Updates Hi everyone, After one full year of service, the *32nd Exco* has officially stepped down. We sincerely thank all of you who have stayed with us and supported us in this journey. We definitely couldn't have made it without every single one of you! It is now time to hand over the baton to the *33rd Exco*. The new committee can be found just after this section. And read on after that to find a message from each of us from the 32nd too! And lastly, if you are still reading this last paragraph, *thank you*. Nothing much is interesting in this section most of the time but thank you for investing your time reading what I have to share with everyone in each issue. I think if you spend your time reading, you spend your time caring.
From the deepest of my heart, thank you. Writing Kaya & Toast has been my pleasure.
Signing off for the last time, Your faithful secretary, Weihao Lim :) ------------------------------ Contents 1. The 33rd ICSS Executive Committee <#14c429213fc99689_14c428b13ec5d7e3_item1> 2. Final Words from our President, Clive Aw <#14c429213fc99689_14c428b13ec5d7e3_item2> 3. Final Words from our Vice-President, Leon Ooi <#14c429213fc99689_14c428b13ec5d7e3_item3> 4. Final Words from our Treasurer, Maung Thet <#14c429213fc99689_14c428b13ec5d7e3_item4> 5. Final Words from our Secretary, Weihao <#14c429213fc99689_14c428b13ec5d7e3_item5> 6. Final Words from our Major Event Officer, Jia Hui <#14c429213fc99689_14c428b13ec5d7e3_item6> 7. Final Words from our Events Officer, Lincoln Ang <#14c429213fc99689_14c428b13ec5d7e3_item7> 8. Final Words from our Events Officer, Sameer <#14c429213fc99689_14c428b13ec5d7e3_item8> 9. Final Words from our Sports Officer, Yu Quan <#14c429213fc99689_14c428b13ec5d7e3_item9> 10. Final Words from our Liaisons Officer, Jingyi <#14c429213fc99689_14c428b13ec5d7e3_item10> ------------------------------ 1. The 33rd ICSS Executive Committee We proudly present to you the 33rd ICSS Executive Committee: *President: *Tham Wan Qing *Vice-President:* Benjamin Ng *Secretary: *Benjamin Chin *Treasurer:* Wu Jiaxi *Major Event Officer: *Nicholas Tan *Events Officer 1 & 2:* Neo Gao Ming & Tan Wei Yan *Sports Officer:* Paxton Chia *Liaisons Officer:* Ivan Tee We warmly welcome the new batch of Exco and hope that all of you will support them in all that they do. We wish them all the best in their future endeavours! ------------------------------ 2. Final Words from our President, Clive Aw The AY 2015-2016 has indeed been an eventful year. From our very first event, Take a Break, Have a KitKat, to our final event, Annual General Meeting, I am extremely thankful. The Imperial College Singapore Society boasts a rich history of 32 years. It is something that I am extremely proud of and you should be too. Our sponsors and partners are most impressed with how structured and well organised the Society is. I don't claim this as any effort of my own, but I can only thank the Society, every one of you, for playing a part to make everything work out. Your cooperation to our plans for events have made it so much easier for the committees, past and present, to continue to find out how we can make things more efficient, better for you guys. Now that my term has come to an end, I look at many things in retrospect and I realised that without a few people during my journey, I couldn't have made it through. If you would indulge me. 1) The 32nd Executive Committee The group of people that I will always remember in my heart. The 8 of you who toiled your hearts and souls out with me for the past year. The late nights we've spent clearing up after events, after meetings, taking cabs home in Singapore when we were all so dead beat. *Leon*Thank you for being the silent bro. You stand by me all the time, always ready to offer your help and support whenever I needed you. I am really glad that you took this journey up with me, being the source of support I need. All the times when you had my back when I messed up, when you reminded me that I had to be the President and not micro-manage, the times when you offer me a pint when you see that I am stressed, when you just stand with me along the beaches of Sentosa as i mulled over the planning of Sojourn. I cannot thank you enough with words for being there for me. Even though the only time you leave me alone is when you're drunk and wasted but I forgive you for that. :) *Maung Thet* Thank you for being the sane mind. In the midst of all the frenzy, you are always the calm one. You always render me with your support when people seem to question how we do things and help me to clarify my rationale for my decisions before I make them. Your 'steadiness' has made me see you as my role model. Whenever I feel like I am freaking out, I'll talk to you. Thanks for bringing peace to us :) *Weihao* Thank you for being meticulous. You are the silent advisor to me. Being supportive of my actions and my decisions, even when they are tough decisions and may end up giving you more work. You always help me to see the loophole in my plans and tell me in a gentle manner to remind me what is at stake and what are the considerations that I have missed. Thank you for also picking out all my grammar mistakes in my KnT posts! *Jiahui*Thank you for your boldness. You are the one of the few brave ladies I have met. Your vision and goal for Major Event is reason for the success of ME this year. As your dream and think big, you also remember the minute details. The title of Brothers resonated with you and your aim to bring everyone closer together. The struggles you had with us to be a part of ME as a chorale member and choreographer were painful, but I must thank you for insisting it. Without which ME might be different. I am sure your dedication and sacrifice you have put in for ME were seen by many. You deserve every admiration from the participants. *Lincoln* Thank you for your professionalism. I admire your work ethics and your organization. Putting a 3D2N Sojourn together is not easy. Not only did you have to handle the programme and campers, you had to manage Team Sojourn alongside with the OGHs as well. Not only that, you followed through with everyone every step of the way in the Freshers' Package. You took on the role to be responsible for the welfare for the Freshers on yourself. I see that smile on your face whenever you tell me certain OGs were still going out, but it isn't a smile of pride, but a smile of assurance that the Freshers have indeed found their Community. *Sameer*Thank you for your courage to put yourself out there. I've known you since J2. Thank you for putting the Society's interest before your own many times. UKBound would not have been a success without the event sponsors that you personally scouted when I had to attend to my family. You supported me through that while giving your best to the event. I remember the stress you were under to try to break even. I remember the day when we had to actually decide what to do when we actually ran out of paper tickets to be sold. Over the moon was literally what you were. We stayed at Sentosa boardwalk till 3-4 am to get the shots taken with the Excos. Thank you for your efforts in creating socials for the Excos, being our in-house Events Officer even. *Yuquan*Thank you for being that silent worker. People may see you as the muscles that climbs and organises picnic all the time. But you have been the one always collecting food, clearing rubbish, working in the background. Starting the sports budget was a wise decision, one that you made with lots of considerations. Thank you for listening to my advice and suggestions. You bring your points across strongly during meetings, at the right times, making them extremely sobering to hear. *Jingyi*Thank you for looking after us. You are always that voice that we hear when we need comfort. You provide that assurance and advice when we need it the most. Thank you for taking upon yourself so many of the jobs that we need help with. Your work with the Sotong Guide has gone far and wide across UK, making a product that all ICSS members are proud to call our own. I would also like to thank you for your mentorship and care for the chorale members. 2) Team Sojourn Perhaps a little too many to list here, but you guys know who you are. OGHs, OGLs, (esp my Ninjas), thank you for your time during the Summer break for Sojourn. I look at all the happy og-lings when they are with you guys, it tells of all the good work you guys have done and the inspiration you guys have been to the Freshers. I assure you your efforts have not be in vain. 3) ICSS League of Exco 30th, 31st ICSS Exco, thank you for your help and guidance. Especially to Ashley, Bennett, Hongrui and Gabriel, who have offered advice and counsel to me on many accounts. When I had to make decisions that I wasn’t sure, you guys adviced me and let me make the decision. Thank you for the respect you guys have given me. Thank you also to Zhenyi, for being there when I was at my lowest, dealing with my loss. Chuan Khim, thank you for your encouraging little texts. I'm sure you were there during the periods Hongrui was stressed and could see when those moments were for me as well. 33rd Exco, do your best for ICSS. The members who believe in you call upon you to fight for them, to make the Society a better Home away from Home for all of us. We are all here for you, like it or not. Welcome to the League. :) There are perhaps too many memories to recall, to pen down in words. But as I sit and watch the Sun rise along the horizons in the wee hours of the mornings, joy rises also. There was never a moment that I've spent walking this journey that I consider it a loss. The journey may seem to be over, but it really has just begun. Warmest Regards, Clive Aw President, 32nd Executive Committee Imperial College Singapore Society ------------------------------ 3. Final Words from our Vice-President, Leon Ooi A year after taking up the role as vice-president of ICSS, two years into my studies, and another two to go. I usually do not have much to say, but here are some of my thoughts for this last Kaya and Toast by the 32nd Exco: 1) The past year would have been a hell of a lot harder if not for the support from friends. Thank you for your words of encouragement and turning up for events (even if you don’t feel like it sometimes). I probably don’t show it enough, but I am grateful that you guys are always there for me. You know who you guys are :) 2) 33rd Exco – Congratulations on being elected! You have a challenging year ahead of you. If there should be a time where you feel drained or unsure of what to do. Remember that the 32nd is always there should you need advice or a listening ear. Remember, *Home is where the Heart is*. I hope that through your passion for the society, the members will be able to find their home away from home. 3) To the team (32nd). Our year long journey has finally come to an end. There may have been some bumps along the way, but I’m sure we all came out as better friends and I am glad to have gone through it all with you guys. There are many things that I thought that I could have done better, thank you for putting up with me anyway. It has been an honour. 4) Finally, thank you ICSS. Your positive response to our events has been heart-warming. I hope that the actions of the 32nd has managed enrich your year at Imperial. It is your support that makes it all worthwhile and drives the Exco to push to greater heights year after year! Anddd that’s it from me. All the best for the upcoming exams everyone! Yours truly, Leon Ooi ------------------------------ 4. Final Words from our Treasurer, Maung Thet Having just read through the notes on the card prepared, I feel humbled: I am quite grateful to have had this opportunity given to me a year ago and I certainly hope I have lived up to expectations. Being in the committee for the past year has certainly been an eventful one, and this experience will go down as one of the key experiences that would shape my undergraduate journey. There were good times when the committee came together, supported one another in times of need and all striving towards producing the best events or activities for our members. Those good times really allowed me to enjoy the fruition of our efforts. But there were also occasions when I did not understand why we were having the discussions we were having, times when I feel anxious at the lack of preparation for our events and times when I feel frustrated at constraints and lack of support. Eventually I learnt that it boils down to different working styles; different perspectives on things, but all are in the interests of the society. I also learnt that this is what it really means to take full ownership of our events without any guidance from teachers or mentors. Keeping an eye out for earning to deal with unexpected situations may come in handy someday. And learnt that I should focus on making the best of what we have, for the people that mattered, rather than lamenting on why we do not have something. To the committee, it was a pleasure seeing how dynamic we could get and complement each other; sometimes the only thing that kept me going was the dedication that many of you showed. Thanks for your cooperation with regards to financial matters! It made life much easier when everyone abides by the budget allocations (most of the time)! I thank you for the good and the bad times that we had gone through – I believe they all played a part in strengthening the team. I am sure we will still see each other around at future events and spend our time reminiscing about what happened during ours. To my upperstudies, Wei Jie and Zhen Yi, thank you for being there to answer my queries about finances as well as general committee work throughout the year. Truly, you two are the only people in ICSS who understand frustrations and pains of dealing with a society's finances. Then again, I shall not complain too much it is in this position where I fully appreciated and explored the extent to which money plays a role in our decision making. I came to realise that it certainly has a big impact: from budget allocations to our morale. The only way I can pay your efforts forward is a promise that I will do my best to advise and help Jia Xi along! To Jia Xi, all the best for the year ahead! I hope you will do a better job than me in that the very first conversations you initiate with freshers will not be about chasing them for Sojourn/UKBound/Duvet/Pickup payments!! To Props/Backstage team, I thank you for being the reminder to focus on what we have and making the best of them and giving me the reason to put in more effort for ME2015. Thanks for making the role of a team admin an enjoyable and easy one; and that in turns allow me more bandwidth to focus on the finance and photography aspects! To the 31st and 30th committees, thank you for inspiring me all along the journey, right from running for elections and getting advice even until the last days of my term. To my coursemates (Nguyen, Sukfun, Zeinab), thanks for making my academic life so much less frustrating during ME period with help for computing and lab work. To my roommate, Darren, thanks for the encouragements and support throughout the year and sorry for disturbing you when I come home late at nights because of ICSS activities. To Jemong and Jonathan, thanks for the continuous support and concern throughout my term; it has always come at much needed times. To everyone else, this year would not have been as smooth or fulfilling for me if not for your support for the events and activities. Thank you for allowing me this chance to give back to the society. Maung Thet Treasurer Imperial College Singapore Society ------------------------------ 5. Final Words from our Secretary, Weihao It has already been one year since I wrote my first Kaya & Toast. Time flies, isn’t it? One year later, I stepped down from the post I hold dearly to, for this opportunity didn’t come by easy. It has been a year of ups and downs. Despite all these lemons life throws at us, we shouldn’t be disheartened and drag our feet along in life. But how do we find the strength to carry on? It’s the friends you have around you, the support group whom you know wouldn’t leave you behind. Thank you to everyone, and every reader, for if you spend your time reading, you spend your time caring. But especially to these people whom without them, the past year wouldn’t have been any easier. *Clive* – My roomie, Physics coursemate and my best pal. Thank you for staying by me through all the bad (and good) things that have happened. What could I do without you? Thank you for helping me cook when I couldn’t cope, making honey lemon for me when I’m sick, listening to my problems and so much more. Literally, no words could describe how thankful I am to you. Your journey hasn’t been any easier and I think I know best. It isn’t easy being the President of such a large society but I’m sure you have done a fantastic job. You’re awesome to many people! *Flat 10 *– It’s always heartwarming to come back home to have food on the table and company by the side. I think our cooking duties have served us well! Thanks Leon for all your sausages , Poh for the very nice meals you make with the oven, and Bert for all the homely Chinese food. We have also literally gave up our dining room and corridor wardrobe for Singsoc stores. Thanks Bert for being so accommodating to all of us all the time! *Physics coursemates* – Why do we help each other soooo much?! We share everything and anything we find useful on Whatsapp and Dropbox. We ask each other questions and we share our answers and reports. I believe we all must trust each other very much in handling our ‘intellectual property’. Thanks for the company day by day. Without you guys, every other day would just be lectures, tutorials, labs and computing. With you guys around, every other day is like memes, nerd jokes, eclipses and “YOU DEN AR!” [?] *Siming* - Thanks for talking with me, telling me your honest opinions and sorting things with me logically when I approached you for help. And also for answering the random questions that I have over the past year about this and that. Thank you! *Academic Reps* - Thanks for helping out at the Pre-Departure Talk and sharing your experiences, tips and advice with the Freshers. I'm sure many Freshers have benefited from you! Thank you so much. *32nd *– Thank you for being such a wonderful team to work with and for all the great memories we have forged together, especially during Sojourn, UKBound and Major Event. We’re definitely not just acquaintances just because there were some disagreements in the past. From all the mistakes and struggles, we have grown and learned so much about ourselves and each other. I believe we have done a splendid job with the society, and I hope every one of us believe so too! So here’s a pat on the back and “Awesome possum good job!” from me to all of you! Time to have some real socials. :) *小 B*tchz & the rest of 33rd*– Good luck, and don’t hesitate to ask any of the seniors for help when you encounter problems! Keep up with the fervour and enthusiasm that you carry with you during AGM. Don’t forget how passionate you were, the ideals you shared with the society and the energy you exuded on the fateful day. Whenever you feel tired and worn out in this new chapter of your life, just recall that day why you stood out to serve the society – the reason why you ever lifted the pen to write the very first page. All the best for your term in office! Yours truly, Weihao Lim ------------------------------ 6. Final Words from our Major Event Officer, Jia Hui *91 of you*- You guys shaped my Y2. I’ll never forget this journey we had. THANK YOU, ‘nuff said. *32nd <3*- and finally ME is over. I couldn’t have done it without all 8 of you, others may not know it, but EACH & EVERY of you have done so much sacrificing your own time, not for credit at the end of the day, but for singsoc. I guess that’s why we even chose this path in the first place. Nobody knows this but I can honestly say that all of you are my close friend in some way. We may not be the best working partners, but we are the best SHO family, slamming and joking with each other. Thank you SHOPWEETZ, SHOBLACKZ, SHOBUFFZ, SHOHOTZ, SHOSKINNYZ, SHOPCZ, SHOFATZ, SHOCUTEZ. *Nicholas*- Hope you're ready for the war ahead HAHA. Your next one year is going to be so hectic that sometimes you won't have time to breathe. Remember that when you feel like you're struggling, you have to keep pushing on as ME2016 will be your baby and it needs you there always :) Trust me, at the end of the day, everything is extremely worth it. *Jia Xi, Jia Ying, Ben Ni, Daniel*- Y2 EEE is really no joke and I’m so glad to have you guys as my supportive coursemates :) Jia Xi thanks for tanking bulk of our project (and doing it so well!) especially when I was busy during the ME period. Jia Ying thanks for always entertaining my endless basic questions, especially when I’m lagging behind like crazy due to ME. Ben Ni thanks for always guiding me through coding without the answers so I can learn, and I did!!! Daniel thanks for always being the encouragement I needed in school! *Wei Jie & Darren*- Thanks for always being my constant reminders to study, since I hardly get the time to! Thanks Wei Jie for always finding random and new places to study, it is really motivating! Thanks Darren for consistently checking if I have done my work every now and then I see you! :) *Junxiang* – AHGONG!!! I’m so glad I got to meet you in chorale where I got the wrong idea from Seb that you’re already married hahaha. You’ve been a really good study buddy, helping to call in dinner and the occasional drinks & KFC delivery! :) You’ve been the most mature advisor to my problems and one of the best people to chill and chat with! Thanks for your consistent nagging which helped make me a better person! Wouldn’t be able to survive the tough ME period without your encouraging words, sincerely a BIG thank you :) *Weixiang*- XIANGGGGGGG ): I miss hanging out with you almost everyday thanks to ME. I remember the Saturday morning Starbucks sessions, the random last minute urgent meet ups, the crazy writing session with raspberry cheesecake and mega lack of sleep. What I cherish most were the sobering talks we had about our future career & academic choices, and about the meaning of life. I have so much to say to you, and it’s sad that you’re the only person whom I didn’t write to for ME. Just know that you’ve been a friend that I truly cherish, and I really mean it. I hope this friendship continues because you make me really happy. Thank you, for EVERYthing. *Chin *- #MANCHESTER. You’ve been my best HTHT buddy during my most emotional moments. Although we quarrel a lot (and patch up immediately haha), you’re really a friend I trust! Thanks for always standing up for me or your close friends in any difficult situation, you’re a true friend to keep! *Peizhen *– PSEUDO SIS ILY :) I’m terribly sorry for coming home only to sleep for the past 5 months. Thanks for being so caring when I’m sick and for standing up for me over certain issues! Thanks for giving me music therapy with your guitar and watching RM with me! I’m really happy to have you as a roommate coz you’re my closest friend whom I can comfortably do anything with! So awkward that you’re probably reading this beside me or seeing me after you read this haha. CYA :) *Audrey*- Thanks for trying to help me sell tickets for ME. Thanks for being part of the ME make up team. HAHAHA LAME SIA THE ABOVE. You know very well that I’m thankful for you for many other reasons. I remember the day we had a 3 hours walk at Hyde Park before all my ME stuff started. When ME started, thanks for being my weekly Yoga buddy!!!! Sorry that I haven’t been going for the past month coz’ of ME ): What I’m most grateful for is that you’ve been the most patient listener to my rants and woes. Thanks for giving me the most appropriate advice and for being so understanding. *Chuan Khim* – One year ago, I asked you if you were still going to talk to me after Major Event ended. You said, of course. Haha I guess you had to, since you had so much to pass down to me. Now that Major Event has ended again, I begin to wonder the same thing haha. In all honestly, you are one of the biggest factors to ME2015’s success. I still remember the day you transferred all your files to my laptop and that we took the longest time in the entire exco for the official handover. I still remember the day you brought me to book the Great Hall. I still remember the day my manifesto was uploaded and you said you were really happy for and proud of me. My start of the ME2015 journey was fuelled mainly by your motivation and encouragement and I’m sincerely grateful for that, because these gave me the initial drive to give my best for ME. Subsequently over the ME period, I’m thankful that you consistently provided me with advice (like the formal powerpoint slides about combined reherasals WHAT hahahaha). I’m terribly sorry for the spam of ME questions and thanks for giving me the most detailed and helpful replies :) More importantly, thanks for being a listening ear since you’re probably the one who understands all my ME woes the most HAHA. Now that ME is all over, I’m thankful that ME2014 & ME2015 happened, and running for MEO is a decision I’ll never regret. And please ah, stop saying I’ve done a better job than you and all that shit, it’s NOT okay. Coz’ deep down you were my MEO who has inspired me over the ME which I was casted as AHLIAN. You’ve been a great MEO ensuring continuity and without that, ME2015 wouldn’t have been how it was. *Gaoming & Zeguang*- thanks for being juniors who are always there to help me chill and cheer me up! Thanks Gaoming for the chilling sessions any time I needed them! Thanks Zeguang for your random gifts, motivational words, and your trust in me!!! *Jaren, Bennett, Zixiang, Yisheng, Jiaguang* – Grateful for helpful and caring seniors!!! Thanks Jaren for being my idol for my whole ME journey!Thanks Bennett for being so caring and cheery :) Will never forget your ahgong’s lozenges which saved my life and your constant nagging for me to drink peppermint tea HAHA. Thanks Zixiang for making me feel better or to helping me be more decisive. And YES YOU ARE STILL MY BFF. Thanks Yisheng for always checking on me whenever I see you around in school and giving me necessary advice regarding EEE! Thank you korkor for always being there for me to talk to when I need to :) you’ve been really approachable and helpful especially when it comes to coding HAHA. finally and most importantly, *to singsoc, XIEXIE.* *What say you say i say* for the last time, Jia Hui #MEO ------------------------------ 7. Final Words from our Events Officer, Lincoln Ang It’s been a whole year since I was elected into office as Events Officer 1. I can’t describe here in full how fruitful the experience was (how do you compress such an EVENTful year into a few thousand words anyway?), but I shall endeavour to keep it short and sweet. *To Team Sojourn 2014:* Sojourn was and will always be my single biggest, toughest event ever. Though it happened nine months ago, my memories of it are as clear as if it were yesterday. I remember each and every one of you when you took your time off your studies to attend the Team Sojourn Meet & Greet sessions at the beginning of May, and how you guys brought across to my Exco and I your passion and eagerness to make a positive impact on the freshers’ lives. You guys translated all your talk into action during your sub-committee meetings – the *Game Masters* churned out top-quality games that were novel and at the same time logistically-friendly, the *Media, Design & Publicity Team* created our wonderful T-shirt design and ensured that all the moments of Sojourn were captured, and the *Ninjas* lived up to their name and were ever-ready, ever-present to bring the props, tools and food to the right places. Some *Secret Freshers* took on different personae while others came up with complicated plots, just to keep in character and achieve the goal of fostering good relationships with the freshers. All of you burnt your Saturdays in August to come down for the dry runs, all to ensure a high standard of our orientation camp! Of course, during the actual camp itself, every one of you performed beyond my hopes and I watched as the OGs evolved from random groups of freshers and seniors into a unified, bonded family. All these speak clearly of your enthusiasm and dedication to the Team, and it is something that I remain eternally grateful to all of you for. In particular, I would really like to mention the OGHs; *Tian Ci*, *Pranav*, *Jerome*, *You’en*, *Zi Jie* and *Ben*, you guys were the most charismatic and responsible leaders I could ask for and thank you so much for all the useful inputs, self-sacrifice, and looking out for the welfare of those under you. Kudos to the 6 of you for leading your OGLs and freshers all the way and helping me out with my various tasks and requests! I’ve definitely run into many difficulties during the planning of Sojourn, but I was never disheartened as I knew that I could count on my amazing Team Sojourn to support me through the tough times. All of you are simply the best; so thank you one final time for the wonderful three months we’ve had together! *To the year 1s:* You guys are a large part of the reason why we serve. Freshers you all were when you entered Imperial, but you guys have become hardened Londoners now! I have always taken a keen interest in your welfare, perhaps due to the fact that I had organized the majority of the events in Freshers’ Package, especially Sojourn. Part of me felt that my job did not stop at Sojourn and there had to be continuity. Wanting to provide an environment as good as the one provided to me by my seniors, I constantly checked on the OGs and encouraged OGLs to keep things going. Seeing how all of you have adjusted comfortably to a life in London and have found your core groups of friends, I can now say with pride that our events catered to freshers have achieved their objectives. Thank you all for being so enthusiastic and receptive toward our activities! I hope that all of you have enjoyed all the events ICSS has planned for you, just as I have enjoyed watching all of you grow to become the confident individuals you all are now. Events in ICSS will now be shaped by your batch and I cannot wait to see what’s in store! *To my Music Team:* My newest and most amazing charges, you are, each and every one of you, talented musicians and committed people. Thank you for giving it your all during the many, many practices that we have had, and for your tireless help in transporting the various musical instruments/stands/chairs to and from the rehearsal venues! I really appreciate your understanding when you all have to come down for several practices a week for different songs, and for following all the instructions our dear MD *Jia Le* and I put out. All of you seem to have inherited an awesome sense of humour from somewhere, it really makes the long rehearsals so much more enjoyable for everyone in the team. It really touches my heart to see the members of the largest Music Team ever bonding, joking and laughing during rehearsals – building up relationships and another facet of the ‘home-away-from-home’ ICSS aspires to be. I shall always remember those drunk Whatsapp conversations we have late at night because they really give me a reason to smile! You guys were fantastic during the actual performance; your passion for music inspires me to improve my own skills and makes all the work I have to do worth it. It has been a wonderful ME journey with you guys and I want to thank you all again for your support throughout! I hope our paths cross again. *To my Chemical Engineering coursemates, Jerome, You’en and the rest:* thank you for helping me get through the abyss that is year 2 Chem Eng by always keeping me motivated as we muscle through the numerous coursework and projects! I remember how low things were for me during the start of the year; thanks for always lending me a listening ear when I have troubles and for all the academic help. Let’s reach the final line together! *To my housemates, Mekk, Pei Zhen and Jia Hui: *Thank you for your understanding when I return home late night after night, for helping out with the household chores when I am unable to do so, and for putting up with the occasional rant. Allow me now to give back to the house, just as you all have done during my term in office! *To the seniors and friends who encouraged me to run for office, especially Bennett, Zhenyi and Terence:* Thank you for believing in me when I did not, thank you for trusting my decisions and actions, and thank you for being sources of inspiration, solace and warmth for when things looked bleak. I have done it, the year is over, and I would never have had it any other way, tough as the whole journey was. Thank you, all of you. *To the seniors from the 29th, 30th and 31st Excos: *No one person, or indeed one single Exco, can function as well without such an amazing group of people to support them. Your help, assurances and counsel are invaluable when planning, organizing, and executing our events. To my predecessors, the effervescent *Yi Sheng* and the enigmatic *Yu Zheng*: You guys were great seniors to look up to; knowing that the high quality of previous events were in no small part due to your diligence, I aspired to match up to or even better your achievements. Yi Sheng, thanks for being a great Music Team TA before me and guiding me past pitfalls before I see them. Yu Zheng, thanks for being my Chinese Yoda on all issues Sojourn; I shall miss your sagely advice! *To the 32nd:* A year of experiences can scarcely be expressed so easily. We have gone through so many highs and lows together and come out of it better and stronger as a team. Despite the problems we’ve faced, I know that we are all dedicated to the welfare of our ICSS members and will go to great lengths to ensure that our members are taken care of. I also believe that we still have a passion, a burning passion inside of us to continue serving this society that cannot be extinguished. It was a tremendous and unforgettable experience working with all of you! *Sam*, we did it. Drinks on me. *Finally, to our successors, Gao Ming and Wei Yan:* As I end my Exco journey, you guys begin yours. Great challenges lie ahead, but bear in mind that nothing worth having comes easy. Follow your ideals, strive to make it happen and the end product will be worth all the effort you put in. The Eventfuls will always be ready to assist you in your odyssey! *Thank you everyone.* It has been a great honour serving all of you. Signing off for the final time, Lincoln Ang 32nd Events Officer 1 ------------------------------ 8. Final Words from our Events Officer, Sameer Its incredibly frightening how fast the year has gone past. It really feels like just yesterday when I was contemplating whether or not to run for the position. I vividly recall consulting numerous people and asking for their opinions on whether or not I should dedicate the following year to the society or whether I should instead focus on other aspects of my life. After heavy soul-searching, I decided to go ahead and to run for the position. While I have held leadership positions in the past, this was distinctly different. There was no one to report to, there were few limits, there was (relatively) little red tape and there were a lot of expectations. While there were always moments when I asked myself why I even ran for this position, I can now look back fondly and say that it was one of my better decisions. While there were numerous memorable occasions, I’ve decided to highlight some of them that have held great meaning to me. Sojourn. Everyone goes to Sojourn to be an OGL and to make a direct impact upon the freshers. But there were 2 individuals (at least I think its only the 2 of them), that were happy to just support the exco logistically. Kai Qin and Gerald Mak. Both of these people did everything they could to help us make Sojourn work. They carried massive loads, reminded us when we forgot a logistical task, helped us bury the waterbombs into the sand (Remember the treasure trove of 5 waterbombs in a single spot?) and basically took care of the hut while everyone went out to play. They were the real heroes. UKBound. There is way too much to talk about UKBound. I was convinced that the year 1 finals was hard and that UKBound couldn’t be worse. I have never been so wrong. Planning for UKBound has been one of the toughest things that I have ever done in my life and it would have massively flopped had it not been for people in the background. My exco aside, the number of times that Yi Sheng and Ting Wei called me, whatsapped me and met up with me to advise me and give me directions is truly uncountable. They stood by me despite the daunting task and helped me make it a spectacle. I was also incredibly touched and thankful for the support of my 2 photographers, my classmate and friend, Jeremy Kuek and once again, the hero from Sojourn, Gerald Mak. They basically helped take all the photos for UKBound without even asking for thanks or anything in general. And just to give an idea as to how hard it was to be a photographer for UKBound… heres a story There was one night, when we were doing a photoshoot at sentosa that we had a crisis. The lighting at the boardwalk was terrible and we were having difficulty getting the shots in. It was truly a daunting task. We started at 8pm and… ended at 3am. I remember going over to Gerald, seeing him drenched in sweat but refusing to drink his Gong Cha Milk Tea, let alone take a break. We spent the whole night just taking photos just so that we could release them over the weekend. The following week, he whatsapped me asking me what time I would like him to come down for the actual event as the event photographer. I was confused seeing as I never asked him to cover the event. This amazing guy had taken precious leave for UKBound and had decided to come down and cover the event because he knew I would have issues finding manpower and he wanted to help the society as much as he could. And it wasn’t just him. People like Jen Yi, Yu Zheng, Gabriel Wee, Chuan Khim, Zhen Yi and Ting Wei sacrificed their evening to help support us by manning the front of house and the stage props when we had trouble finding manpower at the very last minute. To the 32nds, thanks for the ride. Its been a long year but we’ve done it. Spectacularly. Every event, we did with heart and without restraint. We gave our all and everyone can see that. Every single one of you has helped me grow and learn. I know it hasn’t always been the smoothest of sailings – the rough summer, the torrid runup to ME, the countless side-tasks. While everyone knows me as the clown, you guys know that I can be serious and extremely firm on specifics (occasionally) Thanks Clivey for always looking at the big picture and for always having our back. You have gone beyond the call multiple times and sacrificed so much of your time for the society. It has been a tough journey, especially dealing with all of our fussiness and our quirks but you pulled it off. A term in office done. Good job Mr President. Jiahui, I promised you before we started this journey that I would have your back if you were the MEO and I hope I have lived up to it. You have truly done it – pulled off such a stellar ME that even people we know like Syazwan were raving about it. You have set the benchmark. (: Jingyi, not everyone knows how much you do. The Sotong Guide, the website redesign and even now… the forum. You are one of the most unselfish people I know and I truly am thankful to have worked with you. I know I trusted the right person with the inaugural gameshow and I think your work ethic is incredible. Weihao, its been a long run la. I’ve literally worked with you since our first few weeks at Imperial and already, you’re almost 2/3 done with the degree. Its going to be odd not seeing you every few days and not having you to talk to. Yu Quan, I really am thankful for everything you have done and contributed to the society. Especially with respect to the whole video montage for SFP and UKBound. Thanks for always giving in your best effort. Maung, 0$P$ hor. But on a more serious note… I don’t know how you managed to pull off all the finances and still stay sane. Thanks for being the light hearted, stress reliever in the group and for always having my back and getting me to cool down whenever I go overboard. I am going to miss all the stupid nonsense we say and do during our socials and all. Leon, you’re my man la. You know that. You’ve been one of my rocks (hahaha) and have always been there for me through this journey as a VP and as a brother. Nuff’said, later you call me …. . Next rounds on me. Lincoln, the other half of the incredible Events Duo, no more hilarious OGM and AGMs. Along with leon, you’ve been my other rock in keeping my steadfast and sane throughout this hectic, difficult year. I just as with Leon, I don’t know what else to say except thanks for being a bro and always always having my back. We are each other’s contingencies. Now for our next challenge, making sure the kids don’t mess up. You don’t study too hard ah. To the 30th and 31st and especially people I’ve had the pleasure of working with closely like Ting Wei, Yi Sheng (UKBounders) and Siming (Dance), thank you for your support and all of your advice. You guys were always there for us. To the 33rd, don’t for once think that its going to be an easy journey. Its not. But as long as you remember your reason for serving, you will go far. I can assure you that you guys are never alone and I am confident in your ability to succeed. To the new Events Duo, Lincoln and I have your back. 100% of the way. #events. And to everyone else, my housemates (Sky & KM), my coursemates, Yvette, Chloe & Nats, thanks for the support and for just always being there. (: And with that, for the last time, Cheers Your Friendly Events Officer, Sam ------------------------------ 9. Final Words from our Sports Officer, Yu Quan One year has passed since I took on this role in ICSS and I can say it has been a truly enriching and fulfilling experience. While I did not expect myself to be in this position today writing this letter, I certainly would not have had it any other way and would certainly like to thank a couple of people for helping me see through my term with the 32nd. *To the 32nd*, we started out barely knowing each other, only having exchanged a few hellos and byes in our first year in ICSS as freshers. However, this one year has allowed me to get to know each and every one of you personally. Working with you has been extremely enlightening and it is the support that all of you have given to me and to each other that we have managed to achieved what we have attained today. While the society may not understand or possibly fathom the sacrifices all of you have made, I can say for sure that we have stuck through thick and thin and emerged much stronger than when we first started out. We have definitely become a group of unlikely friends and I couldn’t have asked for a better team to work with! *To le housemates*, (Clive, Weihao, Bertram and Leon), although 4 out of the 5 of us are in ICSS, I think this still calls for a separate section. Thanks for all the meals and dinners! They were really one of the few things that I looked forward to after a day of hard work especially since you all took so much thought and effort to cook something nice every week. *To the climbing peeps*, I cannot express in words how much it means to me to be able to climb with you guys. As much as climbing may seem like an individual sport, it is the time off the walls where we chatted and laughed without worrying about our own personal lives for that period of time which I truly treasured. Looking forward to climbing with you guys every week, was probably what maintained my sanity and I am sincerely grateful for your company. *To ME15 Dance Team*, while I may not have danced with you all, each and every one of you have made those sessions much more bearable for me. While many of you may not have had any experience performing, much less dancing on stage, you all stuck through it and kept on going. Thank you all for your silliness and shenanigans! xD *To the Sports Reps*, thank you all for signing up to be in this position. I’m not sure if you knew what this role entailed back then but your cooperation and dedication was what allowed ICSS sports to thrive every week and provide the means for members to come together in a much more casual setting. Thanks for supporting me in my role as a Sports Officer and being the ‘unofficial exco’ of ICSS. *To ICSS*, thanks for your support in all our events! The 32nd is only as strong as its members are and the success of our events are solely attributed to each and every one of you. You have truly been a home away from home for me. *To Paxton and the 33rd*, thank you all for stepping up to this role. It will not come easy but I hope you guys will take away as much as we the 32nd did from this experience. All the best and I look forward all the wonderful events you all have to offer in the future! *And lastly to the one and only*, thank you for being there for me all the time. Nuff said :) Signing off for the last time, Your Sports Officer, Poh Yu Quan ------------------------------ 10. Final Words from our Liaisons Officer, Jingyi During Sojourn a fresher asked me why I joined the EXCO. My answer was actually never fixed to begin with; by then I was already pretty sure that my reason is not exactly the usual ‘I want to contribute back to ICSS’, and yet it is still along those lines. My answer to him was thus a somewhat cliché one-liner: “I want to serve people.” Fast forward to one week before AGM; it started dawning upon me that I will soon be letting go of the baton I picked up a year ago. I thought back to that moment in Sojourn. All along I had kept my answer somewhere at the back of my head; now that I have come to the end of my EXCO journey, is that still the answer I would give? When I stepped into the role I didn’t know what I was getting myself into. I guess, however, that time had given me the answer. I had plenty of crazy experiences, be it by myself or with my fellow EXCO members:
From staying up till 5am to finalise Sotong Guide, to making speech bubbles for the SFP photobooth, to sharing a taxi to Sentosa at 5am in preparation for Sojourn;
From embarrassing my (talented) friends in the UKBound gameshow pubs video, to Hall Walkabout in the heavy rain, to crashing some of the MEET sessions;
From fiddling around with the ICSS website (and quickly undoing the changes when the website turned into a white screen - OOPS!), to making honey lemon for Chorale; to finally standing proud on stage at curtain call, taking the final bow. These are just some of the moments I hold dear, moments that led me to grow as an individual. My greatest takeaway, however, is the one common characteristic that all these experiences had: the concept of sacrifice.
I came into the role knowing that forgoing sleep is a given (but I’m quite nocturnal so it’s fine!). Never did I know, however, that I could be so physically, mentally, emotionally invested into seeing something through and making sure it works. Never had I imagined myself to be capable of listening to every person who had something to talk about. Never had I thought of myself to be capable of caring for a team from the bottom of my heart, even if it means putting my own needs aside. And the most important thing is, I did it anyway because even though I was tired, I saw the smiles on people’s faces, and that gave me the strength to continue. I have thus found my answer to why I actually joined the EXCO: I wanted to commit myself to a position where I could invest my time and effort into people. And throughout my term in the 32nd EXCO, I was blessed with a lot of such opportunities. I had sincerely enjoyed serving you as Liaisons Officer, and for that, thank you for making the past year worthwhile for me. There are many people I want to give special mention to for helping me along this journey, so in no particular order: To the *29th,* *30th and 31st EXCOs*, for guiding us into our roles, your wise words and timely advice. A shout-out to my predecessor Yi Liang :) thank you for patiently answering my questions, being there when I needed a listening ear, and regularly making sure that I’m still alive happy and doing the job well! To the *House of 139*, for being understanding and supportive all along this journey. For the occasional surprise baked treats when I returned home late from meetings; for the feedback and reality checks; for supporting the ICSS activities and sports groups. Your presence has made the tough times more bearable and I thank you for being there for me :) To the *Sojourn & UKBound media design team*, for designing the publicity materials and doing media coverage at the two most important freshers’ events! You guys have gone all out to make sure everything was done on time and with the best quality possible. I would like to thank you for the sacrifices you’ve made during summer break to make this possible. We may not be the most visible team, but to me you guys are the ultimate ‘A’ team! To the *freshers/exchange students*, for reading the Sotong Guide and spamming me with questions over email/ Facebook/ Whatsapp :P Some of the things you guys asked me actually made my day (especially when I replied you guys in bed at 3am because of the time difference) :P :P It was fun interacting with you all, and I hope the information I provided had somewhat helped you in your first year in Imperial. To all my *friends who gave me feedback and advice at any point along the year*. Be it htht, suggestions or reality checks, you guys had provided me with the info I needed to evaluate my own performance and think of ways to serve you better. Your voices had been really important to me and I appreciate the support! To my *coursemates*, for being understanding when I appeared tired or moody in class, for explaining lecture content to me when I couldn’t catch up, for making sure I still eat and sleep properly, for putting the smile back onto my face with your weird antics and jokes! You guys have really made the journey less stressful for me; without you, I really won’t know where I would be right now. Thank you for supporting me at Major Event too <3 To the *Major Event Music team*, for making Chorale possible in the first place. You guys have done tremendous amounts of work so that the singers can function, and for that I’m really grateful! Special shout-out to the songwriters for being so open to suggestions/comments about the songs and tirelessly writing/rewriting them, for being ever so patient and dedicated in your work :) To *everyone who was involved in singing for Major Event*. Aka Chorale team, main cast and vocal coaches :) I guess the “chorale mum” title kind of stuck lol but let’s see how long you guys can continue calling me that! Jokes aside, thank you for being a really, really awesome bunch to work with. You guys have stuck with me through all the tough times, and I’m glad you have enjoyed yourselves in the end. Hope to see you guys coming by to help out in ME2016! To the *32nd EXCO*. Nine of us, each with rather different personalities, weaknesses and strengths, came into office not knowing what’s next; and before we knew it we have somehow stepped down. There were definitely ups and downs but the most important thing is that we have grown together; and if not for EXCO, I don’t think I would ever have found this bunch of great and reliable buddies! Thank you for the great year, and I will miss the days we spent as a team. <3 Last but not least, to *all of you*, for sticking by me for the past year :) I hope you would continue holding this ‘home away from home’ close to you. To Ivan and the 33rd Exco, good luck for the year ahead and remember to have fun! :) So for the last time, thank you and we hope to see you soon. (sounds familiar?) You guys are the reason I stepped up, and I will cherish every memory of it. Cheers from your (ex) Liaisons Officer, Jing Yi ------------------------------ http ://www . union . ic . ac . uk/osc/singapore/ <http://e.groupspaces.com/click/5n8u9-1ez6m-1x4pls22wg?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.union.ic.ac.uk%2Fosc%2Fsingapore%2F> To unsubscribe, visit https://mailman . ic . ac . uk/mailman/listinfo/icu-singsoc <http://e.groupspaces.com/click/5n8u9-1ez6m-1x4pls22wg?u=https%3A%2F%2Fmailman.ic.ac.uk%2Fmailman%2Flistinfo%2Ficu-singsoc> Powered by GroupSpaces <http://e.groupspaces.com/click/5n8u9-1ez6m-1x4pls22wg?u=http%3A%2F%2Fgroupspaces.com%2F¬rack> - Manage your group online <http://e.groupspaces.com/click/5n8u9-1ez6m-1x4pls22wg?u=http%3A%2F%2Fgroupspaces.com%2F¬rack> <http://e.groupspaces.com/click/5n8u9-1ez6m-1x4pls22wg?u=http%3A%2F%2Fgroupspaces.com%2F¬rack>
