Happy Mid Autumn Festival 2012

 

To all boys and girls, Happy Mid Autumn Festival!

Notice of Annual General Meeting 2012

Please be informed that the Annual General Meeting is scheduled to be held on:

Date: 6 October 2012
Time: 10.00am (registration will begin at 9.30am)
Venue: Multi purpose hall, Changkat View Condominium
Agenda:

1) Opening address by the Chairman of Changkat View Condomunium JMB.
2) To deliberate on the audited accounts for the period ended 31st December 2011.
3) To confirm purchase of all the insurance coverage effected by the Body.
4) To decide whether to confirm or vary amount of current service charges and sinking fund paid by the parcel owners.
5) To determine the interest payable by the purchases in respect of the late payment charges towards the Building Maintenance Fund.
6) To determine the number of members of the Joint Management Committee and to elect the Joint Management Committee for term 2012/2013.
7) To transact any other business of which due notice shall have been given in writting addressed to Changkat View Condominium JMB on or before 5.00pm of 1 October 2012 which is to be sent to the Management office of Changkat View Condominium.

Thanks and hope to see you there.

Madam Ellen Yeow, 1947-2012

As we bid farewell to our dearest Chairlady, here's the journey of her life. Indeed, we have lost a dedicated leader but her principle of life, will always be our guide in facing obstacles and challenges. Following is special report from The Star.


Cheers, Ellen

By SUZANNE LAZAROO

star2@thestar.com.my


Malaysia’s wine scene recently bid farewell to Ellen Yeow, one of the pioneers of the industry. We raise a glass in memory of a trailblazer.


ELLEN Yeow had tannins running through her veins. Had she been poured into a glass, she would have been a complex, formidable red, those tannins forming a solid backbone but leading into a long, sweet finish. That was Tai Kar Cheh Ellen (big sister Ellen) to those who knew her, a fitting moniker for the lady who cut such a swathe in a traditionally male-dominated wine scene, and paved the way for many more to follow.

Ellen Yeow, 1947–2012

Yeow died on Aug 21, at the age of 65, after a battle with cancer; her good friends raised one of many last toasts to her in a memorial verse in The Star: “In fertile hills/ along the vines/ and sun kissed grapes/ her spirit walks/ her laughter/ bubbles in a Champagne flute/ her scoldings/ sharp as new born malt/ her friendship/ sweet fragrant dessert wine/ in the deep depths of a dark hued red/ her very being shines/ her soul now/ at journeys end/ in the vineyard of The Lord”. It was a meaningful, wine-sprinkled tribute to an old friend, now far away.

“I can just hear her say ‘such bad verse – can’t you do better than that!’ ... that’s dear Ellen for you!” says lawyer Wong Swee Min, one of the poets and a childhood friend. Together with his younger brother, and Yeow and her cousins, they formed a small band of brothers (and sister) in their stomping grounds of the Hicks Road-Tong Shin Terrace area (now Changkat Bukit Bintang) in KL.

He recalls her as more “snips and snails and puppy dogs’ tails” than “sugar and spice” – hers was a feisty, strong personality that was to stand her in good stead later, when she joined the wine industry.

In the 1970s, the wine industry in Malaysia was still in the embryonic stages, with just a few individuals striving to bring wine culture into the country. Yeow was one of these dedicated wine-lovers.

She joined importers and distributors Caldbeck MacGregor right after she graduated from Britain and returned to KL; although she initially knew very little about spirits and wine, she soon developed a keen interest to complement an already refined palate.

“There weren’t too many women in the wine and spirits industry then, she was among the very first,” says Wong. “That made her unique, and coupled with her friendly and pleasant disposition, willingness to learn and industrious nature, it meant that the macho bosses and veteran colleagues went out of their way to take her under their wings and teach her the trade.

“And being able to match them glass for glass was no doubt a great help when it came to being accepted as ‘one of the boys’,” he adds.

Her sharp palate and great olfactory senses made it easy for her to learn the trade quickly, and sniff out grape treasures.

A passion for fine wine and the art of marketing it was born; and as Yeow’s knowledge and experience grew, so did her involvement with the gourmet scene and several international organisations. She served as president of the KL branch of the International Wine and Food Society from 2000 to 2003, during which time she was awarded the Bronze Andre Simon Medallion.


In 2001, Yeow joined Asiaeuro Wines and Spirits as a consultant advisor, a post she retained to the end. She was responsible for developing the wine portfolio for both New and Old World wines, but was considered an expert particularly in the field of French wines.

“Her keen interest and vast knowledge in this field took Asiaeuro to great heights,” says Toh Sek Piew, Asiaeuro’s operations director and a long-time collaborator of Yeow’s.

“She always had a keen eye for good wines with good value. And during her tenure here at Asiaeuro, she trained a few wine aficionados with strict guidance and tremendous pressure – she only wanted to work with the crème of the crop!”

“Ellen was a loyal and kind friend, and a diligent mentor – however, she was not one to suffer fools gladly! Few are her friends and co-workers who have not at one time or another been soundly scolded for what she considered acts of foolishness or inappropriate conduct,” recalls Wong with fondness.

Yeow believed that everyone should drink the best wine they could afford, with a constant admonishment to not “waste precious liver and stomach space” on plonk.

“Her passion for wine and her willingness to share her knowledge and her bottles of wines and malts brought many of us to not only the enjoyment of them, but also to an understanding and deeper appreciation of their respective subtleties,” says Wong.

“For certain she helped develop the fine wine market in Malaysia beyond plonk and the mundane and ordinary. And she foreshadowed the acceptance and progress of women in the world of wines and sprits in this country – not by the glimmer of a shapely leg glimpsed in a cheongsam slit but by sheer talent and perseverance,” he adds.

Yeow has embarked on her last journey now, no doubt wineglass in hand. The only thing left to say is: Salut and safe passage.