Myra Isabelle Cresson (née Chamarette; 2 November 1904–2005) was a social worker in Singapore. She served as the president of the Inner Wheel Club of Singapore and as the Colony Commissioner of the Singapore Girl Guides Association.
Early life and education
editCresson was born at the Queen Mary Hospital in Hong Kong on 2 November 1904 to a French father and a Portuguese mother living in Macau. She was the younger of two daughters. She and her family moved to Hong Kong, where they remained for several years before moving again to Prinsep Street in Singapore. They later moved to a house on Bencoolen Street. She received her education at the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus.[1]
Career
editCresson was appointed the chairman of the Good Shepherd Convent fancy fair committee, which was established to aid the Good Shepherd Convent's building fund.[2] On 5 August 1948, she was officially appointed the president of the Singaporean branch of the Inner Wheel Club for the wives, sisters, unmarried daughters, mothers and widows of the Rotary Club of Singapore, of which she was a founding member. Her husband was the Rotary Club's president.[3] She served as the club's president until 1949, and was again appointed its president in 1951, serving until the following year.[4] In the absence of Lady Gimson, she acted as the president of the Voluntary Workers of the Children's Social Centres.[5] She also served as the chairman of the committee of the Department of Social Welfare.[6] She was conferred the MBE in 1952 for her contributions to social work in Singapore.[7]
In 1952, Cresson was appointed the founding president of the Girl Guides' Central Local Association. In 1957 she became the first Singaporean Colony Commissioner of the Singapore Girl Guides Association. She served as the association's president until February 1959.[8][4]
Personal life
editCresson married Lionel Cresson in 1926 and moved to Pasir Panjang.[1] Cresson died in 2005.[9]
References
edit- ^ a b "Cresson, Myra Isabelle (Mrs)". nas.gov.sg. National Archives of Singapore. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ "Titled Refugees To Stay In Singapore". The Straits Times. Singapore. 14 October 1948. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ "Husband & Wife Rotary Leaders". The Singapore Free Press. Singapore. 6 August 1948. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ a b "Portrait of Mrs. Myra Cresson, founder of Inner Wheel Club of Singapore". nlb.gov.sg. National Library Board. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ Diemer, Christine (16 December 1951). "Best Christmas Ever For Social Welfare Children". The Sunday Standard. Singapore. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ "20 Children Saw the Blue Waves". The Straits Times. Singapore. 31 August 1952. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ Yap, Jo Lin. "Coffee in the Basement, Tea on the Second Floor: A Short History of John Little at Raffles Place". BiblioAsia. National Library Board. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ Chua, Rebecca (12 March 1985). "Movement that's a Guiding light". The Straits Times. Singapore. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
- ^ Wu, Jialin Christina (17 November 2022). "Sentiments of Childhood: Oral Histories and the Study of Colonial Youth Movements". World History Connected. 19 (3: Fall 2022). George Mason University Press: 8.
Guide Myra Isabelle Cresson (1904-2005)