Have you ever encountered an ‘accidental’ acquaintance in your life who helped open a door to an unexpected happy place or a blessed experience? Ever once in a while, God sends some people to cross our paths unexpectedly and bring a small or major change to our lives. Wesley TIDINGS caught up with Bill Johnston, an annual visitor from the UK to Singapore and Wesley Methodist Church. Read on to find out how 85-year-old Bill, who first came to Singapore in 1963 when he was appointed as an assistant teacher, ended up returning to Singapore from the UK to visit Wesley almost every year since 1993.
Thank you, Bill, for this interview. Please share with us how you first came to Wesley Methodist Church.
In the 1960s, when I was sent by the British government to teach in Singapore, I used to attend St George’s Church on Minden Road in Tanglin. I left Singapore in 1969. In 1993, I returned to Singapore for a visit and had returned to St George’s Church for their 11am service, since that was the church, I attended when I lived in Singapore. But the people there were, by then, all strangers to me. The subsequent week I was here that year, I decided to go visit St George’s again. In those days I stayed at the YMCA on Orchard and would go to the McDonald’s on the ground floor for breakfast. On that particular Sunday, after I had my breakfast, I had returned to my room to freshen up to get ready to go to St George’s Church but had found the housekeeper was still cleaning up the room. So, I went back down to McDonald’s to give her more time to finish up her work. As I sat there, impatiently tapping my fingers because I was running late for the service at St George’s, I must have looked grumpy. It must have been providential because three girls, who later told me they were from Methodist Girls’ School (MGS), came over to ask if I was okay. When I told them I was going to be too late for the service at St George’s off Tanglin, they asked me, “Why don’t you come to our church, Wesley Methodist Church? It’s only a short walk around the corner, and the service doesn’t begin until 11.30am.” The three girls then took me to their Church across the road, from the back of YMCA. The rest is history.
What a nice story, Bill. Thanks for sharing that with us. Please tell us more about the three girls from Methodist Girls’ School. Have you been worshipping at Wesley since then whenever you returned to Singapore?
The girls, who were in secondary two or three, told me they recognised me because I had begun filming up at Mount Sophia, where their school was temporarily based while the new site at Blackmore Drive was being built. I have been worshipping at Wesley since that day – God had planned for me to meet those three MGS girls in 1993 who introduced me to Wesley.
How often do you return to Wesley now?
I still return to what is to me my ‘second home’ — Singapore — to visit the friends I have made at various schools where I filmed every year until around 2008. Each time, I made sure that I would be here on at least one Sunday so that I could enjoy the worship and singing at Wesley Methodist Church.
Please share with us how you first came to Singapore.
I first arrived in Singapore in early September 1963, just in time to go out into the streets to wave a little Malaysian flag to celebrate Singapore’s independence. I had been appointed an assistant teacher at what was then called Pasir Panjang Junior School in Portsdown Road, one of the many primary and secondary schools catering for the children of the many British military servicemen stationed in Singapore at a time when there were threats of war in the region. There was a small number of Australian and Gurkha children along other British children. My school, which is exactly where Tanglin Trust School now stands, was later renamed Wessex Junior School (since it was sited on Wessex Estate). My wife Norma taught at Alexandra Junior School, next to what was then the Nepal Circus, where North Buona Vista Road meets Portsdown Road.
What were your six years living in Singapore like?
It was good. Our first two children were born in the British Military (now Alexandra) Hospital. We made lifelong friends with other teachers, and we meet up at least twice a year with two couples whom we first welcomed to the school in 1964 — friendships which have so far lasted 59 years. Some 14 years ago, several children I taught between 1964 and 1965 got in contact, and those eight-year-olds have become dear friends too. My wife and I count the six years we lived in Singapore as among the happiest of our lives.
What did you do after you left Singapore?
To be closer to our ageing relatives in England, we transferred to what was then West Germany, where there were almost 100 primary and secondary schools for the children of British servicemen stationed there. In 1973, I became the principal of a large primary school. In 1975, after 12 years overseas, we returned to England where I was appointed principal of a brand-new school in the East Midlands. In 1989, I took early retirement to become the “Video Man” after making a number of short videos to show teachers how the then-new national curriculum worked. I then made a series of short videos showing “life as it really is” in a number of secondary schools in different parts of the UK.
When did you return to Singapore after you left in 1969?
Norma and I returned in 1988, staggered by the changes in Singapore over the previous 19 years. The following year we brought our children Catherine and Paul, who were born in Singapore, to show them where we lived, a small 12-apartment block in St Thomas Walk and a bungalow at Jalan Jelita. Because we had left when they were three and one respectively, they had no memories of life in Singapore but were very impressed. In 1992, we flew to Japan to visit Paul, who was teaching English there, and on the way back stopped over in Singapore. Norma had to hurry back home as she was still a primary school principal, but I stayed on for a few days.
God must have planned it out for me because one morning I read in The Straits Times that some of the Singapore schools were being given more autonomy in entry requirements, curriculum and other matters. So off I went to the Ministry of Education to pick up a copy of the book containing all the school details. On my return to the UK, I wrote to a number of Singapore principals outlining my video activities and asked if they would be interested in a similar project. Some of the schools such as St Joseph’s Institution, Singapore Chinese Girls’ School and Methodist Girls’ School responded, and I started returning here.
What did you showcase in the videos?
I documented everyday life, lessons and activities in schools. Having been a teacher and principal for 32 years, I have a special empathy for children, and my videos always depict school life in a positive, natural light. The two pictures here, separated by 12,070 kilometres and 28 years, would support my objective and promise to the schools!
Let’s circle back to your experiences at Wesley. What were your experiences worshipping at Wesley like?
My first worship experience in Wesley was so enjoyable and fulfilling that I never thought of going to any other church whenever I am in Singapore. Although I have made no friends at the church since I first stepped into Wesley in 1993, I have always been warmly welcomed by the ushers and pastors each time I come back. The presence of God is best felt through the love of His people. One of the ushers, Wong Tien Poh, was a gentleman with the nickname of ‘the bishop’; each time I returned to Wesley, he would come over to greet me with a big smile and warm handshake. I missed him after he passed away some years ago. And Peter Chow, another friendly usher, has given me a number of beautifully made animal and bird origami and tangrams.
What draws you particularly to the worship services here?
The friendly ushers and the singing at Wesley are just superb. If the congregation is unsure of a new tune, by the third verse they are singing with gusto (and I can sing my tenor line covered over by their voices). When I returned in September in 2023, I noticed that all the hymns had the words shown on the screen, but I still picked up my hymn book to sing my part. I’ve seen the church building expanded more than once since 1993. I must say I am very impressed by the number of worshippers each Sunday. I was a little saddened when I saw the screen advising people not to leave handbags and other personal possessions in their pews when they went for Communion. And yes, given the era I am from, I missed the hard copies of Wesley Weekly, although I can read it on the Wesley website. It still feels so familiar and friendly whenever I return to Wesley.
How and where do you see the Lord’s handprints in your ‘second home’ here in Singapore?
I have so many wonderful memories here because the Lord meant me to be here in Singapore on the day news of increasing autonomy was being given to certain schools — it wasn’t a coincidence! It made me quickly realise that my video recording and editing skills could help some of the schools here preserve a unique visual record of their daily lives. I should say my relationship with Singapore is almost unique: I can talk to people of my age about the “old days” when policemen wore short trousers and taxis had no air conditioning; and to present-day friends and taxi drivers about any period since 1963. When I can, in Singapore, I always rent a bike in East Coast Park and enjoy the amazing Park Connector Network — whatever the weather! One place I always visit for a quick, satisfying and cheap meal is Zam Zam near Arab Street.
The Lord has given me this wonderful continuing connection and amazing surprises. The most recent one was at the 7-Eleven store opposite my hotel where I popped out before breakfast to buy a copy of theStraits Times—which I read every day in England on my tablet. On the day of my return to England, I told the always smiling shopkeeper that I wouldn’t be coming in the next day; he told me he loved me and would miss me. God has given me the nickname ‘Mr Happy’, which I am known by in a number of schools because of the badge I always wear, and mostly because of my ability to talk and listen to everyone I meet and make connections. Through an amazing connection in the village where I lived, I have also driven a superbus here before, I bet there can’t be any other Englishman who had ever driven a Superbus around the Driver Training circuit!
My wife and I are both 85 now but continue to be great travellers. Last month, I just met up with some of the students I taught in Singapore when they were eight years old — they are now fast approaching their seventies! Finally, I hope I will be back in Singapore again in 2024, God willing, because I already have some wedding, school and social invitations waiting for me. And of course, to attend the worship service at Wesley Methodist Church, the Church on the little hill. Singapore will always be my second home, and Wesley Methodist Church will always have a special place in my heart.
Photos courtesy of Bill Johnston
Are you one of the three MGS girls who approached Mr Bill Johnston at the McDonald’s at YMCA around January to March in 1993, and invited him to Wesley Methodist Church? Or do you think you might know who the three girls are? If so, Mr Johnston would like to hear from you, please get in touch with us at commswesley@wesleymc.org.
