IN MEMORIAM
MR LEE SENG WEE
1930 - 2015
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It
is with deep sadness that the
ACS family learned of the
passing of Mr Lee Seng Wee on
August 7th. On behalf of the ACS
family, the ACS Board of
Governors, ACS (International)
and ACS (Independent) Boards of
Management, the ACS Old Boys’
Association and the ACS
Foundation pay tribute to Mr Lee
as a loyal Old Boy, gentleman,
benefactor, pioneer and pillar
of ACS.
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Mr Lee was a student of ACS in the 1940s, and the
youngest son of the late Mr Lee Kong Chian, who many
of us know as a successful businessman, but whose most
lasting legacy is arguably as a philanthropist.
In a statement released by OCBC Bank, where Mr. Lee
Seng Wee was the former Chairman,
"He had always guided the running of OCBC Bank
with the highest integrity and the biggest heart,” said
the OCBC statement, adding that Mr Lee always cared
for employee welfare and made sure no staff was laid
off during financial crises. He also placed a focus on
career development for employees.
He was described as a “very honourable man”, who
was “always so humble and self-effacing whenever he
was asked about his achievements”.
And yet despite his accolades and material success, Mr
Lee and his family never failed to heed the call of the
less privileged. The ACS schools have been the direct
beneficiaries of their big heartedness and willingness
to serve the community.
The Lee family has been one of the ACS family’s biggest
and strongest benefactors, for which ACS must always
be grateful. Generations of ACS students have been
blessed, and continue to be blessed, by the Lee family’s
generosity. The ACS family has been the beneficiaries
of the Lee Kuo Chuan building in the 1950s, the Lee
Kong Chian block and auditorium on the Barker Road
site, to the various ACS causes that the Lee Foundation
continues to support across our ACS schools. The legacy
of the Lees perseveres through the Lee Seng Gee House
in our ACS House system which is the foundation of a
distinctive tradition that we know and feel as the ‘ACS
Spirit’.
As ONE ACS, we held a family-wide tribute to the late Mr
Lee during the week of August 10th during which our ACS
schools delivered the same devotion of remembrance
followed by a minute of silence.
In the devotion, 3 core messages summarised the legacy
that Mr Lee leaves behind for the young men and women
of the ACS family.
A –
ADVANCEMENT. To always look forward and focus on
improvement. The Lee Foundation was created to
aid “the advancement of education, medicine and
culture”. True to the ACS motto of ‘The Best Is Yet To
Be’, we must never rest on our laurels and strive for
greater heights in everything we do.
C –
COMPASSION To be sensitive to others and to
seek to alleviate human suffering. Mr Lee was a
compassionate employer who put himself in the shoes
of his employees. We too, can do this in our own
school by small acts of kindness and consideration
towards our teachers and schoolmates.
S –
SERVICE. To be open-hearted and serve God, country,
family and society with both pride and humility.
Decades after leaving ACS, Mr Lee and his brothers
continued to give back to their alma mater and to
Singapore.
We were also reminded of the words of the Lord from
Luke 12:48 which say:
“From everyone who has been given much, much will be
demanded, and from the one who has been entrusted
much, much more will be asked”.
Indeed, the late Mr Lee Seng Wee embodied this verse
by sharing much.
We as ACSians all know that we too have been blessed
with a unique education rich with history and tradition.
Our benefactors, alumni and supporters have rallied
around us in our times of need. So even as we look back
at the contributions of giants before us, we must also look
forward to ensure that the ACS culture of sharing our
blessings with the future generations endures.
Only then, can ACS be assured that ‘The Best Is Yet To Be’. |
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