The stage is set for an unforgettable evening of dance, music, and lots of fun at this year’s FOM Bollywood-themed Volunteer Appreciation Night! 

Think colourful, bold, and sparkly attire! Are you ready to party and celebrate another great year of volunteering?!

In A New Light: Rediscovering Francis Light with the Penang Chronicles

The story of Captain Francis Light, founder of Penang, is known mainly through colonial era biographers. They make scant mention of his enigmatic wife, Martinha Rozells or the peoples of the 18 th century Straits.  The Penang Chronicles (Dragon, Pearl and Emporium) revisit the narrative anew, asking some new questions of the historical evidence in a fresh look at this pivotal moment in the history of the region.  In this lively presentation, Rose Gan will offer a different perspective and take us through her personal journey of recreating an authentic Martinha Rozells for a modern audience.

About the speaker

British by birth, Rose Gan has been based in South East Asia for many years with her Malaysian husband and family, having lived in Bangkok, Penang and Jakarta. With an academic background in Ancient and Medieval History and Classical languages, Rose worked for many years as a teacher and then later as a docent at various museums in Malaysia and Indonesia. Rose has also contributed to various museums publications as both writer and editor. Now based in Kuala Lumpur, Rose is mostly tied to her desk writing her next novel when not travelling, knitting (a singularly useless hobby in Malaysia) and inevitably perfecting her sourdough bread.

Since 2005, every year and again, we would like to ask for your participation in one of the most challenging and gracious deeds, the nominations for the Salome De Decker Award.  Why challenging?.... because the award is presented each year to one and only FOM volunteer who quietly and positively contributes time and skills to FOM and models our values :  teamwork, respect, giving freely and growing through service to others. 

To know more about the Salome de Decker Award and the past years winners, please see the FOM web page About Us/Salome de Decker Award 

To submit your nomination, please, ONLY use this form "Call for the SdD Nominations 2024".  You can nominate two persons maximum.  The deadline is Tuesday, April 16, 2024 @ 6 pm.  

Who can qualify for the award?  All three conditions should apply:

1. A member, who actively volunteered for the FOM for a minimum of 12 months;

2. A volunteer, whose contributions are viewed as valuable in terms of quantity and quality; and 

3. a volunteer who does not hold a leadership positions in FOM for the past year, e.g. a Council members, MAC leaders, Co-heads of Training, Co-heads of Research, etc

Please, include brief and clear explanation to back up the qualification for the award of your candidate(s)

While we realise how difficult it is to name only one or two candidates, the true value of this award is to symbolically recognise all volunteers’ contribution to the FOM.  The winner will be announced at the Annual Volunteer Appreciation Night 2024 and on the FOM  webpage of the Salome de Decker Award. 

Thank you!