Chairman of SSA Ong Bon Chai was invited as the guest-of-honour at the Darul Ghufran Kindergarten’s 14th graduation ceremony held on October 2. SSA Soka Kindergarten Supervisor Sandra Sin was also present at the event.
In his congratulatory speech, Mr Ong quoted Soka Kindergarten founder Dr Daisaku Ikeda, who likens adults’ efforts in fostering children to that of nurturing trees. “Trees are living things; they are not machines. And every tree is different. The environment in which they grow is different. That is why there is no manual to tell us how to grow a tree. The only way to succeed is to know the particular tree’s special character, and warmly care for it.”
At the ceremony, Mr Ong also presented the picture “A Little Poet” taken by Dr Ikeda, to the Darul Ghufran kindergarten.
Darul Ghufran Mosque Chairman Muhammad Effendy offered deep appreciation at Mr Ong’s gesture to be at the graduation and expressed his consensus at Mr Ong’s analogy likening “educating children” to “nurturing trees”. He also commended on SSA’s annual participation in the National Day Parades during a sharing after the graduation ceremony.