Chinese New Year Celebration
Date: Feb 14th 2010
Location: FGS-NY
Time: 1:30 - 2:30 pm Come Join us!

Photos from dinner with abbess 01-10-2010

Dinner With Abbess - by Brian Cheung

Past and present members of the NY Young Adult Division (YAD) convened at the Fo Guang Shan New York Temple on January 10 to enjoy a Chinese hot pot dinner hosted by the temple’s new Abbess, Ven. Jue Chuan, as a means of getting to know the members of the NY YAD.
More than 30 guests attended the dinner. The night was cold but the food and atmosphere was not. The event was meant to be social and informal; friends reacquainted themselves with those they had not seen in years while there were some who introduced themselves to new faces, hoping to create new friendships. The attendees were split into three groups and participated in games designed to help everyone get to know one another.
Jue Chuan was previously the Abbess at FGS’s temple in North Carolina. She became the Abbess of FGS NY after Yung Ku returned to Taiwan. She gave a short speech to the guests in attendance.
Ven. Miao Hong also spoke with everyone briefly and spoke about the volunteering efforts of Buddha’s Light International Association (BLIA). She spoke of BLIA’s endeavors in Paraguay, Brazil, and in the city of New Orleans, Louisiana after it was devastated by Hurricane Katrina.
One particular old face was that of Justin, a long-time YAD member who had joined the Peace Corps and had just returned from spending three months volunteering in rural India. He spoke about the vast differences between India and America, emphasizing how running water, sanitation, and bathroom facilities were all scarce.
Many more events will be held throughout the year with the hopes many more people will attend.