Ah… Mother’s Day! The sound of it exudes a feeling of love so pure, so boundless, so unconditional. Years of care and sacrifice which cannot be wholly repaid on a single designated Mother’s Day. A mother’s love cannot be compared — we need to cherish and honor our mothers, and express our gratitude toward them.
To celebrate this year, the inter-church outreach arm known as COPE threw a mother’s day event for their adopted community of 150 elderly mums. It was held at Guilin Restaurant, located at the Choa Chu Kang Sports and Recreational Complex.
It was a grand time for these mums and grandmums, chatting incessantly as they made their way eagerly to their seats. The ambience certainly contributed to the celebratory atmosphere: Tables were decked with pink table cloths, and colorful balloons hung from every corner.
Two hosts stirred up heat with a brief game segment that required the audience to decorate hats with sparkles and feathers. The hats needed to resemble Fong Fei Fei’s (a famous evergreen Taiwanese singer) trademark hats that adorn her head at every performance. The results were outstanding, and it was a tough choice for the judges, but a winner eventually emerged, with her winning hat perched on her head.
Having worked up an appetite, it was now time to eat! A delectable array of food was unveiled and most of the moms tucked in.
All except for a group of 22 mothers, who were contestants for The Most Beautiful Mom Competition. These women donned outfits that displayed a diversity of style: there were cheongsum wearers alongside bold and dazzling dressers — but none looked their age!
These moms were well-trained! Some pranced down the aisles like schoolgirls, while others strutted with poise and cool. Some were so acquainted with their moves you could not tell that they had only recently practiced. A few older ones preferred to pose less but compensated with generous smiles!
The noise level in the room was considerable — everyone supported these participants with claps and cheers. It was remarkable to watch these ladies on stage: the oldest contestant was 87 years old, and the youngest, 50.
After about two rounds of parading in their evening best — a selection of ball gowns and traditional gowns were on display — it came down to the most important part of the evening: The question and answer segment.
Many hearts were warmed by the answers of these mothers.
One contestant was asked: “If you had just $200 in your entire household, what would you do?”
“I’ll just try to provide more from my own savings somehow,” said one. Another contestant responded that if she had only $50 in her savings, she would save the last penny for her son’s tuition fees. It was touching to hear of the love and sacrifice they would readily render to their families, putting their own needs last.
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| PHOTOS: Gay Sen Min |
The grand prize winner was Mdm Chong, who admitted she never expected to win the Most Beautiful Mum contest — she was very happy about it. She looked dazzling and dignified in her blue satin gown. This grandmother of two is a retired teacher. She currently teaches older folks to read and write Mandarin at a center for the elderly.
The “Mrs Photogenic” title went to contestant 16, Mdm Ah Tau, who was also the oldest among all the contestants. The 87-year-old grandmother of six was a happy recipient of $50 worth of jewelry. It was also noted by the judges that Mdm Ah Tau had a very nice smile, which helped her clinch the title. She responded gladly, “I never expected to get anything out of this contest since I am so old. But I am happy.”
The first, second and third prize winner won jewelry worth S$300, S$250 and S$200, respectively, from Far East Jewellery.
The event was a roaring success, and a joyous day out for all the mothers in the room.
