Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation

On August 3, 26 families moved into a new village in southern Taiwan which the foundation has built for the survivors of Typhoon Morakot a year ago. It is one of four ‘Great Love’ villages in the south of the island, which have a total of nearly 1,000 new homes given to 4,500 people.

It was a festive atmosphere on Tuesday afternoon in the Yujing Great Love village in Tainan County, where Prime Minister Wu Dunyi, Tainan County chief Su Huanzhi and Lin Biyu, vice-president of the foundation, joined the families moving into their new homes. For the families, it was one of the most important days in their life; after the trauma of losing their home and, for many, all of their possessions in the typhoon on August 8 last year, they were able to move into a new home which will be resist the typhoons and earthquakes of the future. They were full of gratitude to the foundation for making this possible; the four villages were built with funds raised from members of the foundation in 52 countries around the world.

Work began on the site on March 21 this year, on an area covering 1.95 hectares. It contains not only the homes of the 26 families but also a community centre, a market and a sand-filled surface that can absorb the heavy rain that falls in southern Taiwan. Ahead of the opening, volunteers made meticulous preparation household equipment for each home; they also bought apples, oranges and other foodstuffs as a gift for the new arrivals.

Prime Minister Wu presented a plaque to the village’s community centre, inscribed with words of Master Cheng Yen at the time of last year’s typhoon. He said that the typhoon had brought disaster to people but the love of the foundation had come to help them. He wished them the very best for their new life and encouraged them to build a community in which the residents provided warmth and support for each other. In her remarks, Vice-President Lin said that, for the residents, it was the happiest day of their life.
 “The greatest wish of Master Cheng Yen is that each family can make a safe and happy home for themselves.” She then presented to each family the keys for their new houses, as well as a book with a record of Typhoon Morakot and other gifts from the foundation. A representative of the Ministry of the Interior presented a gift of money to each family.

They were full of gratitude for all they have received. Chen Yuying, a Vietnamese woman who moved here 14 years ago to marry a Taiwanese, expressed her gratitude by providing Vietnamese coffee and other dishes from her homeland. Another, He Dahua, set up a coffee stall, on which he brewed 500 cups to present to the guests.

“I grew the coffee beans myself, without pesticides, and ground them with my own hands. It is my way of saying thank you for all that we have received,” He said.

For the residents and the guests alike, it was a day of happiness and gratitude.