Teo Yu Hao beat all odds to become the Manhunt champion this year.

Amidst cheering and camera flashes at the central podium of The Heeren, Teo Yu Hao, 21, a Nanyang Technological University undergraduate, strutted his way to glory as he emerged as the champion of Manhunt Singapore 2009.

Teo was a surprise win — he was, in fact, a replacement for a contestant who withdrew at the eleventh hour. But despite the odds, Teo smiled and strided his way into the judges’ hearts and clinched the sought-after title. He will be participating in Manhunt International held in South Korea, later in August this year.

“I didn’t participate to win; I just wanted the experience,” Teo told City News matter-of-factly. This statement is no surprise to many of his close friends, who describe him as “unassuming and an extremely nice guy”.

From his evenly tanned body and his sinewy physique, one can safely conclude that Teo is a lover of sports. Basketball, marathon running, and soccer were ones of the many that he eagerly participated since he was in secondary school. “He is really a superb (soccer) player,” comments members of his soccer team, De Royale.

Teo is a seasoned pageant participator and Prom King during his junior college days.

What may surprise many is the fact that Teo is also a trained Chinese opera singer, who made his debut performance when he was only 15. He is very family-oriented and places high importance on filial piety; he is constantly stereotyped as the “very good boy” among his peers. His portrayal depicts the quintessence of any girl’s Mr Right: Teo Yu Hao, the tall, dark, handsome, sensitive family man.

When asked what his motivation in life was, Teo shared a shocking near-death experience he had during his national service. Teo was an officer and a naval diver, and during one of his routine training sessions, he fainted while running and was left unconscious for three hours. He later found out from the doctors that he had suffered a heat stroke and almost lost his life. Teo states, “I have become more determined than ever to live life to the fullest! I can’t waste my talents and skills… I have to use them for the glory of God!”

PHOTOS: Daniel Poh and Wayne Tan

Good looks are a gift Teo uses well. His ardent fans would tell you that it is his million-dollar smile that melted the hearts of everyone present, in every competition he has taken part in.

This confirms his motto in life, “Smile, for it makes the world go round!”

Held over two consecutive Saturdays on 14 and 21 March at a park near Tampines Sports Hall, the Sports Fest was an event organized by a zone led by Audrey Ng, a Zone Pastor of City Harvest Church.

It saw a turnout of more than a hundred people, with a large portion of the participants being new friends. The objective was to have fun and form teams to compete in a popular games like basketball, street soccer, and captain’s ball. There were also two novelty games, dodge ball and frisbee.

Wesley Chan, 16, a member in the organizing committee said, “I thought having frisbee available as a filler game in between waiting for matches was really cool. It helped me to relax and have fun with my friends.” He went on to explain that for those who are less inclined towards sports like basketball or soccer can try their hand at dodgeball and frisbee, which are considerably less physical and competitive.

Another interesting feature was the mixed-gender Captain’s Ball teams as teams consisted of representative from each gender. Hah Zeng Min, a referee at the event, was impressed that the “girls gave the guys a run for their money” and put up a good fight.

At the end of the day, regardless of whether they won or lost, all the teams enjoyed themselves tremendously and not even the rain could dampen the spirits of the participants, as many were seen smiling as they made their exit.

Chan believes that the day of playing sports together with his friends helped him to bond with them. He applauds the zone for organizing such an event, and hopes similar ones will be organized in the future. “It gave us the opportunity to bring our friends to join us to have fun, bond with our churchmates as well as let people know that we Christians are capable of having fun.” Judging by the show of solidarity in the shared hugs and warm pats on the backs at the end of the event, he must have been right.

Where: 200 Victoria St. Bugis Junction #02-51 Singapore 188021

Dining in the ambience of an English cottage while feasting on French-Japanese cuisine in the middle of Bugis Junction is a strange but wonderful experience.

The homely feel of Ma Maison will draw you in with its cozy, barely-there lighting, fringed curtains, charming old clocks and crockery lining the walls. You get the feeling you’ve just been invited into the kitchen of someone’s loving old granny (well, okay, someone’s European granny, that is).

Ma Maison means “my home” in French — and it is every bit as warm as its moniker suggests. If there is one downside, it is the fact that the dim lighting can be rather inadequate, so walking around the restaurant in the evening may require some groping around.

The day my companion and I were there, the service staff were extremely polite and the food was excellent.

We tucked into a velvety mushroom soup and a fresh crisp salad — two starters that came with the hamburger set. The yummy pork and beef hamburger comes doused in its special black sauce, creating a perfect blend of meaty flavors.

Next, we tried the Neapolitan ketchup and herb pasta, cooked to al dente perfection and served in a generous portion. This simple but delicious dish is bound to be a favorite with kids.

I highly recommend the Panfried Dory in Basil Cream Sauce. The light and flaky fish comes swimming in a fantastic basil cream sauce, with soft, golden roasted potatoes on the side. It seems Ma Maison can do no wrong when it comes to their sauces. Perfecto!

Rating:

(As told to Elizabeth Low)

Since the Filipino Fellowship kicked off, Friday nights have never been the same for Filipinos here in Singapore. This time, the Economic Development Board (EDB) Learning Center in Bukit Merah was packed with a group of energetic and fun-loving Filipinos for a joyful evening of entertainment, games and Filipino cuisine on the night of 27 March 2009.

The main hall and the children’s room were decorated with colored flags commonly known as banderitas and it brought back fond memories of the fiestas held in their respective towns in Philippines. 158 attendees, half of which were new friends, took turns playing carnival games such as Dart Ball, Shoot That Ring and Shoot That Ball. Filipinos are renowned for their talent in singing and as such, having a karaoke session was also an absolute necessity for such an occasion.

All Males Singing Group – “Back to Life”

Newly-formed band “Back to Life” and all-female dance group “Single Ladies” performed a medley of local and international pop favorites as the crowd got on their feet and grooved to the beat. When it was time for the Bingo Bonanza, loud cheers erupted and three winners went home with fantastic cash prizes.

All Female Dance Group – “Single Ladies”

Rommel Aviles, the emcee of the event, found the crowd engaged throughout the entire evening. Visitors were happy to be invited to the fiesta and commented that they found a new family in Singapore. Elle Taan, a youth in her 20s, wished that it had been a whole day event so they could have more bonding moments.

The first thing that comes to mind when Filipinos think of fiestas is an overflow of food and drinks that lasts for days. In true Filipino style, generous portions of sumptuous pork adobo, menudo and maja blanca were served to satisfy their craving for homecooked Filipino dishes.

PHOTOS: ANTHONETTE VALDEMORO

Hansen Sy, one of the leaders of the Filipino Fellowship, gives a spiritual background on fiestas and shared the rationale for such merriment. In biblical times, God ordained feasts for the Israelites to faithfully observe and they are for the purpose of rest, refreshment and remembrance of the Lord’s goodness. This remains relevant in these present times regardless of religion or cultural differences.

With a team of committed individuals, the Filipino Fellowship continues to plan and spearhead gatherings to connect Filipinos in Singapore. The group seeks to provide mutual support and help them cope with living and working in Singapore. Initiatives include putting together a comprehensive starter’s guide booklet, starting networking sites online such as Facebook, fitness programs and sports activities, and weekly house-to-house cell group meetings.

Contributed by Daniel Chew

The Strikeforce went from being a group of percussion enthusiasts to a performance group that has appeared before the President. City News talks to the loud bunch.

Household items banging loudly, mad jumping up and down, with the occasional shout. No, this is not your mom doing her daily “thing”. Like the legendary Spartans, these percussion “troopers” possess great discipline, fire in their bones and get this: They crush metal bins with their bare hands. Plus, they have a war cry that could rival those warriors of old.

They are called The Strikeforce, a group started by local entrepreneur Tan Boon, which combines visual dance moves with innovative percussion playing. This ensemble was birthed in 2005, and its inaugural performance was on May Day 2005 at an NTUC dinner event. Guests that evening included Singapore’s Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong and several Cabinet ministers. The SM was very impressed and delighted with their performance. Not bad for a group of 60-strong performers who have had very little music knowledge.

PHOTOS: Daniel Poh, Gary Sim & Michael Chan

The group quickly went on to achieve nationwide status as a premier performing group. The most recent one was for MediaCorp’s Marina Bay Countdown 2008 on 31 December 2008. The Strikeforce has also performed overseas in cities like Osaka, Beijing, Shanghai, Taipei, Phuket and Kuala Lumpur.

City News spoke to Tan to find out how this group, which is made up of men and women of all age, from 12 to 55, has attained such a high performance level so quickly.

CN: The Strikeforce’s performance for SM Goh was a great start! How many people were there in the group then, and how old were they?

T: There were about 20 people, aged from 12 to 55. There was lots of energy — we wanted to include the older members to prove that they can have fun as well too. We wanted to include everyone who wanted to join us.

CN: Why the name The Strikeforce?

T: The word “strike” means to sound by percussion, to smite or blast and also to implant or induce a feeling. “Force” would be something likened to power, intensity, to influence, efficacious power and to make an impression on the mind. This name totally describes our group; plus it has a nice ring to it especially when you watch one of our performances.

CN: I watched one your performances some time last year and it was really powerful! All the hitting and banging made me feel like doing it too! I have seen similar percussion performances but there are various factors that make you guys stand out from the rest.

T: Thanks! We try our best to stay away from conventional rhythms and especially conventional presentation methods for percussion ensemble. Thinking out of the box as well as out of YouTube is very important for us too. However, we are fully convinced that there is nothing new under the sun. Our sources of inspiration are Jesus Christ, our pastor Kong Hee, and we draw ideas from one another during active brainstorming sessions. We try to include world rhythms and fuse them with what we have in mind, and make them our own. Other great musicals such as Blast, Stomp and Recycled Percussion have also inspired us to greater heights of performing.

CN: Tell us about your overseas gigs.

T: We have been to Japan, Taiwan, Thailand, China and Kuala Lumpur for performances. In Beijing China, we performed for the Singapore Tourism Board. That was a really fun time for all of us. We had to put up a huge performance and everyone was really tired but it was all worth the effort. Everyone was thoroughly thrilled to be doing this overseas.

CN: What are your biggest performances locally?

T: In Singapore, we have been part of the Chingay Parade for three years since 2004. We also performed on National Day in 2005 and 2006.

CN: What do you hope to see in the next few years for The Strikeforce?

T: Ideally, we’ll have 200 people in the team. This would include people from all walks of life and background. We are currently helping youth who are at risk and also want to be able to help people with any form of disability. Our style of performing is a bit like Stomp but we are different. We might be working towards getting a DVD out later on but that’s just at the planning stages.

CN: Sounds great! So you are in fact helping those who are less privileged and even those with disabilities? How can anyone out there be part of this group? Any requirements like possessing music background or some form of former training?

T: We hope to foster camaraderie and also allow everyone to experience the discipline and fun of performing in a percussion ensemble. No experience is required but if you have some then it would be great. The most important trait we are looking for is the willingness to learn and to commit. Skill is the least-considered criterion.

Check out The Strikeforce at www.myspace.com/strikeforcesg

What The Strikeforce Has Done:

• Chingay Parade, 2004, 2005, 2006
• National Day Parade, 2005, 2006
• Launch of Vivo City 2006
• Its Showtimelive on Ch 8 Oct, 2006
• Global Day of Prayer 2008
• F1 2008 – 12 performances
• Singapore Drumfest 2008
• World Aids Day Love Amplified Concert 2008
• Marina Bay Countdown 2008
• Osaka , Japan – Midosuji Parade and Marching Band Festival in Oct 2005
• Taipei, Taiwan – Taiwan Emerge 2006
• Phuket, Thailand – Patong Beach Festival in Nov 2006
• Shanghai Beijing, China – STB Singapore Season 07 performing with Sun Ho
• Malaysia – Launch of Nokia 5800 at the Pavilion Jan 2009

Contributed by Pamela Foong

Two youth groups under Audrey Ng, Pastor in City Harvest Church, N440 and N454, came together to organize elective workshops for secondary school and polytechnic students during the term break in March. Conducted from 19 to 20 March at Research University on Leadership at The Riverwalk, the workshops included guitar, dance and DIY card-making classes. These workshops were conducted with the aim of enriching and enhancing the students’ holidays and the teachers came up with fun and creative ways to conduct the classes.

PHOTOS: Pamela Foong

The workshops received an overwhelming response as a total of 51 people attended, out of which 25 were new friends. A finale was also held on the second day and students were required to perform an item which they have learnt during the two-day workshop.

During the guitar class, students learnt songs like ‘Teardrops on my guitar’ by Taylor Swift and ‘Always be my baby’ by David Cook. Instead of teaching the usual hip hop moves, the dance class also kicked it up a notch by introducing locking dance moves, a new genre of dance. In addition, the DIY card-making workshop taught innovative card-making skills like using scrap materials to come up with stunning creations.

The finale was a blast as students gathered together to praise and worship God as well as perform what they have learnt. There was also a special performance by two members who played the song ‘I’m Yours’ by Jason Mraz on the guitar. Most of all, new friendships were forged as members and friends spent quality time with one another.

All in all, everyone had a tremendous time throughout the two days. Many of them picked up a new skill from the workshops and they certainly enjoyed themselves immensely. As the workshops came to a close, many of the new friends had so much fun that they requested for the workshops to be conducted on a regular basis.

If you are a death metal junkie, this movie is for you. If you are a Jap-pop culture vulture with a teeny bopper twist, this movie is for you too. If you are looking for a fresh comic-turned-into-feature-film kind of fun, then you, too, should head down and watch Detroit Metal City.

Ken’ichi Matsuyama (best known as the boy genius “L” from Death Note) showcases his versatility as a small-town farmer boy Negishi Soichi. His mother sums up her son at the very start of the film: “When you were small, you were so gentle that people mistook you for a girl.” At times, the trendy and ever-stylish Negishi proves that to be an understatement.

He leaves his quiet farm town to enroll into university amidst the glitz, culture and trendy-ness of Tokyo City. He pursues his passion for teeny bopper, Swedish-style acoustic guitar pop and in the process, finds his sweetheart at the university singing club.

However, upon graduation and a going of separate ways, the metrosexual Negishi is transformed into Sir Johannes Krauser II — the unholy Death Metal hero of the entire nation.

His band Detroit Metal City is as hardcore as metal bands go, with lead singer Sir Johannes Krauser II spearheading their astronomical rise to death metal super stardom. The dichotomy of Negishi’s hardcore onstage persona and his meek-and-sweet true self is where the tension (and the comedy) originates. This schizoid duality sends him on journey of love, fame and ultimate self-discovery. It is a rough ride for the gentle farmer boy, but viewers will be tickled all the way to the end.

This movie is packed with antics, dialogue and characters that are hilarious in honest-to-goodness comic book fashion. The unusually subversive genre, creativity and comedic vision make this an original worth watching. If all else fails, you may be tempted to buy the soundtrack even though it’s all in Japanese.

Rating:

For every industry, there are awards recognizing outstanding performance or unique qualities. In the small and medium enterprise (SME) industry, one of the most coveted award is The BrandLaureate SME Chapter Awards, which recognizes the “best of brands” in SMEs around Malaysia and the Asia Pacific region.

Organized by the Asia Pacific Brands Foundation, The BrandLaureate SMEs Chapter Awards serves as a platform for winners to enhance their brands more effectively towards becoming a global brand. The brands are able to draw from various consultancy resources and expertise from The BrandLaureates team and events.

Macy Home Furnishings recently walked away at the beginning of 2009 with The Brand Laureate SME Award for the Curtains and Soft Furnishings category 2008. Macy started from its humble beginnings of a single staff member to becoming one of the leaders in the curtain retail business in Malaysia in a span of less than six years.

Besides that, Macy also achieved a deal to sponsor the furnishings of popular sitcom, PCK Ptd Ltd (PCK). In December 2008, PCK’s lead actor Gurmit Singh went for a shoot in Macy’s flagship store in Kuala Lumpur.

Choong Kar Weng (CKW), director of the company, shares with us in an email interview about the key factors behind Macy’s success as well as Macy’s vision for the future.

CN: Tell us more about Macy’s history and the vision of Macy.

CKW: Macy started as mainly retailing curtains in August 2000. About a year later, we added furniture and more home accessories to our business.

Our vision is to raise the aesthetic standard of one’s living environment because we believe that everyone is valuable. The home and office environment help to define a part of that value.

CN: How did the tie-up with PCK occur, and in what specific ways did Macy sponsor them?

CKW: MediaCorp partnered with a local television station in Malaysia for the current season of PCK. They needed a furniture sponsor for their shooting and production for this season which will be filmed in Malaysia. The Malaysian counterpart recommended Macy’s Home Furnishings, and the producer visited us and liked our products.

As a result of that, Macy’s will be providing all the curtains, furniture and home accessories for the next two seasons of PCK.

CN: How was it like having Gurmit Singh visit your store for the photo-shoot?

CKW: Gurmit is a really nice person, nothing like his PCK persona. During our brief encounter, he came across as a polite and very humble person, a great guy.

We didn’t publicize the shoot beforehand, so it was just another usual day of business for us. People at the store were pleasantly surprised to see him, and a small crowd on on-lookers did gather, as expected.

CN: What are your future plans for Macy in the next five years?

CKW: We hope to establish Macy as the leading home furnishings partner and expert to people all over Malaysia and the Asia Pacific region. In order to do that, we need to grow in the quality and quantity of our product and service standards.

CN: What are some difficulties you face in running the business?

CKW: There are always challenges. Like most business, we need more good people and we need more money!

CN: What would you advise other businessmen who wish to model after Macy’s success?

CKW: Don’t model after Macy! It is not in the method or a model. Every business owner must build his business on his own revelation. Then he has to work hard to bring his vision to past. In the meantime, constantly live out your faith and values in consistency with your beliefs. What you say must match what you do.

An army of 3,500 men heeded the clarion call to City Harvest Church’s premises at 1, Jurong West St 91, on Friday night, 27 March.

This gathering of men was indeed a call to war, being the first of two Men’s meetings in 2009, marching under the banner of “Men United, Together Stronger”. The hiatus of five years in City Harvest Church’s annual men’s meetings only served to create five times the explosive energy in this room full of men.

The meeting opened with three macho competitions: singlet-ripping, a mini Ironman exercise circuit and a karate-style wooden panel smashing.

The contest of brawns concluded with host Aries Zulkiarnan lifting the challenge trophy as contestants from Service 2 (Saturday’s service at Singapore Expo) trounced representatives from the other three services. More than a show of physicality, the meeting dived deep into the spiritual as the Christian City Church (CCC) band led the band of worshipers into a time of hairy praise and worship (and not wimpy and whiny worship, which, as the evening’s main speaker Phil Pringle explained, just isn’t manly).

PHOTOS: Gary Sim & Alvin Loh

With the crowd all warmed up, Pringle took the stage and raised King David as an example of a real man, one adept at the harp but also a fearless giant-slayer.

Sharing from the book of Joel, Pringle laid down his fundamental challenge for the evening: To wake up the mighty man within every single male seated in the building. He laid down the premise for the call to arms in how masculinity and manhood within the church has been under siege, suffering the threat of emasculation due to a skewed understanding of Scripture. Pringle worked to reorient the men of City Harvest Church, to enable them to boldly counter problems and awaken the mighty man within, moving from a position of strength to greater strength. Working the fine balance between Godly courage and male chauvinistic bravado, Pringle also reminded the men of their need for accountability and strength.

The meeting left the men of City Harvest burning with a fire in their belly. “Pastor Phil’s sharing was a word in season for me,” said Chew Eng Han. “It stirred up strength in me to face challenges and overcome every single one of them.”