Metta Dana Project - Burma Disaster Response and Call for Donations
May 13, 2008
Dear Friends and Sangha Members:
All of us in the Vipassana Hawaii community are greatly concerned about
the people in Burma whose lives have been so devastated by the effects
of the cyclone that struck last week. The response of the Burmese
government has been tragically inadequate, making it almost impossible
for international disaster relief agencies to respond quickly and
effectively. Many of you have asked what you can do to help. This
letter and call for donations is offered in response to your kind
offers of assistance.
Our meditation practice has it roots in Theravada Buddhism as learned from the monks and teachers in the monasteries of Burma. The people of Burma, the homeland of our lineage, desperately need our help. Their homes, farms, businesses and entire way of life have been ravaged by this storm. The difficulties faced by those who are attempting to bring in food, drinking water, shelter and health care to those in need are overwhelming. And now an even more devastating crisis is looming in the form of disease epidemics that could result in ten times the death and disease caused initially by the storm. We need your help and generosity now. Time is of the essence.
We chose to wait before sending this communication until our contacts in the region were able to accurately assess the situation on the ground and assure us that the aid we provide will actually get to the people in need; many of whom will not receive aid from other relief organizations. Aid will be needed, not just in the immediate future, but over time as well. As we learned from our experiences providing relief support following the tsunami disaster only a few years ago, there will be a need for a constant flow of supplies and direct assistance over the months and years ahead.
Steven Smith, one of our founding teachers, lives in Thailand and has been active through our Metta Dana Project for many years developing an extensive network of contacts in the region. He is working tirelessly each day to assess the situation and determine how best we can provide assistance. Steven stresses the importance of carefully researching where and when to partner with other organizations as funds could be easily diverted and not get to those who really need it.
Based on Steven’s experience and most recent recommendation, we believe that the most effective way for us to provide aid is through the two Bhikkhu Sangha groups of monks and nuns who are working in Burma and with the Burmese refugees in the border region in Thailand. The Burmese people trust them unconditionally and they will naturally turn to them for help. These Sangha groups are actively providing food, water, shelter and medicine as well as feeding victims spiritually in the Irrawaddy Delta region where damage from the cyclone was the greatest.
For example, Sayadaw U Lakhana, revered monk and meditation master known to many in our Sangha, co-created the Metta Dana Project with Steven in 1995. Sayadaw has already begun a process of sponsoring and taking in cyclone orphaned children from the devastated Delta region to the monasteries in Rangoon. This service using the support we can provide is both a response to the immediate needs of these children and a commitment to care for them over time through their educational years.
Although the Metta Dana Project is not an international disaster relief agency, we feel that our efforts are still critically needed and it is time for our Sangha community to respond. These funds will be distributed wisely based on the recommendations coming from Steven and others in our community who are working closely with him. Please consider making a donation now. We invite all members of the Vipassana Hawaii community to help our Burmese brothers and sisters.
We thank you in advance for your heartfelt response to this call. To make your tax deductible contribution, please send a check payable to Vipassana Hawaii to the address below and note “Metta Dana” on the memo line of the check or in an accompanying letter:
Vipassana Hawaii
PO Box 551681
Kapa’au, HI 96755
For those wishing to make a credit card donation through PayPal, please contact our Executive Director using the form below.
With Metta,
Patrick Linton, Executive Director
On Behalf of the Board of Directors, Teachers and Volunteers of Vipassana Hawaii
