monday, 9th September 2013 at 8.00pm, and will continue every 2nd Monday until November when we will switch to weekly sessions in preparation for the annual St. Andrew’s Ball.

Before we all took off for the summer a group of 16 committee members including our respective spouses visited Jakarta to take in their long running annual highland gathering. I think I speak for the whole group when I say we all had a great time between the Scotland in Concert evening prior to the event and the gathering itself. The

The Selangor Scotsman is sponsored by Asian Tigers Transpo Movers (M) Sdn Bhd Lot 6, Jalan Ragum 15/17, Seksyen 15 4000 Shah Alam, Selangor Darul Eshan Tel: +603 5565 2200 Fax: +603 5513 3788 www.asiantigers-malaysia.com

gathering included caber tossers, pipe bands, Australian wood choppers and country dancers to mention just a fraction of what was enjoyed on the day.

My wife Yvanka and I, and Elaine & Brian Cameron have all served on the Java St Andrews society committee while living in Jakarta with Elaine and myself as Chieftains of that society. We have for some-time harbored the view that KL could also host a highland gathering or games that could be enjoyed by the expatriate community and locals alike while promoting the unique culture of our homeland. Later in this issue you will find an article dedicated to the gathering.

I would welcome some feed-back from our members as to whether a KL Highland games is appealing. If you would please drop me a line as to whether you would attend a gathering in KL and whether you would like to join the group to help.

Aye Yours and Aye Ready ACW (Chuck) Jeffery

Chieftain

chieftain@ssas.com.my Wood Chopping Event at Jakarta Highland Gathering

The Chieftain and Family on Vacation at St. Andrews

Scenes from St. Andrews Town

The Old Course at St. Andrews

St. Andrews from the Links to the East of the Town

Jakarta Highland Gathering

Our first en-masse visit to the Jakarta Highland gathering which took place on the weekend starting 23rd May, was a huge success and what a weekend!

The committee have been mulling over the idea of proposing our own Highland Gathering here in Kuala Lumpur, so a few of us decided to go on a rekkie to see what it was all about, and we were not disappointed!

Incorporating a weekend of golf, field sports, live entertainment and of course the “Heavies� competing in true Scottish traditional highland game style showing off their strength and determination to the crowds, the whole weekend had something for everyone regardless of age or nationality.

Pipes and drums bands from near and far came to, not only compete to be crowned the best, but also to wow the crowds with their talents and mass performances. Not one dry eye was left within the vicinity when the event closed to the old Shetland tradition of Up Helly Aa with the 100+ pipers playing Amazing Grace, whilst on-lookers watched the Galley burn and enjoyed a spectacular firework display.

The Jakarta Highland gathering is probably the largest in the southern hemisphere and has been running annually since 1975. Attracting around 6,000 visitors, the event has turned into a major date in Jakarta’s calendar and a great weekend for all.

Since our visit, feasibility discussions have taken place within the committee as we felt this is yet another event that would great for the whole community of KL, not just us Scots!

Discussions however are still in the infancy stage and no firm decisions have been made however. To pull an event like this together we would need as many sleeves rolled up and hands on deck as possible. So get in touch with the committee if you think this is something you would like to get involved in if we decide to have our own Highland Gathering here in KL in the future. Assisting in organizing society events is great fun and a fantastic opportunity to meet new people and often learn new skills.

Lorna Mair

Images from Jakarta Highland Gathering

Forthcoming Events Date

Event

Venue

28th Sep 2013

Welcome Back Nicht

KL Golf & Country Club

19th Oct 2013

Great British Ball

Shangri-La Hotel, KL

9th Nov 2013

Whisky Tasting

Chieftain’s Residence

23rd Nov 2013

St. Andrew’s Night

Doubletree Hilton, KL

31st Dec 2013

Hogmanay Party

Ploy Restaurant, Damansara

25th Jan 2014

Burns’ Supper 2014

Inter-Continental Hotel, KL

St. Andrew’s Night Ball 2013 Tickets are now on sale for the St. Andrew’s Night Ball 2013 which will be held at the Doubletree Hilton Hotel, Kuala Lumpur. Details of the event are on the flyer overleaf. This event is always popular and has been sold out on a number of occasions well in advance of the event. To avoid disappointment please book your tickets/tables early. Further details can be found at the Events page of the Society website:

www.ssas-online.com

Saturday 28th September 2013 At 7.30pm KLGCC Bowling Centre No. 10, Jalan 1/70D, Bukit Kiara, 60000 Kuala Lumpur

Join is for a night of eating, drinking, chatting and try your hand at 10-pin bowling RM75 Cost Includes Dinner and 1 game of bowling Free Flow of Beer & wine whilst stocks last.

Dress Code: Smart Casual RSVP Pauline Geddes, SMS ON: 013 259 8336 E-Mail: paulieanna2001@yahoo.co.uk

Scottish Country Dancing Monday 9th September at 8.00pm We will start Scottish country dancing again on Monday September 9th after the summer break. The venue is the ground floor function room at Hampshire Park which is at 6-8 Persiaran Hampshire on the road behind the Corus Hotel off Jalan Ampang.

You can park at the visitors parking and buzz the guards to let you up to the ground floor. The function room is by the pool. We dance every second Monday until around November when it moves to every week. Get on the mailing list and we will remind you of the dates as we go.

We run this dancing session very informally with dances, chat, food and drinks. The dance standard varies depending on who turns up but beginners are welcome. The main focus is on everyone having fun. People bring snacks and drinks and it turns into an informal pot luck supper on many evenings.

As we approach the annual St. Andrew’s Ball, we focus more on the dances that will be danced at the event. Learning even a few of these dances will really perk up the evening for you.

Dancing is part of our heritage and there are Scottish Country Dance groups in every major city around the world. It’s never too late to learn, and it’s a ready made Scottish social scene where ever you may go.

Yours Aye Richard Thompson Dance Convenor richard.thompsonkl@gmail.com

ty e i c So

’s w e r d n 3 .A 1 t 0 S 2 r l o l g a n B a s pm l ’ 0 e 3 w .

S re 13, 7 d 0 2 n A er ur . b p t m m e S u v d No ala L 3r Ku , 2 e y e a r rd eT u l t b a u S Do n o t Hil

With Ceilidh dancing & Scottish Country Dancing Performing traditional & contemporary songs and tunes from Scotland

The event is a formal dinner with entertainment and dancing. Cost includes a traditional Scottish meal with haggis, pre-dinner drinks (beer, wine and soft drinks). Four bottles of wine and a jug of whisky will be provided for each table. Beer and wine will be supplied all evening.

Tickets Members RM280 Non-members RM320 To book call Yvanka on 012 2797396 or email tickets@ssas.com.my

For more information, please visit

www.ssas-online.com

Dress Code Black Tie/Highland Dress

The Great British Ball - How it all Began

Introduction The Great British Ball (GBB) will be held at the Shangri-La Hotel in Kuala Lumpur on 19th October 2013. It will be GBB number eight, since the Inaugural Great British Ball was held in 2006 and the event has now become firmly established in the annual calendar of the expatriate community in Kuala Lumpur. But how did it all start?

The background planning for a joint inter-society ball began during the summer of 2005. At that time the Association of British Women in Malaysia (ABWM), the British Malaysia Chamber of Commerce (BMCC), the St. David's Society, the Royal Society of St. George and the Selangor St. Andrew's Society were each doing their planning and preparations to stage their own individual annual balls at roughly the same time in Nov/Dec 2005. There was not only event congestion, but also the five organisations were competing for attendance and sponsorship.

The Initial Concept Meeting Some of the leaders from these five organisations met together on 4th September 2005 at Ronnie Q's Pub in Bangsar and they proposed to forgo staging individual society balls in favour of a joint Great British Ball. I went along to meet with them as had a proposal to stage a British style concert whereby we would bring out musicians, comedians and other entertainers from UK. I thought that the concept of a concert would be ideal as an intersociety event. However, during the meeting it became clear that what they all wanted was a joint ball. I was invited to lead the Joint Organising Committee of the first GBB to be held in 2006.

It was a different concept to what I had in mind, and quite daunting initially as there were no precedents and we had no idea whether the event would appeal to the British ex-pat community. It was also rather challenging as we would have to

get the committees of five different organisations to agree on any prosposal. Consequently, I drafted the Terms of Reference for the Joint Organising Committee of the GBB and overall proposal documents which were subsequently submitted to the five organisations for ratification. I also anticipated that we would be committing to expenditure of approximately RM250,000 and didn't know at that time whether we could secure sponsorship to meet the overheads. Consequently I insisted that if the event was to proceed we would need a cash float and proposed that each organisation put up RM10,000.

I actually wondered if that might be a stumbling block and an "escape route" for me to avoid taking on such a huge commitment, as I thought the five organisations might be reluctant to put up that kind of cash. A few days later I had five cheques and RM50,000, so no “escape” for me and we just got on and started the planning for the event.

Joint Organizing Committee Each Society appointed one representative to the Joint Organising Committee and the members of the inaugural GBB Committee were: John Thomson, Chairman Amanda Pearson, St. George’s Society; Keeley Cane, ABWM; Lily Crighton, St. Andrew’s Society; Mike McIver, BMCC; Steve Lewis, St. David’s Society Our first task was to set a date and find a suitable venue, but of course with no precedents for the event we had some difficulty to anticipate the attendance numbers which would dictate our choice of venue. We finally set a rather ambitious target of 600 guests plus VIPs. With those numbers we then set about finding a venue and after

considering many options we finally decided on the Hilton Kuala Lumpur. The hotel was relatively new, had superb ballroom facilities and offered very competitive prices. We subsequently found to our delight, that the Hilton had an excellent Banqueting Team and also the standards of catering were exceptionally high.

The choice of a date was problematic as we had to consider the calendars of the five organisations and try to avoid clashes with annual events such as the Trafalgar Night Celebrations, St. Andrew’s Day celebration and other long established events. It should be noted that during 2006, Ramadan ran from 23rd September until 22 October and the Joint Organising Committee thought it might be inappropriate for the expat community to stage a major ball during the fasting month whereby some local dignitaries might be unable to attend.

We also had to try and avoid the mid-term break of the expat schools as many people might take the opportunity for a short family holiday at that time, thereby reducing attendance at the ball. The date was finally set as 11th November 2006.

Planning went ahead with each committee member, supported by their parent organisation, assuming responsibility for areas of planning such as: Venue Liaison & Food and Beverage Provision. Entertainment & Music Programme. Regalia & Venue Decoration. Advertising & Programme. Ticket Sales & Table Allocations. Budget Estimates & Financial Control. Sponsorship.

As chairman, I didn’t have a specific area of responsibility but acted as overall co-ordinator and picked up on a raft of loose ends. At times I felt a bit like the little guy with the bucket and shovel that follows along after the Horse-Guards have been on parade! However I have to say that I was privileged to work alongside some fantastic people who worked extremely well together as a team.

They brought a wealth of experience and knowledge to the committee and together we brought the event to fruition. We also had tremendous social interaction. Committee meetings were enjoyable and pleasant occasions where we did the work, but also managed to enjoy our evenings together with evenings of fine dining and plenty of liquid refreshment.

However, it wasn't all plain sailing and there was considerable opposition among certain quarters suggesting that the event should not proceed. For

example, within the St. Andrew’s Society there were some very strong voices of opposition claiming it was inappropriate to abandon the traditional St. Andrew’s Ball in favour of a joint Great British Ball.

Within all the five organisations there was also a tenuous feeling that each organisation would lose some of its identity by combining with other organisations to stage the GBB. There was a lot of negativity suggesting that the organisation of the event would fail because the members of the Joint Organising Committee, all would end up bickering and would not be able to resolve difficulties.

However, despite the opposition and the fears of lack of cooperation, the event proved to be a huge success. Indeed we sold out the venue more than three months in advance of the event. This was unprecedented as nearly all of us with experience of running events in KL knew that it was always hard to get people to commit well in advance.

With all the tickets sold and sponsorship in place, we no longer required the cash float of RM50,000, and the Joint Organising Committee subsequently returned RM10,000 to each organisation prior to the event. Of course we also ran the event at a profit and the proceeds were shared out equally between the five organisations. On that score it had been suggested that the proceeds all be donated to charity, but since each organisation had their own charity programmes it was a much easier option to disburse any profits equally to each organisation and to let their respective committees consider how they should deal with the funds generated. That concept has worked really well.

The GBB is now firmly established on the annual calendar of events and continues to grow. It was, and still is, a team effort to stage an event of this nature and just shows what we can achieve within the expat community when we all work together. I felt privileged to have been part of that process and along the way got the opportunity to interact with some very dedicated people.

Our thoughts and best wishes go to the incumbent Joint Organising Committee as the GBB 2013 is fast approaching and all of the committee members will carry a heavy burden of organisational responsibility over the next few weeks. Good luck with the event and thank you for all your hard work!

John M. Thomson

Joint Organising Committee for the Inaugural Great British Ball 2006

John M. Thomson, Chairman

Keeley Cane, ABWM

Amanda Pearson, St. George’s

Michael McIver, BMCC

Steve Lewis, St. David’s

Lily Crighton, St. Andrew’s

Inter-Society Golf Championship 2013

One of our more senior members on the left.

Thanks Ian!

And much needed glamour!

Our own Karyn Stewart in patriotic blue.

Al Guthrie - Our best golfer on the day and best overall golfer in the tournament.

Chuan Campbell from SSAS and Asian Senior Masters

“Tally Ho! And off to the first tee my good man!” says Charlie

Did the Chieftain’s putt go in?

The Winning Team from Selangor St. Andrew’s Society

Hector on the Receiving End!

Chieftain enjoying a well earned beer!

Roger McGowan and friends relaxing after a hard day on the golf course.

Pink Kilt Charity Appeal Hi everyone! I thought you may like to get an update regarding our Pink Kilt Charity appeal that we had at the May Concert in the Hilton Hotel. For those of you who attended the evening, I am sure it was something of a surprise to see some of our Committee Members and others wearing bright pink kilts - and all in aid of charity!

It truly was a wonderful sight to see them being marched into the venue led by our favourite MC, Craig Hill - well done to our pink kilted ‘brave hearts’ who proved that real men can wear pink!

It was a fun evening with delicious food, good friends and fabulous entertainment courtesy of Craig Hill, together with outstanding performances

by Kristie Kay with her Annie Lennox Tribute and also, Paul Metcalfe with his Rod Stewart Tribute.

‘Rod’ with his band and ‘Annie’ had us all dancing the night away!

As well as the Pink Kilt sponsorship we also had a silent auction which proved to be very popular.

The prizes up for auction included a personalised golf bag, a hand-made pink golf club, four pink kilted waiters to attend a private function and of course a made-to-measure pink kilt like the ones modelled on the evening!

We send our thanks to Intermovers for their cash sponsorship of the Pink Kilt charity fund raising project and everyone else who kindly sponsored the pink kilties. Also a special “Thank You!” for the generosity of Caroline Britton, Keeley Ellis, Karen Briston, Graeme Gordon and Paul James, who all made winning bids for items in the silent auction.

Therefore, I am delighted to advise you that during the evening a fabulous amount of RM33,000 was raised for breast and prostate cancer awareness and our chosen charity was MAKNA – National Cancer Council www.makna.org.my Our Chieftain, Chuck Jeffery and Alan Bernard and myself attended a charity cheque presentation on 11 July 2013 at the MAKNA offices and we were welcomed by Farahida Mohd Farid – General Manager of MAKNA and Hasan, and some of the wonderful team who are doing such a worthwhile job for cancer patients in Malaysia.

For further information on MAKNA please take a few minutes to look at their website www.makna.org.my and you will discover the wonderful service they and their volunteers provide.

MAKNA has a bursary program that supports cancer patients who cannot afford treatment and they also have a ward at PPUKM Hospital as well as a research institute. MAKNA also provide free mammograms twice a month to the poor in isolated areas via a Mobile Screening Unit which is equipped with a digital mammography machine.

As you can see from this note, the money we raised is going to a good cause and will be shared equally between breast cancer and prostate cancer patients in need.

So there you have it! Thanks once again for all your fantastic support at our events and we look forward to seeing some of you at the Welcome Back Nicht in September!

Kathleen Whyte Charities Convenor

PINK KILT “BRAVE HEARTS”

“Turn-Off the Taps” Paul Henderson reports from Edinbugh Tattoo What do a Gourmet Dinner Club with a passion for Caviar, a resident past Chieftain of the St Andrews Society, and a famous Edinburgh landmark have in common? Allow me to explain.

It’s the year of ‘Natural Scotland 2013’, and the summer has been one of the best on record, our venue for the week, the historic ‘Raemoir House Hotel’ in Banchory, Aberdeenshire. Some of the world’s F&B heavyweights have assembled in Scotland to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Cordon Noir Caviar Gourmet Club (www.cordonnoir.com).

Their host, yours truly, has spent a year planning a week long gourmet fest, encompassing the best of Scotland’s Larder, with involvement from Seafood Scotland, Cambus O’May Creamery, Royal Lochnagar Distillery, Nick Nairn’s Cookery School, Aviemore’s Caledonia Brewery, Edinburgh’s Café Fish (Scotland’s Best Fish Restaurant 2012) as well as many other local top quality restaurants and eateries in the Grampian area.

As luck would have it Scotland’s newly crowned Top Chef – David Littlewood, who as well as being our Gala Dinner Chef, for the culmination of our week, was also recently awarded the accolade of being Scotland’s Top Chef just weeks before our arrival, which went down very well with all our guests.

Our Thursday, after a very pleasant lunch at Café Fish, was spent in Edinburgh exploring the Royal Mile and working our way uphill from Holyrood Palace to the Castle.

On the journey down from Aberdeen to Edinburgh the land was cloaked in haar, mist and fog, so much so that the historic

Forth Rail Bridge Forth Rail Bridge was not even visible from the Forth Road Bridge as we crossed, much to the disappointment of our coach’s occupants. However, the misty conditions made for a very atmospheric evening in the Castle’s Esplanade with the Battlements and the lone piper eerily drifting in and out of view until much later in the evening’s performance as slowly the skies cleared and we were treated to a fabulous spectacular of military band precision.

The First Tattoo performed in 1950, featured only 8 acts and was watched by only 6,000 spectators in total. To-date, more than 12 million visitors have watched the Tattoo and each year 220,000 visitors take in the evening spectacle which starts at 9pm and finishes with a flourish of fireworks over the castle battlements around 10.30pm.

Only about 20% of visitors to the Tattoo are from Scotland. Broadcast in over 40 countries and watched by 100 million viewers worldwide. Incidentally, not a single performance of the Tattoo has ever been cancelled despite the inclement weather so aptly associated with Scotland.

Every year the assembled cast for ‘The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo’ changes and this year’s invited guests included the

fearless Red Imps motorbike display team, with riders some as young as 6 years old showing bravery of men many times their age. Pyramids of motorcyclist, three-way and four-way cross-overs at high speeds had the audience holding their breath.

The Pipes & Drums of the Black Watch 3rd Battalion and the 1st Royal Tank Regiment added local flavour and the awaited skirl of the pipes and foot tappin’ drums to entertain the overseas visitors. More overseas flavour was provided by the pipe band of the Royal Guard of Oman, the Wallace Pipes & Drums of Malta, the Orchestra of the Mongolian Armed Forces, the Republic of Korea MOD Traditional Band & Dancers which not only looked amazing but brought some Asian flare to the evening’s events with their very own version of the Chinese Dancing Lions seen during Chinese New Year celebrations.

A very different tempo and flavour was added to the evening when the Jaguares marching band ‘Mariachi Oro De Mexico’ from South America added some Latino spirit to the night’s spectacle. It certainly had the audience dancing in their seats and clamping and stomping feet in rhythm to the beat.

The Band that stole the show were the New Zealand Army Band who not only did an amazing Hakka after depositing their instruments all over the parade ground they then broke into an enthusiastic Gangnam Style dance which was greeted by hoots of laughter and applause from the assembled crowds.

Castle back-drop used to maximum effect as a projection screen for some fabulous scenes

Stunning scene projected onto the Castle back-drop

The energy in their performance was staggering and as all the bands joined forces for the massed pipes and drums performance and the March Out, the Castle Back drop was used to maximum effect as the projection screen for some fabulous scenes to accompany the various acts and the closing Finale. I for one will be back again and I know for certain that my guests enjoyed their evening’s journey through a Scottish Military Tradition.

And the title of this piece? Well the ‘Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo’ has nothing to do with Needles, Indian Inks, Painted Ladies or Hairy Bikers.

The word "Tattoo," is derived from "Doe den tap toe", or just "tap toe" ("toe" is pronounced "too"), the Dutch for "Last Orders". Translated literally, it means: "close the (beer) tap". The term "Tap-toe" was first encountered by the British Army when stationed in Flanders during the War of the Austrian Succession.

The British adopted the practice and it became a signal, played by a regiment's Corps of Drums or Pipes and Drums each night to tavern owners to turn-off the taps of their ale kegs so that the soldiers would retire to their billeted lodgings at a reasonable hour. With the establishment of modern barracks and full military bands later in the 18th century, the term Tattoo was used to describe not only the last duty call of the day, but also a ceremonial form of evening entertainment performed by military musicians.

Paul Henderson—August 2013

Scenes from the Edinburgh Military Tattoo 2013

More Images from the Edinburgh Military Tattoo

Selangor St. Andrew’s Society Membership Information The Society was founded in 1887 and is one of the oldest Loyal Societies in existence in Malaysia. It was formed to foster matters of Scottish interest, and to promote social intercourse and friendship amongst its members.

One of its principal aims is to celebrate St. Andrew’s Day, but also to hold other social events such as the annual Burns’ Supper to commemorate Scotland’s national poet. The Society also jointly presents the annual Great British Ball together with other Societies

In recent years the Society has staged some memorable concerts with outstanding performances by prominent Scottish bands such as the Battlefield Band, Capercaillie, Red Hot Chilli Pipers, Bags of Rock and Whiskey Kiss. These concerts have also featured outstanding performances by Kristie Kay with her Annie Lennox Tribute, Paul Metcalfe with his Rod Stewart Tribute and pinning it all together was comedian Craig Hill as MC.

Interspersed between the four major events each year is a number of smaller, more intimate activities, such as our Welcome Back Nicht which is held annually after the summer break, or events such as a Whisky Tasting Night.

The Society also has a remit to make charitable donations and each year raises funds for various local charities, such as Mobiliti, Special Children of Ampang, SPCA and the Aged Europeans Fund.

During 2013, the Society has donated more than RM100,000 to local charities.

The Selangor St. Andrew’s Society has three types of membership: Life Membership is for Scots or persons of Scots descent. It costs RM300 and, as the title suggest, is valid for the life of the member. There are no annual subscriptions and no further dues to pay.

Term Membership is for Scots or persons of Scots descent. It costs RM150 and this type of membership is valid while persons are resident in Malaysia. Should a Term Member cease to reside in Malaysia, their membership will automatically lapse. There are no annual subscriptions and no further dues to pay.

Friends of Scotland Membership is for those who have an interest in Scottish culture or some connection to Scotland such as having worked or studied in Scotland. It costs RM150 and this type of membership is valid while persons are resident in Malaysia. Should a Friends of Scotland member cease to reside in Malaysia, their membership will automatically lapse. There are no annual subscriptions and no further dues to pay. As this is an associate type of membership, Friends of Scotland members do not have voting rights at general meetings.

Reduced Rates for Members. There are generally two ticket prices at all of our dedicated events whereby members pay less than nonmembers.

Note: spouse/partner is given membership status for ticketing purposes.

Membership Application can be made on-line at the following link:

www.ssas-online.com/membership