e-Newsletters Summer 2013

Upcoming Activities
SAVE THE DATE : Saturday, August 10, 2013.  Annual Singapore National Day celebration.  This year, the celebration will be hosted by SweeLee and Bob at their residence.  In order to maximize attendance, the event will be catered and, hopefully, Mr. Stanley Leong of the new Overseas Singaporean Unit, Western U.S. Region, will also be able to attend.  The SALVN presidency changeover will also take place at this event.   
Warmest Summer greetings to all SALVN members (perhaps HOTTEST Summer greetings would be more appropriate)  After an extended period of hiatus by the Association scribe, we are happy to report that he is now rejuvenated and ready to resume regular reporting of SALVN events via the e-Newsletter.  Much has occurred since the last issue and we will strive to provide as many pictures as possible with minimal narrative.  As previously ascertained using a survey instrument, the majority of the SALVN membership preferred four official celebrations annually roughly coinciding with the seasons of the year.  No prohibitions concerning spontaneous gatherings or special events exist and there have been several such gatherings since the publication of the last  e-Newsletter. Some of the highlights are as follows: 

1. April 2012 : Annual SALVN Summer picnic and farewell barbecue party for SALVN members Nicholas and Claire Khoo.
2. May 2012 : Dinner sponsored by the Overseas Singaporean Unit and featuring guest speaker, Mr. Chin Hock Seng, Consul-General.
3. June 2012 : Father’s Day picnic/potluck at Mount Charleston Recreation Area.
4. August 2012 : National Day Celebration barbecue at Floyd Lamb Park @ Tule Springs. 5. September 2012 : Mooncake Festival/Nasi Lemak Extravaganza Potluck combo celebration.
​6. November 2012 : Road Trip and Camping Excursion at Zion National Park, Utah.
7. February 2013 : Chinese New Year celebration at the Island Malaysian Restaurant.
8. May 2013 : Summer Picnic / Mother’s Day celebration house party.
9. June 2013 : Father’s Day celebration house party. 

1. On April 28, 2012, SAN bade farewell to members Nicholas and Claire Khoo along with their young son Tyler.  The farewell party was a barbecue picnic potluck style event held at Mountain Crest Park in the Lone Mountain area of Las Vegas.  The event was well attended and lasted into the early evening hours.  SAN wishes Nicholas, Claire and Tyler nothing but good fortune as they take up residence in Hong Kong, China.  If you should ever find yourselves back in Las Vegas, please give us a call.
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​2. On May 10, 2012, the Singapore Consulate General’s Office in San Francisco graciously sponsored a dinner event for SALVN members and the guest speaker was Consul-General Chin Hock Seng and members of his staff.  The “meet and greet” dinner was heavily attended inasmuch as many of our hard working members assigned to irregular shifts made a special effort to attend this event.  As usual, Tess & Steven, proprietors of the Island Malaysian Cuisine Restaurant where the dinner was held, prepared an outstanding selection of tasty dishes which were consumed by the SALVN members with great enthusiasm.  Consul-General Chin was kind enough to address the group regarding the mission of the Singapore Consulate General’s Office, the Overseas Singaporean Unit (OSU) and the state of affairs in Singapore at the present time.  He also praised SALVN for bringing Singaporeans together in such a cohesive and congenial manner even though  we are in the far off Mojave Desert community of Las Vegas, Nevada.  Other staff members accompanying the Consul-General were: Ms. Ng Chew Wee of Contact Singapore Magazine; Mr. Jason Leong, US Liaison, OSU; and, Mr. Toh Boon Ho of International Enterprise Singapore.  A subsequent communication to the Consulate-General’s Office expressing the sincere appreciation of all SALVN members for the dinner and visit by the Consul-General Chin was sent by the SALVN President.  

​3. On June 17, 2012, SALVN members attended a Father’s Day picnic organized by Germaine Kang and assisted by Ronald and Jennifer Danker at picturesque Mount Charleston.  From the initial meeting place at the Mount Charleston Lodge, the attendees caravanned to a beautiful picnic & barbeque area with Germaine Kang and husband Britt Pierson as guides.  Being avid outdoors enthusiasts, they were already familiar with the best picnic locations up on the mountain and led us to an ideal spot.  In addition to all of the good food and conversation, the outing offered a brief but welcome respite from the brutal 100 degree Las Vegas heat.  The temperature on Mount Charleston can often be 30 or more degrees cooler than that in the city and as the sun began to set on the picnic attendees, the mercury did fall to the mid-60 degree range accompanied by a stiff breeze for good measure

​4. On August 12, 2012, SALVN held its annual National Day celebration.  This year’s event was held at Floyd Lamb State Park in the far northwest part of the Las Vegas valley.  A very nice private picnic area adjacent to a lake was reserved for the occasion and the barbecue pits got plenty of use as hot dogs, hamburgers, chicken wings and vegetable kabobs were among the many items on the menu.  A special “game show” type question & answer contest was held to ascertain winners of fun packs/goodie bags provided to SALVN by the OSU, National Population and Talent Division, Prime Minister’s Office.   Aside from a relentless attack by a small army of flies, everyone seemed to have had an enjoyable outing capped as usual by the singing of Majulah Singapura and posing for a group photo.

​5. The Annual Mooncake/Lantern Festival celebration was held on September 22, 2012.  The month of September is when the SALVN usually holds its pre-scheduled quarterly event to celebrate the Mooncake/ Lantern Festival.  This year, Association Vice-President, Freda Dana had an idea that the normally dessertoriented gathering could be enhanced by serving a special main course to go along with the moon cakes.  As  a result, several of the lovely SALVN ladies pooled their collective culinary expertise and prepared the savory Singapore dish known as Nasi Lemak.  The combination of coconut rice along with Sambal Chili sauce, Sayor Lodeh, cucumbers, peanuts and hard boiled eggs provided an exceptional treat to the palates of all in attendance.  While the adults savored the moon cakes and Nasi Lemak, the children got the lanterns that were mailed in from Singapore lighted and did the lantern procession walk. This event was graciously hosted by SALVN members Randy and Kirsty Vittetoe at their residence in the Lone Mountain area of Las Vegas and coordinated by Jennifer Danker and Freda Dana.