From Church Street to Alor Merah

1. My late father had gone through a long journey from his birthplace in Church Street, Georgetown to his final resting place in Alor Merah, Alor Setar, yet I knew so little of his bitter-sweet life story.

2. I was quite moved to learn that he had lost his father at the age of two, after which his uncle, Mr. H. M. Noordin, became his guardian. I suppose the latter had taken good care of him and given him a good education. He went to the Penang Free School and managed to be in the Queen’s Scholarship class. In spite of that, his uncle would not allow him to further his studies for whatever reason we would not be able to tell.

3. I believe he would have achieved a higher level of success if he were given the chance to further his studies. This is because he had shown “early promise of great ability” and was said to be a brilliant student in his school days.

4. I used to think that he came over to Alor Star because he was not happy with his life in his home town which was obviously not true. He was said to possess a charming personality and a cheery disposition which won him a wide circle of friends. 

5. I suppose he was also an obliging person. By virtue of that, when Tunku Ibrahim the Regent of Kedah at the time and a great friend of his, persuaded him to come over to Alor Star to fill the position of headmaster of a newly founded English school – he would have not been able to ignore the request. That marked the beginning of his career in the Kedah Civil Service.

Penang Free School

 

Church Street, Georgetown, Pulau Pinang

 

Cutting of an article written by Lim Cheng Law in the Straits Echo and Times of Malaya, 28 November, 1956