8,000 at funeral of Penang leader's mother
PENANG, Sun. Five thousand pupils from 14 Chinese schools were among the 8,000 people who attended the funeral today of Mrs. Saw Soon Choo, 101-year-old mother of Penang Alliance chairman and MCA president, Mr. Saw Seng Kew.
The two-mile procession was watched by about 30,000 spectators who flocked to all vantage points along the route starting from the Gurney Drive mansion of Mrs. Saw's elder son, Mr. Saw Choo Theng, chairman of the United Malayan Bank.
It was the biggest funeral in Penang since the war.
The procession, headed by Senator Cheah Seng Khim, chairman of the funeral committee, comprised 35 sections with the Chung Ling band playing funeral marches.
Decorated car
The 5,000 pupils included 1,800 from Chung Ling, 700 from the Chinese Girls' High School and 570 from Phor Tay School.
Penang MCA and its youth section also sent representatives.
Hundreds of scrolls and wreaths were received. The scrolls were transported in a fleet of trishas and the wreaths were carried by schoolchildren.
A decorated car with a portrait of Mrs. Saw and a Rolls-Royce carrying a high priest chanting prayers preceded the hearse. The Prime Minister, Tengku Abdul Rahman, the Deputy Premier, Tun Abdul Razak, the MCA national president and Finance Minister, Mr. Tan Siew Sin, and the Health Minister Inche Rahman Talib, were among those who sent wreaths or condolences.
In memory of their mother, the Saw brothers are donating $10,000 each to the proposed home for the chronically-ill and aged destitutes and the Lam Wah Ee hospital-home for old folks.
Source: The Straits Times, 21 October 1963, Page 6
Interesting... i wish there were photographs...
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