Volunteers pose with flood victims in Hendersen, Auckland, after delivering meals to them. Zhang Li-zhen
New Zealand
Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand, was pounded by severe flooding triggered by days of downpours in January 2023. An entire summer’s worth of rain fell within one day, on January 27. Floodwaters swept through streets and down highways, causing havoc in the city and killing four people. The devastating flood was described as “the biggest climate event” in New Zealand’s history.
After visiting shelters and assessing conditions in the disaster area, Tzu Chi volunteers decided to prepare boxed meals for affected families. The floods had left many households without running water and electricity, making it difficult for them to cook their meals. Volunteers decided to provide a meal a day from January 31 to February 5, while many people would be busy cleaning up their homes. They focused their meal service on families living in low-lying sections on Chilcott Road and Clover Drive in Hendersen, an especially hard-hit area.
Food prepared by culinary volunteers was distributed door-to-door late every afternoon during the six days. Flood victim Mr. Zhou was from China. He told the volunteers delivering meals to him that he and his wife had had difficulty falling asleep at night since the deluge because they were afraid that rushing waters would come and sweep them away when they were sound asleep. He expressed his gratitude to the volunteers for their care during this difficult time. He said that it was troublesome for them to cook right now because their car and cooking equipment had been ruined in the floods. There were so many things to take care of every day they didn’t have the mood to even think about eating. Tzu Chi’s meal service had therefore come at a good time. “You’ve been coming every day,” he said to the volunteers. “I can really feel your care for us.”
“Thank you!” said Napoleone, another flood victim, to the volunteers delivering meals to him. He was busy cleaning his home but was very happy to see the volunteers again. A volunteer gave him a Tzu Chi coin bank and encouraged him to save money in it to be used for charitable purposes, sharing with him how small sums of money, when put together, can do great good. Napoleone said he’d give the coin bank to his daughter and save money in it with her. “The coin bank will remind me of you and your kindness,” he said.
Volunteers were happy whenever they saw how much the recipients loved the meals they received. When a little girl learned that the food they had received that day was chow mein, her and her family’s favorite, she dove into her share of the noodles before the volunteers had even left her home. A woman, Bernadette, was a vegetarian. She exclaimed, “Perfect!” when she learned that the food Tzu Chi was serving was meatless.
Volunteers delivered nearly 400 boxed meals during the six days. On February 5, whey they made their delivery to a woman and told her it’d be the last day of their meal service, the woman’s eyes brimmed with tears. She hugged the volunteers and said, “Thank you. I’ll miss you.”
Volunteers prepare meals to be distributed to flood victims in Hendersen, West Auckland, New Zealand. Zhang Li-zhen
A fishpond used by a family to relieve themselves Arimami Suryo Asmoro
Indonesia
Tzu Chi Indonesia, the Sinar Mas Group, and local governments in the province of Central Java combined forces to launch a program aimed at reducing extreme poverty in five regencies in the province. Part of the program is to build 3,500 toilets for private homes. More than 1,900 of these toilets had been completed by the end of 2022. The rest are scheduled to be finished by mid-2023.
Many families in the rural areas of Banjanegara Regency, Central Java, are too poor to build bathrooms for themselves. They either dug holes near their homes to use as pit latrines, relieved themselves directly into fishponds, or employed other means to answer nature’s call. As a result, there were frequent incidents of people getting bitten by insects or snakes when they relieved themselves outdoors. It was also extremely inconvenient for them when they needed to go at night or on rainy days.
Karyono, a miner, and his wife, Jasiem, a farmhand, are among the beneficiaries of the building project. After a long wait of 40 years, they no longer had to endure the inconveniences of answering nature’s call out in nature. They can now go to the bathroom in the safety and comfort of their own toilet.
Karyono (first from left) and his family pose in front of their new toilet. Arimami Suryo Asmoro
A volunteer helps an aid recipient with limited mobility carry goods he received at a distribution held by Tzu Chi Thailand for refugees on December 22, 2022. Datchanee Suratep
Thailand
Tzu Chi Thailand held two distributions in Bangkok for refugees on December 21 and 22, 2022, helping 1,667 families.
Volunteers gathered before the distributions to pack the food and other daily necessities to be given out. Lan Yu-huei (藍玉惠) was among those participating in the packing event. “Life isn’t easy for refugees in the country,” she said. “Unable to obtain legal identification, they aren’t allowed to work. I always volunteer to help whenever I hear that Tzu Chi is distributing aid to this group of people.”
Arooj Ayaz, from Pakistan, was one of those who benefited from the distributions. She and her husband had arrived in Thailand five months before. She had helped a person in her home country who was suffering from violence, and as a result, became a target of violence herself. Fearful for her own life, she decided to flee to Thailand with her husband. “Though getting by here isn’t easy, at least my life isn’t in danger,” she said. “This has been the first time I’ve received help from Tzu Chi. I’m happy to encounter an organization like Tzu Chi, which helps people regardless of their ethnicity or religion.”
Daraz, also from Pakistan, is 58 and lives alone. With the supplies and cash aid from Tzu Chi in hand, he was full of gratitude for the foundation. He said he would use the cash to pay his rent. Tzu Chi has helped him in other ways too. He suffers from several chronic illnesses and has to take a lot of medicine every month, which, if he has to pay for himself, would cost him a lot of money. Fortunately, Tzu Chi’s free clinic center has been able to help him in that area. In addition, via a referral service from the free clinic center, he underwent surgery at a hospital a while ago to have the small toe on his left foot removed. His doctor told him that his life would have been in grave danger if he hadn’t had the amputation done in time. He thanked Tzu Chi for the help that time too at the distribution venue.
Suwannaree arrived at the venue after taking three buses. She and her four children had escaped from Cambodia to Thailand 18 years before. Her family now includes her four children, a daughter-in-law, and two grandchildren. “I’m at ease now, having received the supplies and cash from Tzu Chi,” she said, her voice catching with emotion. “I’ll use the money to buy baby formula for my grandchildren. Thank you to Master Cheng Yen and all Tzu Chi volunteers around the world for their care for refugees.”
A refugee signs to receive cash aid from Tzu Chi Thailand after a volunteer checked her identity at a distribution on December 21, 2022. Pinticha Jansuksri
Poland
Millions of people have fled from Ukraine since Russia invaded the country in February 2022. They weren’t able to bring many things with them when they left, and it’s been difficult for them to get by in a foreign country. Older people, persons with disabilities, and women with children are especially in need of help.
Tzu Chi has continued to aid Ukrainian refugees in Poland. For example, in Poznań, west-central Poland, volunteers hold distributions regularly to help needy Ukrainian families cope. Volunteers also deliver aid to those families who can’t come to the distributions.
On December 17, 2022, Tzu Chi conducted another distribution in Poznań, giving out cash cards to 53 families, benefiting 106 people. Those who qualified for the aid included single mothers with two or more children, seniors older than 65, families with one or more disabled members, and/or households with two or fewer people who can work.
Volunteers respectfully handed over the aid to representatives from the participating families during the distribution, then wished them the best and gave them hugs. Ksenia Mazur, a Ukrainian volunteer, encouraged her fellow compatriots by saying, “Though a tragedy is going on in Ukraine, we must still live our lives the best we can and never lose hope for the future.” To thank Tzu Chi volunteers for their help, some refugees brought gifts for them, including embroidered work, knitted socks, and home-baked cake. The volunteers were deeply moved.
As the war drags on into its second year, it is everyone’s sincerest hope that peace will soon descend on Ukraine and allow the nation’s citizens to freely live under the blue sky in their own country.
