The Farewell Dinner 2

Salam.

Let's continue where we left off.

I mentioned that traditionally the final year students would have to organize their own graduation dinner. Normally it would've been told at the beginning of the year, so that students can manage time between work and studies well; but that wasn't the case for our batch where we were told almost at the end of the final posting. So that messed up our studies quite a bit.

Good news for the subsequent batches, however! At the recent FPSK USIM Academic Workshop 2011 that three of the first batch graduates attended, we suggested that the graduation dinner be organized annually by the MSC. The Dean agreed.

Anyway, here's what I did when after I suicidally volunteered to be the programme head:

1) I formed my committee:

It was easy to choose people skilled enough to work while studying for the finals, but it was not easy trying to convince them. Nevertheless, after seven years of friendship, we know when we have to put aside personal grudges, work together and sacrifice a bit towards a common goal.

Delegated jobs were carried out willingfully and with full cooperation by everyone. It's as simple as asking one to make the brochure, and she'd arrange the contents, select the appropriate artwork and print them out.. all by herself!

2) We selected a good venue:

At first, we viewed the dinner as an annoyance, so we wanted to do it at a cheap but acceptable place. Cincai la. We chose the UKM KRU as our venue. Despite its simpleness, it was a nostalgic place since we had our Tamhidi dinner there. The price was RM50 per head.

But the Dean did not agree to this. He wanted a place of grandeur to properly send us off. He wanted the top university men (plus our former VC) to come and celebrate our graduation.

So, after a bit of grumbling, then searching and suggestions from friends, we chose Seri Pacific Hotel for the dinner. The price for a Chinese dinner was RM110 per head for about 80 attendees. "That's better," the Dean agreed, with a smile on his face.

Another item that the Dean would specifically ask for is the karaoke event. It was either the faculty PA system or the hotel hiring a professional group to set it all up plus bringing all the karaoke songs for RM1000. Due to certain circumstances, we chose the latter.

So roughly, (80 guests x RM110) + RM1000 = RM9800!

3) We collected the fees:

To be honest, I didn't collect anything. AP Dr Shahrir collected RM150 from each of the staff (nobody is willing to pay a quite exorbitant amount, but hey, it's the first batch :P ); and I delegated one student to collect RM100 per student head. The Dean also enforced his authority by demanding payment from some of the stubborn lecturers.

Initially, while collection was in progress, the hotel would ask for some financial deposit in order to safely book the grand ballroom for the event. AP Dr Shahrir was generous enough to use RM3000 of his money for that purpose.

Then, the Dean took over the financial management. He would demand the collected money, pay back what was owed to AP Dr Shahrir, add in a few extra RM for the working staff (IT, photography), add in RM1000 that was generously sponsored by our former VC, and at the end of the dinner, he would pay the hotel using his cheque. 

Efficiency comes from experience. So to whoever will be handling this event later, if the Dean argues against something you planned or suggested, he's right and you're wrong.

4) We prepared the shows:

As a staple of every dinner event, there's a slot for a slideshow. Since we didn't have the luxury of time, we made the presentation simple but accompanied by the most important element - sad, sad music. Nothing works the tear glands like nostalgic photos and depressing piano riffs. 

Some of us also liked singing, so the karaoke sessions were spread throughout the dinner. Two students (plus one wife) sang nasyeed songs; three students went onstage together to sing a youthful song badly; AP Dr Shahrir crooned a song for his parents; the Dean attempted to sing one of Shahir AF8's song and well, let's just say that he's not that young anymore; Dato Dr Mahmud dedicated a song to the newly weds; and after it was over, some of the students and staff were forced by the Dean to sing onstage as well.

I was forced to sing too.. for the first time ever in my life. The Youtube embed code for the song (not me singing) is not working, so here.

We had a great time during the dinner. Everyone was there to wave us goodbye, even old Tamhidi teachers and preclinical lecturers.

The lesson of the day for me was that as I reached through old contacts in Nilai to get the car plates of the VIPs (for the special ballroom parking), I realized that making a lot of friends here and there does have its long-term benefits. And oh, singing badly at the top off your lungs really pushes all the stress away.

It was an awesome dinner, and those involved were awesome friends.

I tried to salvage what I could from this lowlight smartphone shot.

But despite all the happiness, we must also remember those who didn't make it and help them as best as we can. InsyaAllah we'll see them during the convocation in December!


p/s Because this is already too long a post, I didn't touch upon a lot of important but minor details e.g. dress code.. you know, just in case someone arrives in sandals :P