|
 Former ACS teacher and chaplain, Rev Peter S.T. Lim, passed
away peacefully on 10 September 2020 in Edmonton, Canada.
He was 97.
Rev Lim joined ACS in 1950 and is well remembered by many
students during the 1950s for his eloquence and distinctive,
crisp and resonating voice, and his role as the Founding
Chaplain of the 12th Boys’ Brigade Company. He was also the
Founding Pastor of Fairfield Methodist Church and Barker Road
Methodist Church in 1946 and 1956 respectively.
From 1961 to 1965, Rev Lim served as Principal of ACS and
pastor of Wesley Church in Seremban, Malaysia where he
founded the 1st Seremban Boys’ Brigade Company and served
as a President of The Boys’ Brigade in Malaysia.
In 1965, he returned to Singapore to join the University of
Singapore and made his mark as one of the University’s
founding champions of alumni relations before retiring in 1996.
Rev Lim was an inspiration and mentor to many students in
ACS. Mr Lee Liat Cheng (ACS Class of 1960, former ACSOBA
President (1987-88) and Honorary Vice-President of The Boys’
Brigade in Singapore) vividly remembers the day Rev Lim
walked into his classroom and appointed him as class monitor.
It was an indelible moment that had inspired and spurred him
on to live up to the trust Rev Lim had placed on him.
“Thereafter, we became close friends through The
Boys’ Brigade and the church and kept in touch
even after he had left ACS. He has touched many
lives in schools, churches and The Boys’ Brigade
and I am privileged to know him. Truly, he is indeed
a Man of God”, Mr Lee Liat Cheng
Rev Lim was one of the driving forces of The Boys’ Brigade
and mentor to many members under his charge. Dr John
Khoo Buan Hin (former Vice President of The Boys’ Brigade in
Singapore) recalls:
“Since 1950 when I started as a recruit in The Boys’
Brigade, Rev Lim has been an inspiration for me.
I had looked up to him as someone that I would
try to emulate later in life, always admiring him
for his physical stature, his encouraging others in
character building and the example he gave in his
speech and pronunciation, with the correct diction,
articulation and stresses.” – Dr John Khoo Buan Hin
Emeritus Professor Lee Soo Ann, NUS, President of the
Bible Society of Singapore, and former Brigade President
of The Boys’ Brigade in Singapore regards Rev Lim as a
multi-talented person who served Singapore and Malaysia
in many capacities.
"He was always cheerful and had a good speaking
voice to carry encouraging words. He came across
to me as a good BB officer, always “Sure and
Stedfast” – Professor Lee Soo Ann
Rev Lim’s talents were not confined to just his contributions to
education, The Boys’ Brigade, and the church community. He
was a man for all seasons who also aspired to serve the country
when he stood in the 1955 Singapore Legislative Assembly
General Elections in the Tanjong Pagar constituency as a
Progressive Party candidate. According to Mr Tan Wah Thong
(ACS Class of 1956 and former Chairman of the ACS Board
of Governors):
“Together with a group of students, I remember
helping Rev Lim put up his election posters. The
seat was won by none other than Mr Lee Kuan Yew
and the rest is history. Interestingly, two other ACS
teachers were candidates in that same election
under the Progressive Party banner. Science
teacher, Mr Lim Choon Mong was successful in
Serangoon while our Principal, Dr Thio Chan Bee
whom I also helped in the elections, lost narrowly
in Whampoa”.
Rev Lim, who was predeceased by his wife Flora Lim in
2010, leaves behind his son Eric, daughter Ann Li,
sister Pollyanna Tay, many grandchildren and great
grandchildren, as well as numerous nieces and nephews.
In his eulogy, Eric recalls:
“As a little boy, I totally loved and adored my
dad; that bond between us will never die. I
always respected him. He had such a wealth
of understanding and knowledge and we could
always talk to and with each other. Although we
do not often show it, we always loved each other
and we both knew that. The love between us will
now go on and on well and far beyond the grave.”
Vale, Rev Lim. You will be missed by the many whose
lives you have touched and enriched.
|