Dr Soon (fifth left) joining others at the cutting of cake to mark the birthdays of members in the month of May.
SIBU: The Sibu Island Club is offering a 50 per cent discount on membership fee for government servants and female applicants in an effort to attract more people to the club.
The club holds its centennial celebration next year.
It was founded in 1915 by a group of British administrative officers who were then serving in and around Sibu.
About 50 years later in 1968, by virtue of his position as Sibu Resident, Datuk Peter Tinggom became the first local to become president.
He was succeeded by Datuk Ting Ming Hoi, and since then the Island Club’s president has always been a local.
The club has all the while be perceived as a rich men’s club, a perception its current president Datuk Dr Soon Choon Teck is hoping to change.
“I want to change the people’s perception that Island Club is a rich men’s club or an old men’s club,” he told about 150 members and supporters attending a Members’ Night dinner last Saturday.
Dr Soon also urged more young people to join the club to make it more vibrant.
“Island Club is a healthy organisation whereby members can bring their families and friends to socialise and also to enjoy the recreational activities it offers at the club premises at Sungai Merah, such as swimming, playing badminton, squash, table tennis and dart,” the president said.
The club has facilities for barbecue, a mini bar and a dancing cum karaoke hall.
To encourage more people to join the club, Dr Soon disclosed that until June 30, both male and female government servants and female applicants from the public joining the club would only have to pay RM500 for membership fee (usual fee is RM1,000) on top of RM250 for refundable deposit and another RM250 for the credit in applicant’s account meant for paying the food and beverages bills.
The offer includes the waiving of monthly subscription fee of RM35 (RM420 a year) for all new members joining the club during the promotion period for the first year. However life membership fee of RM5,000 remains unchanged.
For details, call 084-334014.
Meanwhile, Dr Soon revealed at the dinner gathering that the club’s management had agreed to a proposed joint development of part of the land owned by Island Club for modern shop houses.
“It is anticipated that with this development, Island Club will be more financially stable and will in turn able to provide more benefits and better facilities for members,” he explained.
Presently, the club has more than 300 members and it is affiliated to 17 similar clubs in Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Kong.