Back to basics: Yarrow trying his hand at weaving a basket with the help of Hairul Haris, 37, during his visit to Jaro as his wife Gilly, Pulai MP Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed, Jaro chairman Datuk Jimmy Low Boon Hong (right) and Jaro honorary secretary Sumedha Sehgal (left) look on. — Bernama
JOHOR BARU: “Saya adalah orang Malaysia (I’m Malaysian)” were the first few words uttered by the Lord Mayor of London Alan Yarrow as he addressed a crowd here.
Yarrow, who visited the Johor Area Rehabilitation Organisation (Jaro) here yesterday with his wife Gilly, was on a two-day working visit to Malaysia, with a special tour to this city.
This is because he was born here in 1951, and it was here that he spent his first six years, staying in a colonial bungalow near Bukit Serene with his family.
As for Jaro, Yarrow said the organisation held fond memories for him as his mother Paula Yarrow was one of the volunteers at the centre.
The centre was set up in 1952 for tuberculosis patients, but it was later changed to a centre for the disabled, with the place now hiring 60 disabled persons doing handicraft works.
“I can still remember a few Malay words like tutup pintu (close the door) and susu(milk).
“I enjoyed climbing coconut trees in front of our house here and we frequently had cobras entering our house,” said Yarrow.
Yarrow said his last visit to Johor Baru was about six years ago, where he took the opportunity to visit the family’s former dwelling place.
His father Colin founded Metalbox – a canning factory in Singapore – in 1948.
Yarrow, who commented that Johor Baru had changed a lot since his childhood, also donated around RM11,000 to Jaro, before adding that charitable organisations were close to his heart as his 34-year-old son Max suffers from cerebral palsy.
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