The Kaying Association held their 73rd Leong Sin Nam Memorial Celebration recently. The annual celebration is to remember the life and services of Leong Sin Nam to the Chinese community in Perak and the country.
Each year the ceremony begins with a visit to the tomb of Towkay Leong Sin Nam at the Cantonese cemetery located off Jalan Lapangan Terbang, followed by a Hakka dinner held later at the Kaying Association Hall. This year the ceremony was led by Kaying Association Deputy President Dato’ Hew Choy Kon. The immediate family of Leong Sin Nam together with members of the Kaying Association and staff and pupils of the SJK (C) Min Tet were present at the ceremony.
This year for the first time the memorial included an exhibition of Towkay Leong Sin Nam and also a lecture “Snoring – the dangers and myths” which was presented by Dr Leong Oon Keong the grandson of Leong Sin Nam. According to Dr Leong the lectures will be included in future memorials and will be held outside Ipoh at locations where Leong Sin Nam had played a part in supporting the Tung Meng Hui (TMH) activities.
Ipoh TMH, was co-founded by Towkay Leong in 1907 to support the cause of Dr Sun Yat Sen.
Leong Sin Nam was also a philanthropist and donated to many educational, charitable and social institutions. He, together with other members of the Perak Kaying Association set up the Min Tet Primary School in Ipoh in 1912. In later years he would donate his bungalow located at No. 17 Gopeng Road from where the Perak Girls High School started before shifting to its current premises at Kampar Road.
For all his noble contributions he was recognised and awarded medals from Sun Yat Sen of China, the Malayan Certificate of Honour (1932) and in 1937 the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE), the second non-British subject of this award. Leong Sin Nam passed away on January 19, 1940.
JAG
