The ceremony started off with a very nice touch of softness which, in my opinion, really set the mood. Commander Larry Chew and Ranger Melody Teo sang a specially composed 25th anniversary song in the dark, a clever ploy to make the audience stop moving around and start listening. Accompanied merely by the gentle strum of an acoustic guitar, their larryfic and melodic voices filled the entire auditorium, making the audience catch their breath in awestruck wonder.
After that, the opening ceremony was unfortunately, unsuccessfully executed. The planning and concept was truly commendable, and the team (Larry, Nathaneal, Joseph, Wei Loong, *insert your name here if i've missed you out*) put in a lot of effort into making sure it went well. However, it was a real shame that it didn't work out as well as it should have after all the meticulous planning. For those of you who laughed really loudly when the banners didn't fall when it should have, you should be ashamed of yourselves and be informed that the team sacrificed a lot for the project. They worked selflessly throughout the night before the ceremony, only going home at 4am, and coming back to church really early the next day to set things up, finally getting everything ready merely minutes before the event started. They should be congratulated and thanked for their efforts and planning, if not for an entertaining albeit less-than-perfect opening ceremony.
After that, a special documentary on RR Sel#1's 25-year journey was shown, a documentary so powerful and touching that it made our Councilman William See *gasp* break down in tears in front of the audience. The outstanding documentary was the brainchild of Commander Wong Hon Chong, who, in his quest to perfect his project, gladly opened his house for meetings and also generously provided refreshing ice-cold Sprite and delicious coffee chiffon cake for the team. The main man behind it all, the one who quietly and selflessly worked in the background, the one who single-handedly put it all together without so much as a complaint, is none other than Roy Vimalan. A very big thank you and well done to you Roy! And we must of course, also commend those who tirelessly came for meetings, scanned literally hundreds of old photos, took down notes, came up with the script, researched the history, etc. Kudos to Commander Lim Kwang Yew, C. Ivan Kok, C. Zach, and *ehem* yours truly ;p
The performances after the council of achievement were well-rehearsed and very entertaining indeed. All the Rangers, from the Ranger Kids to the Expedition Rangers, put in a lot of time and effort in perfecting their performances. The Ranger Kids performed the classic song "Jesus Loves Me this I know" with a twist that got the audience gushing about how cute they looked. The Discovery girls, who danced to the "little red fire truck" song, looked ravishing in their red outfits. The Discovery boys were of course, absolutely entertaining and convincing in their rendition of the ever-popular "Satan bite the dust". The Adventure Rangers gave a spirited performance of their respective patrol songs with a very nice twist, incorporated in a skit which was delightful and meaningful at the same time. The Expedition Rangers ended the performances with a bang, coming up with a very energetic modern dance which made the audience want to dance along too.
All in all, the 25th anniversary celebration was a great success, but it would not have materialized if not for the dedication and commitment of everyone involved, from the deco team to the opening ceremony team, from the documentary team to the Rangers who put in so much effort to deliver their acts, from the refreshment team to the cleanup team, and of course, the pioneers of Selangor #1, without whom we would not have had this celebration at all. God bless you loads.
