THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 8. 1979
5.
MR LAM HAS SERVED IN THE MARINE DEPARTMENT FOR MORE THAN 33 YEARS, ENTERING FIRST AS A SEAMAN IN 1945. HE WAS PROMOTED TO COXSWAIN CLASS 11 TWO YEARS LATER AND IN 1974 BECAME SENIOR COXSWAIN.
HE HAD TAKEN COMMAND OF VARIOUS LAUNCHES AND HAS BEEN COMPLIMENTED ON MANY OCCASIONS REGARDING HIS EXEMPLARY PERFORMANCE AND HIS EFFICIENT HANDLING OF BOTH VESSELS AND CREWS UNDER HIM.
IN 1975 HE WAS AWARDED THE BRITISH EMPIRE MEDAL FOR LOYAL AND DISTINGUISHED SERVICE TO THE GOVERNMENT.
HIS FAMILY HAS NEVER BEEN LINKED WITH THE SEA. +I BECAME
A SEAMAN SIMPLY BECAUSE THE JOB WAS THERE... YOU KNOW
IT WAS HARD TO FIND A JOB IN THE EARLY 1940'S,+ HE SAID. BUT HE SOON FOUND IT WAS A LABOUR OF LOVE, RATHER THAN JUST A JOB.
WHEN HE JOINED THE MARINE DEPARTMENT IN 1945 HE SAID HIS SALARY WAS $60 A MONTH. HIS SALARY, AS SENIOR COXSWAIN, IS MORE THAN $2 400.
MR LAM IS MARRIED AND HAS SIX CHILDREN
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FIVE BOYS AND A GIRL.
TWO OF MY SONS ARE WITH GOVERNMENT. ONE OF THEM HAS FOLLOWED MY FOOTSTEPS AND HAS JOINED THE MARINE DEPARTMENT, AND THE OTHER IS WITH THE NEW TERRITORIES ADMINISTRATION,
MR LAM SAID.
AS MR LAM LEFT GOVERNMENT HOUSE, MANY FRIENDS, INCLUDING THE CHIEF SECRETARY, SIR JACK CATER, WISHED HIM GOOD Lúck.
LUCK.
PRISONS DEPARTMENT GETS PAT ON THE BACK
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REPRESENTATIVES OF TWO VILLAGES IN SAI KUNG THANKED THE PRISONS DEPARTMENT TODAY (THURSDAY) FOR HELPING THEM TO CONSTRUCT A FOOTBRIDGE AND CONVERT A FOOTBALL PITCH INTO A SPORTS FIELD.
TO MARK THEIR APPRECIATION THE REPRESENTATIVE OF TUM WAT VILLAGE, MR WONG YUEN-LEUNG, AND THE REPRESENTATIVE OF TAI PO TSAI VILLAGE, MR WON SHU-PUI, PRÉSENTED BANNERS TO THE SUPERINTENDENT OF PIK UK PRISON, MR CHUN CHAK-LAM.
A SOPKESMAN FOR THE PRISONS DEPARTMENT SAID THE NINE-METRE-LONG CONCRETE FOOTBRIDGE WAS BUILT BY PRISONERS FROM PIK UK PRISON FOR VILLAGERS IN TUM WAT TO FACILITATE THEIR CROSSING A MOUNTAIN TORRENT. +BEFORE, THE VILLAGERS HAD TO RISK THEIR LIVES BY CROSSING THE TORRENT ON STEPPING STONES.+
+THE CONVERSION OF A FOOTBALL PITCH INTO A SPORTS FIELD IN TAI PO TSAI PROVIDES THE VILLAGERS AS WELL AS THE GENERAL PUBLIC A MULTI-PURPOSE SPORTS FIELD IN THE AREA. IT WAS ALSO DONE BY PRISONERS FROM PIK UK PRISON, HE SAID.
THE SPOKESMAN