Friends from Vancouver are Back Again

I was quite surprised to receive a WhatsApp message from Vun Kai in the afternoon of 11.02.2026, informing me that he and his wife had returned to KK. At first, I thought they had intentionally come back early to celebrate Chinese New Year, which was less than a week away on 17 February. However, I later learned that their main purpose this time was to attend the wedding banquet of his nephew in Sandakan - the son of his younger brother.

Time truly flies. The last time we met was nearly two years ago, on 29.04.2024 (Read here) . As is our usual practice when friends return from overseas, we spent a morning on 13.02.2026 at a local restaurant, enjoying the fresh seafood for which KK is well known. Interestingly, we chose the same place where we had breakfast last June with Daniel and his wife, Carol, who had returned from Vancouver for their holidays (Read here).

During our conversation, Vun Kai shared the challenges of travelling from Vancouver back to KK. With advancing age, being confined to a seat for such a long-haul journey has become increasingly exhausting. Crossing multiple time zones and enduring a flight from a place 16 hours behind our local time is no easy task. His reflections made me realize that future homecomings may become less frequent.

When we talked about how he spends his time in retirement, his wife was quick to share that Vun Kai has taken on the daily task of picking up their grandchildren from their daughters’ homes and sending them to school. After dropping them, he goes for an hour-long walk around a nearby park. In the afternoon, when school ends, he returns to pick up the grandchildren and send them home.

With a smile, Vun Kai added, “If I don’t do this, what do I do?” His simple remark reveals a meaningful routine - one that allows him to bond with his grandchildren while keeping himself active and healthy.

After the meal, I drove them to the old BCCM KK church premises at Signal Hill. This was a familiar place to them, where they had once spent a significant part of their youth as church members and choir singers in the 1960s and early 1970s, before the church relocated to its current site near the Dah Yeh Villa traffic junction.

One obvious change he immediately noticed was that the church entrance had been shifted from the east to the west.

We met again on Sunday morning, 15.02.2026, at church. After the church service and as we looked around for familiar faces he once knew, we noticed that they had become fewer with each passing year. With a gentle smile, he quipped, “Well, it’s not surprising - I’ve been away from Sabah for almost 34 years!”

It was hard to believe that so much time had passed since he left in 1992. This reality may also discourage him from returning more often, knowing that there are now fewer old friends to look forward to meeting.

Still, moments like these remind us of the enduring value of friendship, shared memories, and the preciousness of every reunion.

Company's Pre-CNY Annual Dinner 2026

Pre-Chinese New Year (CNY) annual dinners have been a long-standing tradition of the company, dating back to its inception in the late 1980s. As the company grew over the years and welcomed a diverse workforce drawn from Sabah’s multi-ethnic communities, this tradition naturally expanded. Annual lunch and dinner gatherings were subsequently introduced to also mark the Christmas season and Hari Raya, reflecting our inclusive culture and appreciation of cultural diversity.

The most recent pre-CNY annual dinner was held on 02.02.2026 at a local seafood restaurant. This year’s gathering saw a record attendance of thirty participants, comprising twenty-seven staff members - including the directors and the spouses of the directors. The strong turnout was a testament to a growing workforce and the close-knit spirit and sense of belonging within the company.

As is customary for a Chinese New Year reunion meal, the dinner began with lou sang, where participants gathered around the table to toss a colourful salad together, symbolising prosperity, good fortune, and abundance for the year ahead.

Group photo after the dinner.

***********************************************

Group photo after the dinner on 21.01.2025.

Last year’s Pre-CNY Annual Dinner was held on 21.01.2025 at the Shangri-La Tanjong Aru Resort, attended by twenty-seven participants. It was an evening of warmth and fellowship, offering another moment to pause and appreciate the journey we have taken together. For more insights into the company’s annual CNY dinners and lunches during the earlier years, please (Read here).

*************************************************

I joined the company in 1989, just one year after its establishment, and over the past decades I have witnessed its steady and resilient growth. The company has been fortunate to receive a continuous flow of work, allowing it to sustain operations and provide stable employment through both good times and challenging periods. Significantly, no staff members have ever been retrenched. Even during the trying years of the 1997 global financial crisis, the company chose compassion over expediency, implementing reduced working hours so that every employee could remain on the payroll.

As I reflected during the dinner, it was striking to realize that nearly thirty-eight years have passed since the company first commenced practice. Many among the present group had not yet been born when this journey began. Over the years, countless individuals have come and gone, each leaving their mark and contributing in their own way to the company’s story.

From its inception, the objective of the company has been clear: to contribute meaningfully to the infrastructural development of the State, thereby uplifting the well-being of the local community. At the same time, the company has sought to provide a platform for successive generations to apply their skills and knowledge, earn an honest living, support their families, and pursue their aspirations. This, I believe will continue to be the core value in guiding the company's practice.