Mid-Autumn 2022: Muted No More

This year’s Mid-Autumn Festival celebration shimmered with an extra speck of excitement as we resumed to its all-encompassing glory, much to the delight of our residents. The beautiful evening sky and luminous moon provided a perfect backdrop for the joyous occasion.

Held on 27 August 2022, close to 150 elderly residents and clients, together with our guests, attended the annual celebration as the local Covid-19 situation improved and safety measures were eased. Among them our Guest Of Honour (GOH), Mr Heng Chee How, Senior Minister of State for Defence. Mr Heng is also the Member of Parliament for Jalan Besar GRC (Whampoa Division) and has shown great support towards KWSH over the years.

Our volunteer performing group, Jubilee Tunes, started off the evening with a Chinese orchestra rendition of sweet melodies before our Chairman, Mr Patrick Lee, joined the stage and welcomed the joyous crowd. It was an especially significant moment for the bedbound nursing home residents in attendance, who had last come out of the ward building for their Mid-Autumn celebration in 2019, having been largely confined to their wards for three years due to the pandemic.

Following the welcome address, GOH Mr Heng, along with Mr Patrick Lee, Mr William Leong, KWSH’s Fundraising Committee Chairman, and our CEO, Dr Ow Chee Chung, was invited to the Pavilion Garden for the official light-up ceremony to kick off the festivities. Also joining in the ceremony were representatives from the various Cantonese clan associations and organisations, a pre-pandemic tradition we were delighted to resume this year! The light-up was quite literally the highLIGHT of the evening as the Pavilion Garden was transformed into a sea of beautiful lanterns and dazzling festive displays.

The celebration continued with the release of sky lanterns, enthralling the audience as they floated beneath the moonlight. Another high point of the evening was the lotus lantern ceremony, where GOH Mr Heng and Chairman Patrick Lee led the crowd to set sail well wishes on the pretty lotuses, symbolizing that wishes would be heard and granted.

After the ceremonial part of the programme, it was showtime for our volunteers, who took over the stage by storm with their vibrant performances, as echoed by the enthusiastic clapping of the audience.  

A night like this would not be made possible without our kind sponsors and donors. KWSH would like to thank all our generous sponsors and donors who continued to extend their support during this challenging time. Our heartfelt thanks go out to the volunteers as well for making this beautiful night possible.

Here’s wishing everyone a Happy Mid-Autumn Festival as the brilliant rays of light continue to glow through the coming nights!